The desert of bare faith and bare love.

The Book of the First Monks

The "Book of the First Monks" was likely published in Latin by Felip Ribot, the Catalan provincial, between 1380 and 1390. Ribot drew upon a collection of older texts and essentially retold the history of the Carmelite Order from Elijah to their relocation to Europe. To lend credibility to his account, he dated this work to the early 5th century: it was allegedly written by the patriarch of Jerusalem, John XXII, in the year 420 and dedicated to a certain monk Caprasius.

Since the 14th century, the Carmelites began to regard Elijah as the founder of the order. The "Book of the First Monks" is based on this assumption. Although the order at that time already belonged to the mendicants (begging orders), it continued to be aware of its hermitic spirituality. The reverence for the anchorite Elijah as the "Father of the Order" deepened themes in the lives of the brothers such as "desert," "solitude," and "detachment." Although the Carmelites had long since left the physical desert of their origin, they discovered a "spiritual desert" in their hearts: the desert of bare faith and bare love. The contemplative life became for them a process of ever deeper and more complete "self-denial": emptied of their own interests and needs, they became open and free for unconditional, selfless love; the desert proved to be a space in which God could be born.

Practice my commandments and counsel. Do not just drive away unclean thoughts and selfish desires that stand in the way of my love but avoid everything that could weaken and dull your love for me. Be attentive to what strengthens your love for me and helps you love me with perfect, boundless love. When you unite with me so intimately, when no desire arises in you that does not correspond to this love or hinders it, then you will love me with all your heart and will be hidden in Kerith (1), in love.

All this will fill your heart with such great peace and unite it with me in such a way that nothing in it will stand in the way of my love. Your heart will rest entirely in my love. Such a heart is pure from every sin and is hidden in Kerith, in love, as the sage says: "Love covers all transgressions" (Prov 10:12b).

When you have reached this goal of the prophetic hermitic life and are hidden in Kerith, in love, you will drink from the brook. In such perfect union with me, I will let you and your companions drink from the spring of which the prophet said: "From the brook of your delights, you give them to drink" (Ps 36:9).

God will give you instead of land, instead of what people value, instead of the riches you have left, flint, that is, strong, burning love. Flint is a hard stone from which fire is struck. It is a symbol of perfect love, of which the sage says: "For love is as strong as death, jealousy is as cruel as the grave; its flames are flames of fire, a most vehement flame" (Song 8:6).

As a reward for the flint, for the strong and perfect love in which you have practiced, God will give you "golden streams," inexpressible, sweet spiritual joys. Of these, Scripture says: "What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered into the heart of man, God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Cor 2:9; cf. Isa 64:3; cf. 65:17). These joys are called streams because they overwhelmed the prophet's spirit mightily like a rushing river: "The fountain of wisdom is like a mighty, rushing stream" (cf. Prov 18:4).

However, just as a brook quickly dries up in the heat of the sun, so too do these joys dry up in the prophet's being as soon as some selfish desire arises in him. These joys are indeed golden streams, shining with the heat of God's love, from which they flowed to the prophet; they shine with the clear knowledge of God that is mysteriously bestowed upon the man-prophet, as the Lord says: "He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him" (cf. John 14:21).

(1) The author alludes to the similarity between the name of the brook "Kerith" (Latin: karith) and the Latin word "caritas" (love).

Adapted from the book: Tanz der göttlichen Liebe
Published by: Elisabeth Hense, T.OCarm.
Published by: Herder, 1991
Translated by: Norbert Žuška, OCarm.