The Spiritual Canticle is one of St John's greatest works. Using the simple metaphor of the spouse and the bride, he sketches a series of dialogues between God and the soul, rihc in natural imagery. The fragrant vineyards, fruitful valleys and green hills, flocks of sheep and clear streams all speak of the Object of mystical love. The images of the basic Spiritual Canticle are so beautiful and its music so captivating that many who first heard it begged St John to write a commentary, together with its profound reflections on the relations of the soul to God, has become one of the world's richest sources of meditation. The commentary and the sublime poetry that inspired them form what is presented here as the complete Spiritual Canticle.

Revised edition of an abridged and annotated version of this classic religious work, first published in 1980. Prepared by a Carmelite priest who has published a number of simplified versions of religious classics. Presents the text of the poem and a lengthy and richly detailed explanation of the work.

In 1578, during months of imprisonment for his reformist beliefs, San Juan de la Cruz composed a series of narrative poems inspired by the Biblical Song of Songs—and, the story goes, a popular love song overheard from his cramped cell—that take God as the beloved. Erotically charged, initially scandalous, his mystical poetry engages with the journey of the soul through the darkest trenches of suffering and despair toward an enlightened spiritual connection with God. For hundreds of years, these poems have resonated deeply with those who search for meaning in the dark, and have influenced generations of poets, artists, and philosophers. This bilingual edition of the Complete Poems—including “Dark Night” and both the Sanlúcar and Jaén manuscripts of “Spiritual Canticle”—presents an intimate and exceptionally collaborative new translation from María Baranda and Paul Hoover. Baranda, one of the most distinguished Mexican poets of her generation, lends her deft hand with expansive, meditative poetry. Hoover—the accomplished American poet, editor, and translator—offers his dexterity with form and the possibilities of language. The product is uniquely faithful to image and idea, and loyal to the ecstatic lyricism of this canonical text. A volume that hums with the soul’s longing to find solace, The Complete Poems of San Juan de la Cruz is a collection to be treasured.

Despite their importance, the poems of St. Thérèse of Lisieux are among the least known of her writings, previously available only in highly edited selections. Here for the first time in English is the complete collection of Thérèse's poetry, faithfully translated from the French critical edition by Donald Kinney, O.C.D. Also included are a preface by Jean Guitton, a general introduction to Thérèse's spiritual and poetic development, 6 photos, and individual introductions to each of the poems, indicating its background and significance. The volume closes with the French text of the poems and a fully linked index to their major themes and images. Together with the ICS Publications editions of Thérèse of Lisieux's Story of a Soul, Last Conversations, Letters, Plays, and Prayers, this is an indispensible work for all those who love the life and spiritual message of "the greatest saint of modern times."

A collection of some of the words of scripture spoken by Jesus the Christ to the world, put in poetry format, not as narrative as originally given.