St. John of the Cross
- Feast Day: December 14
- Patron Saint of …
- Mass Readings
- Poetry
- Activities
About St. John of the Cross
Feast Day: December 14
St. John of the Cross was a sixteenth century mystic and poet who worked with St. Teresa of Avila to reform the Carmelite order. He faced opposition and even imprisonment for his work.
Patron Saint of …
St. John of the Cross is the patron saint of contemplatives, mystics, and Spanish poets.
Mass Readings for the Memorial of Saint John of the Cross, Priest and Doctor of the Church
- First Reading – 1 Corinthians 2:1-10ar 4:7b-11: “When I came to you, brothers and sisters, proclaiming the mystery of God, I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”
- Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 37: “The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.”
- Gospel – Luke 14:25-33: “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”
Poetry
During his time in prison, he composed a poem called the Spiritual Canticle. Part of this poem goes:
“We must dig deeply in Christ. He is like a rich mine with many pockets containing treasures: however deep we dig we will never find their end or their limit. Indeed, in every pocket new seams of fresh riches are discovered on all sides.”
This portion can be a beautiful prayer on its own.
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Activities
So one way to introduce St. John of the Cross and his beautiful poetry to very young children is to accompany it with a few mining activities. Also talk about the treasures we can find when we “dig deeply into Christ.”
Pan for Gold
Teach your children the prayer and then have them find their own treasures by panning for “gold”. The gold in this activity are painted rocks. Mix them in a sandbox and then let your kids use traditional panning methods to separate out the “gold”. Read how to do this activity.
Make a gem mosaic
Purchase some inexpensive sparkly mosaic tiles. Let children arrange them and glue them onto cardboard or photo frames. Give them away as a gift to remind a friend or loved one that they are a treasure.
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Play Rock On!
This game combines game play and rock collecting. Kids can learn about geology, have fun, and learn to appreciate the wonders of God’s creation all at once. Great for your STREAM curriculum (Science Technology Religion Engineering Art and Mathematics). Don’t forget to tie it in with the prayer above about mining and how digging deeply into Christ can help us find beauty in the rocks in our lives.