This disquiet is such that I know not whence it comes: only the soul seems to resist, is troubled and distressed, without knowing why; for the words of Satan are good, and not evil. I ask myself whether this may be so because one spirit is conscious of the presence of another (Life 237).
For Marcel Lepee, this is one of those astonishing phrases that her genius let fall lightly from her pen, for she is able to distinguish that which comes from ourselves from that which is added, from all that comes from another. "Her spirit tended to God, and another spirit would turn her away from Him . . . so it shuddered through and through at this hideous contact" (Satan, 99).
These spiritual encounters occur only in persons so advanced in perfection and so purified by sufferings and trials that they acquire a little of the knowledge that corresponds to spiritual beings, which penetrates all beings, as Paul says and John of the Cross explains: "The soul with universality and great facility perceives and penetrates everything earthly or heavenly presented to it. Hence the Apostle says that the spiritual man penetrates all things, even the deep things of God (1 Cor. 2:10)" (Dark Night, 345). This is the characteristic of the spirit purged and annihilated of all particular knowledge and affection, which is the spirit of contemplation in its higher states.
Humility and Demons
For John of the Cross, a soul that expects to overcome the devil's "strength" will be unable to do so without prayer. Yet to understand his "deceits," the soul needs humility -- for the devil is the sworn enemy of humility. The Spanish mystic notes that the devil's bait is pride, especially the pride that arises from spiritual presumption.
Holy souls must be cautious about any kind of revelations, for the devil usually meddles in them and "joins together so many apparent and appropriate facts, and implants them so firmly in the imagination, that it seems that every event will undoubtedly occur" (345). If the soul has no humility, it will not be torn from its opinion and believe the contrary. Teresa says that demons even use the image of Christ or his saints to foster false devotion. But the visions of the devil do no harm if there is humility:
For my own part, I believe that His Majesty will not allow him, or give him the power, to deceive anyone with such appearances unless the person himself be to blame .... I mean that for humble souls no deception is possible (Foundations, 41).
Faith and Demons
The foundation of the Christian religion is faith. Errors and lies will be spread by demons to try to undermine this foundation. For Teresa, the devil -- altogether a liar -- can play many tricks, but "God will not permit him to deceive a soul which has no trust whatever in itself, and is strengthened in faith" (238).
John of the Cross is even more emphatic and advises that, for the devil, the light of faith is worse than darkness.
When the soul is clothed in faith the devil is ignorant of how to hinder it, neither is he successful in his efforts, for faith gives the soul strong protection against the devil, who is the mightiest and most astute enemy. As a result, St. Peter found no greater safeguard than faith in freeing himself from the devil, when he advised "Cui resistite fortes in fidei"(1 Pet. 5:9) (Dark Night, 376).
To foster the obscurity of pure faith, the spiritual director must be careful not to foster visions, locutions, prophecies, or other kinds of extraordinary phenomena. Although these phenomena are sometimes from God, they are more often from the devil. For John of the Cross this danger was real. He understood that the devil can present to the memory many false ideas under the guise of truth, making these ideas seem so certain that the soul thinks they cannot be false, but that what it feels is in accord with truth (Ascent, 227).
The Devil and the State of Perfect Union with God
After spiritually purified souls reach the state of perfect union with God through love in the "seventh mansion," the diabolic temptations are over, and demons are afraid of them. "Nor did Aminadab appear," John says in the end of the Spiritual Canticle. Aminadab symbolizes the devil, and in this state the soul is so favored, so strong and victorious that the devil knows he has lost the battle. At this stage, the devil flees in immense fear and does not venture to reappear. Teresa, also victorious, perceived that the devil was terrified of her, but not she of the devil:
[Devils] seem to be afraid of me. I have acquired an authority over them, bestowed upon me by the Lord of all, so that they are no more trouble to me; now they fly (Life 242).
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