Description

Boydell Press 1st 1992
8vo, v sl wr + v v min crsing to d/w, prev owner's book plate to
fep o/w F/VG++ 490 gms
(Order reference 11895).

This book is a study of three medieval women, Hildegard of Bingen, Mechthild of Magdeburg, and Julian of Norwich, all of whom were mystics. Although they differed radically in temperament, they largely transcended the antifeminism of their times – perhaps as a result of the confidence arising from their extraordinary spiritual experiences – and articulated their special revelations, even when they diverged from orthodox doctrine, in their writings.

Each of the writers displays her `womanliness' in a variety of ways ?Hildegard by the inclusion of grand female figures such as Ecclesia and Synagogue, MechthiId by the elevation of the Virgin to divine status, equal to her son, and Julian by her understanding of the motherhood of God. Their individual natures are also further revealed through the author's examination of their resolution of a number of theological problems. By contrast, the works of two medieval men writing for women are also explored, for an indication of the degree to which their approach might be informed by antifeminism, and to compare their approach to the experience of union with that of Hildegard, Mechthild or Julian.