Hildegard Of Bingen: Mystical Writings

by Hildegard von Bingen, Fiona Bowie (Editor), Oliver Davies (Editor)

The astonishing freshness and variety of this selection from the work of Hildegard of Bingen demonstrates triumphantly why this twelfth-century Benedictine mystic has come to be reconized as one of the most remarkable and versatile women of the middle ages.

Genres: Religion, History, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Medieval, Germany

157 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

born circa 1098

People revered Saint Hildegard von Bingen, German nun, composer, and a visionary, during her own lifetime; she set her poems to music and also wrote works on medicine and natural history.

People also knew this philosopher, Christian mystic, Benedictine abbess, and polymath as Sibyl of the Rhine. Her fellows elected her as a magistra in 1136; she founded the monasteries of Rupertsberg in 1150 and Eibingen in 1165. The Ordo Virtutum exemplifies early liturgical drama.

Her theological and botanical texts, letters, liturgical songs, and arguably the oldest morality play, well survive; she meanwhile supervised brilliant miniature Illuminations.

Reviews

[Heidi (MinxyD14)]

**Adding to TBR shelf after reading 'The First Composer' by Alex Ross (The New Yorker, 6 Feb 2023)

[booklady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating collection of her writings--dreams, visions, comparisons, poetry and conversations. Gives a background of her life and the major events which often gave rise to the setting and contextual meaning of her mystical writings. Each selection is so very different from the next that they are hard to classify and need to be experienced. She was a fascinating woman; I would have loved to have known her!

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I sat with this book for many days, pondering the nature of the divine tends to require slowing down and really absorbing what you are reading. I was also sitting on a federal petit jury during the week, weighing the evidence put in front of us and it was mentally exhausting. I don’t know that I’m any fonder of Hildegard now, but I do feel closer to a forebear in my faith. She was no nonsense in a really fun way, and I wish her books read as her letters do, I think they would be much more accessible, but I also understand the intense societal pressure to create as formal a writing as possible. Best of all to me, although they come to it from slightly different angles, she and Carl Sagan agree that we are in fact all made of star stuff.

Full review: https://faintingviolet.wordpress.com/...

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really nice collection of selections from her writings. I only wish there were a bit more, or more inclusion of the illustrations of her visions that might help the reader follow when she is describing them.

[Ingrid · Rating 2 out of 5]

This slim volume provides a broad overview of Hildegard von Bingen’s life and writings. The first half of the book consists of a serviceable biography and an analysis of the major themes of her writing, and the second half is devoted to brief excerpts from von Bingen’s visionary books, medical treatise, poems, and letters. Von Bingen is not a terribly innovative or eloquent writer, and she leans heavily on repetitive nature imagery and the framework of the four elements. Her writings are more interesting as historical artifacts of medieval thought than as great works on their own merits.

[Joe Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic writings of Hildegard.

Highly Recommended.

Check out www.hildegardchristianmystic.com
for more one Hildegard!

God Bless,

[Ephrem Arcement · Rating 4 out of 5]

With a fine introduction, this collection of the mystical writings of St. Hildegard is a perfect place to begin.

[John]

religion,nonfiction,meditation

[Trunks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Books!

Check out www.hildegardchristianmystic.com

Enjoy!