By Eliana Greenberg and Koren Whipp
Juliana of Norwich c. 1343-c. 1416
The exact dates of the life of Juliana, or Julian, are unknown.[1] Little is known of her lineage or family history. She spent most of her life as an anchoret in Norwich, a city in East Anglia, in the modern county of Norfolk. During the Middle Ages, Norwich was an important center of religious life. As an anchoret, Juliana lived a life of extreme contemplation, cloistered in a small cell and isolated from society. Research indicates that she did have a certain amount of necessary interaction with the outside community, however, such as receiving gifts and dispensing wisdom.[2]
Around 1373, at the age of 30, while gravely ill, she had a series of visions of a suffering Christ and the Blessed Mother. She wrote, or dictated to a scribe, two accounts of these visions; the second, longer version, containing meditations on the visions, was written about twenty years after they occurred. Scholars usually refer to the works as the ”Short Text” and the ”Long Text.”[3] In the interim, Juliana, who had earlier described herself as a “simple creature unlettered,” apparently acquired a sophisticated knowledge of theology.[4] Revelations (or Showings) of Divine Love is believed to be the first book written in English by a woman.
In her Revelations, Juliana pondered the deepest mysteries of the Christian faith: both the knowledge of God and the knowledge of self, which she believed were inseparable. She summed up her doctrine of God in these words: ‘And I saw full surely that ere God made us He loved us; which love was never slacked, nor ever shall be. And in this love He hath done all His works; and in this love He hath made all things profitable to us; and in this love our life is everlasting.’[5]
Juliana was also a counselor and advisor to the community and was known as a spiritual authority. She is honored in the Christian religion as a most important mystic, though she has never been canonized by the Roman Catholic Church.
[1] Michelle Sauer, “Juliana,” Mary Hays, Female Biography; or, Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women, of All Ages and Countries (1803). Chawton House Library Series: Women’s Memoirs, ed. Gina Luria Walker, Memoirs of Women Writers Part II (Pickering & Chatto: London, 2013), vol. 8, 477-78, editorial notes, 624-25, on 624.
[2] Sauer, “Juliana,” vol. 8, 477-78, editorial notes, 624-25, on 624.
[3] Sauer, “Juliana,” vol. 8, 477-78, editorial notes, 624-25, on 624.
[4] Julian, of Norwich, The Writings of Julian of Norwich: A Vision Showed to a Devout Woman and A Revelation of Love, Eds. Nicholas Watson and Jacqueline Jenkins (University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005), 9.
[5] Julian, of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love (London: Methuen, 1901), 203.
Bibliography
Hays, Mary. “Juliana,” Female Biography; or Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women of all Ages and Countries (6 volumes) (London: R. Phillips, 1803), vol. 4, 475-76.
Julian, of Norwich. Revelations of Divine Love. London: Methuen, 1901.
Julian, of Norwich. The Writings of Julian of Norwich: A Vision Showed to a Devout Woman and A Revelation of Love. Eds. Nicholas Watson and Jacqueline Jenkins. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005.
Sauer, Michelle. “Juliana.” Mary Hays, Female Biography; or, Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women, of All Ages and Countries (1803). Chawton House Library Series: Women’s Memoirs, ed. Gina Luria Walker, Memoirs of Women Writers Part II. Pickering & Chatto: London, 2013, vol. 8, 477-78, editorial notes, 624-25.
Resources:
Brooklyn Museum
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art: The Dinner Party: Heritage Floor: Juliana of Norwich
https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/heritage_floor/juliana_of_norwich.php
Page citation:
Eliana Greenberg, and Koren Whipp. “Juliana of Norwich.” Project Continua (February 22, 2015): Ver. 2, [date accessed], http://www.projectcontinua.org/juliana-of-norwich/
Tags: Europe, Proto-Renaissance, Religious Thinkers, Renaissance, Writers
