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35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Favorite edition of Julian of Norwich, October 29, 2009
This review is from: The Complete Julian of Norwich (Paraclete Giants) (Paperback)
I have several different books on the great medieval mystic, Julian of Norwich, but this is by far my favorite for a number of reasons. First off, Fr. John-Julian has written remarkable material here about Julian's life, what we know of it, what we can't know, etc., and included vivid and detailed descriptions of the times in which Julian lived, and the type of anchorhold, or cell, in which Julian endured her years as an anchorite. I found all the information about medieval Norwich of great interest, including descriptions of the Black Death, and the floods that visited this part of England in the Middle Ages. In the Appendices, there was a wealth of information on things pertaining to Julian's references, all of it very well documented and presented. I enjoyed the article on St. John of Beverley in particular. Lastly, this handsome book has Julian's Revelations on the right hand page, and notes on the left hand page throughout, and this made it very easy for me to benefit from the author's excellent annotation. I wish more books adopted this type of organization. Quite a wonderful package. Highly recommended. I will be ordering more Paraclete Giant editions.
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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the best one yet, July 21, 2009
This review is from: The Complete Julian of Norwich (Paraclete Giants) (Paperback)
Father John-Julian knows Julian of Norwich better than anyone else. He founded the order which takes her name and made the translation from Middle English that is contained in this book. His 'Complete Julian' has annotations for each chapter, as well as sections on related material, such as the Black Plague, and death rates in Norwich, the Bible translation she might have read, how an anchorite would have lived at that time, the historical situation of the church at this time, and above all else, her possible identity. Julian of Norwich's real identity is a mystery. Her book disappeared for 600 years. Her theology is radically modern, for a woman born in 1342; she was the first woman to write a book in English, and although her name is not known, Father John-Julian has a creditable theory of who she might have been. When she was 30 years old, she became very ill and almost died. During her illness she received a series of visions, revelations of the love of God for humanity. Julian wrote that Jesus is our mother, and that there is no wrath in God, the wrath we see in God is actually our own that we are projecting onto God. She said that sin has no real substance, because God's will shall always prevail, that all shall be well. In a time when God was seen as a distant King on a heavenly throne, which corrupt human beings could never hope to approach, Julian said that God is our brother, our father, our mother, our savior and that there is a core of sanctity in each person which never consented to sin. This book is indeed the most complete volume on Julian Norwich yet published ,and well worth reading. You will come away refreshed and hopeful
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20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
How "All shall be well" even in these trying times, August 3, 2009
This review is from: The Complete Julian of Norwich (Paraclete Giants) (Paperback)
Yes, my 401(K)and investments for those future rainy days have tanked; but in this marvelous work on Julian's showings, I learned that her life was lived in times as tumultuous as our own and she was still able to remain at peace in her soul. Her secret to such profound serenity amidst bouts of the Black Plague and the possible deaths of her loved ones unfolds as she ponders God's love for each of us and for all of his creation. I particularly found the introduction section on themes that are prevalent in Julian's writing and were important to the theologians of her day helpful. Most importantly for me, I could easily turn to the text notes which are very usefully placed on the page opposite the section of Julian's text where I needed them. I did not have to jot down the chapter and number of the note and then wander off to the end notes to try to find and remember what I was trying to discover. If I wanted to know more, I simply looked across the page to the notes! Fantastic! I could find out what was puzzling me and go on without losing my train of thought or my sense of what point Julian was making. What a tremendously useful book this is!! I want a copy for the car for waiting in carpool lines, a bedside copy, and one to have in my prayer place. I have been waiting for this book for 600 years.
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