Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead (Classics of Western Spirituality) (Paperback)

~ Mechtild of Magdeburg (Author), Frank Tobin (Translator, Introduction) "This book I hereby send as a messenger to all religious people, both the bad and the good; for if the pillars fall, the building..." (more)
Key Phrases: sinking humility, hunger cloth, heavenly flood, Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ, Holy Christianity (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

An excellent English translation...one can only congratulate Professor Tobin to a very trustworthy, responsible, and yes, inspired, accomplishment. -- Mystics Quarterly

Glimpses of Mechthild's tone and style survive and are a tribute to the translator....remarkably readable. -- Anglican Theological Review

In Frank Tobin the editors scored a winner. A clear, well-ordered translation...is a real treat.... -- The Catholic Weekly (Australia)

It is a valuable addition to any college level or higher theological library. -- Catholic Library World

Splendid new translation. -- The American Benedictine Review

Product Description

"I was warned against writing this book. People said: If one did not watch out, It could be burned. So I did as I used to do as a child. When I was sad, I always had to pray… At once God revealed himself to my joyless soul, held this book in his right hand and said: 'My dear One, do not be overly troubled. No one can burn the truth.'"

"I do not know how to write nor can I, unless I see with the eyes of my soul and hear with the ears of my eternal spirit and feel in all the parts of my body the power of the Holy Spirit." Mechthild of Magdeburg (c.1260-c.1282/94)

These quotations taken from Mechthild's sole writing, The Flowing Light of the Godhead, written over several decades, reflect both the intensity of her consciousness of God and the tension under which she wrote. As a beguine with no authority to teach n a church in which women were being increasingly marginalized, Mechthild speaks out despite warnings, convinced of the validity of her divine mission.

To accomplish the task of articulating her revelations and spiritual insights, Mechthild makes use of an astonishing multiplicity of literary and rhetorical means. The more mystical passages, often lyrical in expression, show her familiarity with bride mysticism and other Christian expressions found in Meister Eckhart, as well.

This is the first English translation to be based on the new critical edition of Mechthild's book. The introduction and notes are intended to provide a theological, literary and historical context for capturing the spirituality of her remarkable and independent spirit.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Paulist Press (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809137763
• ISBN-13: 978-0809137763
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #346,997 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love Mechthild anyway, July 10, 2003

By	"bkfeilfish" (Helena, MT United States) - See all my reviews

I was first introduced to Mechthild in a course of Women Mystics and resonated with her immediately. Her writing style is such that either you like her or you can't relate. She says at the beginning of the book that you need to read it nine times to understand it. I plan to do just that because I like reading her words just that much. Read the pages online before you put out the cash for this book but if you find that you can relate you won't be sorry for adding her to your library.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beguine Mystic of Love, November 16, 2006

By	Greg (Australia) - See all my reviews

Metchild of Magdeburg was a beguine, a member of a lay group of women who in the medieval period desired a closer relationship with God than through the Church.

The beguines produced many famous male and female mystics, especially female mystics. This was possibly because beguines were more loosely associated with the established church and had more freedom to express their mystical ideas.

Metchild is a mystic of love, in the sense her mystical experiences were strongly focused around the intimate union of the soul with Jesus. Metchild describes several estatic experiences of this union in poems and other writing, as well as the stages leading to this state of conciousness. At times the language seems erotic, though Metchild never degrades the mystical union to mere pornography. She is clearly a literature woman, and like other mystics of loving union, often borrows motifs from the secular literature of the time.

Metchild is somewhat more careful in her use of language than the burned heretic, Margaret Porete. While perhaps the theologically orthodox still might have many misgivings about the possibility of uniting with God mystically, I feel with Metchild we are on fairly safe ground, and anyone interested in Christian spirituality can learn from her. She is also a valuable female voice in a tradition in the Church which like so many others, has historically been mainly the domain of men. Women will find it refreshing the female perspective on mysticism is given quite well in Porete.

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Transcends even current technology of movie making, March 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead (Classics of Western Spirituality) (Hardcover)

The images Mechthild presents to the reader in wtritten words took my mind,heart and imagination to such beautiful spiritual hieghts, that I am still savoring the richness her revelations has brought to my soul. RRead at your liesure and absorb in contentment and spiritual pleasure....... Father Gregory Martin, Spiritual Director of the Holy Order of the Holy Ghost.