“A Book of Showings” by Julian of Norwich expresses Christianity through the views of an Anchoress. An anchoress is a woman (anchorite is a man) who is locked in a cell most often in the church, which she has vowed to never leave. In the church she had “showings” or “visions” that came from God. Julian was advanced for her time because she was a woman who knew many works in Latin. Her knowledge helped her to examine the visions she had.
Julian had 16 showings all together which were split into chapters. Chapter 5, Chapter 27, and chapter 86 will be the most useful to compare changes in Christianity over time. Chapter 5 is entitled with a SIMILE, “All Creation as a Hazelnut.” Julian uses the Hazelnut as a SYMBOL of the universe. In this part of her vision Julian sees God holding the hazlenut in his hand. From this vision Julian realizes what God is to the world.
“In the little thing I saw three properties. The first is that God made it, the section that God loveth it, the third that God keepeth it. But what beleld I therein? Berily, the maker, the keeper, the lover” (Norwich 375).
Julian’s interpretation is much different from Caedmon’s. Julian not only calls God the creator but also calls him the keeper and the lover. These two people had different stances on what God’s role was in the creation story. Caedmon thought of God as powerful and kind, but mostly just as a creator. Julian saw God as so much more than a creator.
In chapter 27 sin is explored. Julian tells of pain, which is referencing Christ’s crucifixion. Jesus endured physical pain to lift the sin off of the world. Julian says,
“And for the tender love that our good Lord hath to all that shall be saved, he comforteth readily and sweetly, meaning thus: it is true that sin is cause of all this pain, but all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well” (377).
Julian interoperates her vision of sin that God loves his creation so dearly that he would die for it. Earlier in the passage she makes it clear that she believes sin is fitting and also that only some will be saved.
Julian sheds light on Christ’s purpose in Chapter 86. “... love is our Lord’s meaning” (382). This was one of the last things that Julian wrote about her visions. It is meaningful that in the two other chapters Julian tells of God’s love and in the final chapter she says that love is God’s pure meaning.
It is interesting that throughout her writings Julian continually mentions the LEXICAL SET of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (otherwise known as the trilogy.) This is unusual because the trilogy is never mentioned in the Bible. It is something that people have created and it is still around today.
On one hand I think Julian of Norwich would have gotten alone fine in today’s society. There are shirts, signs, books, and churches dedicated to love. Love is the movement in many modern churches. On the other hand Julian says that she believes that sin is fitting and only some will be saved. Many people find it easy to believe in heaven, but few people still believe in the existence of hell. I think it would be interesting to see how a woman that gave up her life in the secular world to anchor herself in Christ hundreds of years ago would fit into today’s society.
Throughout history humans have tried to find a way to answer life’s big questions, find comfort in loss, and find direction in life. Looking at England, Christianity has been prominent since the Middle Ages. As all things do, Christianity went through many changes from the middle ages through the 17th century. It is possible to take a journey back in time, through literature, to capture some of the changes of the Christian religion in Europe.
The Venerable Bede
Julian of Norwich
An Anchoress
William Tyndale
An Allegory of the Reformation
John Calvin
George Herbert
Works Cited
"Bede and Caedmon's Hymn." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. A : Middle Ages. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Alfred David. 8th ed. Vol. A. Boston, MA: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 24-27.
Calvin, John. "John Calvin: The Institution of Christian Religion." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 625-27.
Herbert, George. "The Alter." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 1607.
"Julian of Norwich." Virtual Medieval Church and Its Writings. 2003. University of Saint Thomas “Saint Paul, MN. 30 Oct. 2008.
Norwich, Julian. "Julian of Norwich: A Book of Showings to the Anchoress Julian of Norwich." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. A : Middle Ages. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Alfred David. 8th ed. Vol. A. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 371-82.
"The Sixteenth Century: Topics." William Tyndale, Preface to His 1530 Old Testament Translation. 2003. W.W. Norton and Company. 3 Nov. 2008
Tyndale, William. "William Tyndale: The Obedience of a Christian Man." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 621-22.
Calvin, John. "John Calvin: The Institution of Christian Religion." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 625-27.
Herbert, George. "The Alter." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 1607.
"Julian of Norwich." Virtual Medieval Church and Its Writings. 2003. University of Saint Thomas “Saint Paul, MN. 30 Oct. 2008
"The Sixteenth Century: Topics." William Tyndale, Preface to His 1530 Old Testament Translation. 2003. W.W. Norton and Company. 3 Nov. 2008
Tyndale, William. "William Tyndale: The Obedience of a Christian Man." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. B : The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M. H. Abrams and Barbara K. Lewalski. 8th ed. Vol. B. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2005. 621-22.
The changes of Christian thinking in England formed modern religion today. Catholicism was the only acknowledged religion in England through the 16th century, but during the 16th century some of the largest changes in the Christian religion were going on. There were transformations in religion that were shown through literature. Literature changed from being “a mixture of Christian and pagan beliefs, to pure Christianity.” (Holly Gingrich). Whether a person claimed to be a follower of Christ or not, Christianity helped to mold English culture and change believes between medieval times and the 17th century.