Deutsche Predigten. Mittelhochdeutsch/ Neuhochdeutsch.

by Meister Eckhart

Meister Eckharts Werk zählt zu den Glanzpunkten der mittelalterlichen Mystik. Der hochgebildete Dominikaner hat in scholastischen Traktaten und Predigten eine intellektuell anspruchsvolle mystische Theologie entwickelt, deren sprachliche Brillanz noch immer beeindruckt. Für diese Studienausgabe wurden einige seiner bedeutendsten mittelhochdeutschen Predigten neu übersetzt und ausführlich kommentiert.

Genres: Religion, Philosophy, Christianity, Mysticism, Theology, Spirituality, Christian

250 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1300

About the author

Eckhart von Hochheim, commonly known as Meister Eckhart, was a German theologian, philosopher and mystic, born near Gotha, in Thuringia.

Meister is German for "Master", referring to the academic title Magister in theologia he obtained in Paris. Coming into prominence during the decadent Avignon Papacy and a time of increased tensions between the Franciscans and Eckhart's Dominican Order of Preacher Friars, he was brought up on charges later in life before the local Franciscan-led Inquisition. Tried as a heretic by Pope John XXII, his "Defence" is famous for his reasoned arguments to all challenged articles of his writing and his refutation of heretical intent. He purportedly died before his verdict was received, although no record of his death or burial site has ever been discovered.

Meister Eckhart is sometimes (erroneously) referred to as "Johannes Eckhart", although Eckhart was his given name and von Hochheim was his surname.

"Perhaps no mystic in the history of Christianity has been more influential and more controversial than the Dominican Meister Eckart. Few, if any, mystics have been as challenging to modern day readers and as resistant to agreed-upon interpretation."
—Bernard McGinn, The Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart

Reviews

[Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up the kindle version of this book after seeing it on Bishop Robert Barron's reading list for spiritual theology. It's a very short read, consisting of seven sermons from Meister Eckhart, a 13th/14th century German priest of the Dominican order.

Each sermon is based on a particular Bible verse or chapter he singled out. The list of Chapters is as such and i've also included some of my favorite quotations:

I - The Attractive Power of God (John 6:44)

The Father draweth with the might of His power, the Son draweth with His unfathomable wisdom, the Holy Ghost draweth with His love. Thus we are drawn by the Sacred Trinity with the cords of Power, Wisdom and Love, when we are drawn from an evil thing to a good thing, and from a good thing to a better, and from a better thing to the best of all.

The second means of attraction which He used is Emptiness, as we see when we place one end of a hollow pipe in water, and draw up it by suction; the water runs up the stem to the mouth, because the emptiness of the pipe, from which the air has been drawn, draws the water to itself. So Our Lord Jesus Christ made Himself empty that He might wisely draw all things to Himself. Therefore He let all the blood that was in His Body flow out, and so attracted to Himself all the compassion and grace that was in His Father's heart, so completely and profitably as to suffice for the whole world.

II - The Nearness of the Kingdom (Luke 21:31)

In similar fashion our salvation depends upon our knowing and recognizing the Chief Good which is God Himself.

If the soul is to know God it must forget itself and lose itself, for as long as it contemplates self, it cannot contemplate God. When it has lost itself and everything in God,
it finds itself again in God when it attains to the knowledge of Him, and it finds also everything which it had abandoned complete in God. If I am to know the highest good, and the everlasting Godhead, truly, I must know them as they are in themselves apart from creation. If I am to know it as it is in itself, not as it is parceled out in creatures.

No man desires anything so eagerly as God desires to bring men to the knowledge of Himself. God is always ready, but we are very unready. God is near us, but we are far from Him.
God is within, and we are without. God is friendly; we are estranged.

III - The Angel's Greeting (Luke 1:28)

I affirm that had the Virgin not first borne God spiritually He would never have been born from her in bodily fashion.

When man humbles himself, God cannot restrain His mercy; He must come down and pour His grace into the humble man, and He gives Himself most of all, and all at once,
to the least of all. It is essential to God to give, for His essence is His goodness and His goodness is His love. Love is the root of all joy and sorrow. Slavish fear of God is to be put away. The right fear is the fear of losing God.

IV - True Hearing (Ecclesiasticus/Sirach 24:22)

Three things hinder us from hearing the everlasting Word. The first is fleshiness,
the second is distraction, the third is the illusion of time. If a man could get free of these,
he would dwell in eternity, and in the spirit, and in solitude, and in the desert, and there would hear the everlasting Word.

The man who abides in the will of God wills nothing else than what God is,
and what He wills.

V - The Self-Communication of God (John 14:23)

The Will draws thought and all the powers of the soul after it in its train,
so that the soul becomes one with God by grace, as the Holy Ghost is one with the Father and with the Son by nature. In God it is more worthy to be loved, than it is in itself.

While I am here, He is in me; after this life, I am in Him. All things are therefore possible to me, if I am united to Him Who can do all things.

VI - Sanctification (Luke 10:42)

Many teachers also praise humility as a virtue. But I set sanctification above humility for the following reason. Although humility may exist without sanctification, perfect sanctification cannot exist without perfect humility. Perfect humility tends to the annihilation of self;
sanctification also is so close to self-annihilation that nothing can come between them.
Therefore perfect sanctification cannot exist without humility, and to have both of these virtues is better than to have only one of them.

The man who is wholly sanctified is so drawn towards the Eternal, that no transitory thing may move him, no corporeal thing affect him, no earthly thing attract him. This was the meaning of St. Paul when he said, "I live; yet not I; Christ liveth in me."

Althought God is Almighty, He can only work in a heart when He finds readiness or makes it. He works differently in men than in stones. For this we may take the following illustration: if we bake in one oven three loaves of barley-bread, of rye-bread, and of wheat,
we shall find the same heat of the oven affects them differently; when one is well-baked,
another will be still raw, and another yet more raw. That is not due to the heat, but to the variety of the materials. Similarly God works in all hearts not alike but in proportion as He finds them prepared and susceptible. If the heart is to be ready for the highest, it must be vacant of all other things.

VII - Outward and Inward Morality (1 Cor 15:10)

Grace is from God, and works in the depth of the soul whose powers it employs.
It is a light which issues forth to do service under the guidance of the Spirit. The Divine Light permeates the soul, and lifts it above the turmoil of temporal things to rest in God. The soul cannot progress except with the light which God has given it as a nuptial gift; love works the likeness of God into the soul. The peace, freedom and blessedness of all souls consist in their abiding in God's will. Towards this union with God for which it is created the soul strives perpetually.

Fire converts wood into its own likeness, and the stronger the wind blows,
the greater grows the fire. Now by the fire understand love, and by the wind the Holy Spirit.
The stronger the influence of the Holy Spirit, the brighter grows the fire of love; but not all at once, rather gradually as the soul grows. Light causes flowers and plants to grow and bear fruit;
in animals it produces life, but in men blessedness. This comes from the grace of God,
Who uplifts the soul, for if the soul is to grow God-like it must be lifted above itself.

I found that each sermon has many nuggets of wisdom and I spent a lot of time highlighting for later review. Sermon six on the topic of sanctification was very interesting with all the reading of St. Francis de Sales that i've been doing lately. De Sales speaks a lot on the virtue of humility and Meister Eckhart argues that humility is such a major part of sanctification but yet it does not supersede it. Sermon number seven stood out to me the most. I practically highlighted every single page in that chapter!

I highly recommend this short easy read to every Christian.

[Jonathan Widell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meister Eckhart turned out to be pretty much what I expected him to be but now I can understand him a bit better. Meister Eckhart's mysticism is not so much about experiencing something supernatural as it is about understanding that God is beyond time and space while we as humans are limited by time and space. Therefore our ascent to God is as much an intellectual as a spiritual exercise. The study of metaphysics and some (then) familiar Scriptures will guide us to God if undertaken in the right spirit.

But Meister Eckhart's mysticism goes even further than that. He emphasizes that being in touch with God is not to remain passive but to be active. Sainthood and the presence of the Holy Spirit will manifest themselves in outward works.

Here, as elsewhere, Meister Eckhart makes his point by referring to Scriptures. Instead of barraging us with a maximum number of Bible quotes he digs deeper to each of the passages. He seems to suggest that just as the visible world can take us to God but also lead us away from Him, the study of the Bible can lead us away from God if not done properly. Meister Eckhart's mission, then, is to help us to achieve that right understanding.

[Lani · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Way to live? Sanctification!

Daily I am being fed by Meister Eckhart’s wisdom and highly recommend this book. Great inspiration is found on every page but particularly in his detailed guidance on “how” to grow closer to Oneness with God.

[Donatella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Libro molto complesso, lo prendo e lo lascio da molti anni

[C. Drying · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHY DID YOU READ THIS BOOK?

After watching a video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Rp1...) put out by Michael Sugrue about Meister Eckhart, I searched the internet for a public domain copy of Eckhart's sermons because Sugrue's introduction had me deeply intrigued.

WHAT DID YOU LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK?

Since I'm an atheist (or agnostic at best), I often replace "God" with the existential idea of the life force or the will to live. So, naturally, I was doing a lot of replacing in this book, and when it worked, Eckhart's words were incredibly profound, and it's probably the sheer pleasure of thought I like most compared to the actual message of the content.

With that said, here are some of my favorite lines or passages:

God is equally near in all creatures. The wise man saith, "God hath spread out his net over all creatures, so that whosoever wishes to discover Him may find and recognize Him in each one." Another saith, "He knows God rightly who recognizes him alike in all things."

The reason I like this pantheistic passage is I think it's helpful in a life-affirming sense for the formulation of ideas and opinions about how we share this planet with so many other human beings and zillions of animals, insects, etc.

A man may go into the field and say his prayer and be aware of God, or, he may be in church and be aware of God; but if he is more aware of Him because he is in a quiet place, that is his own deficiency and not due to God, who is alike present in all things and places.

This passage is appealing to me since I like to consider the "existentialness" of the will to live, and it truly is everywhere and can be pondered regardless of one's locale or environment. In other words, one's thoughts can transcend one's circumstances for the most part.

I counsel you, sisters and brothers, that you grow in knowledge, and thank God, while you are in time, that he brought you out of non-existence to existence, and united you with Divine nature."

Here Eckhart mentions his idea of being in time (and space). This is a very existential element of Eckhart's writing that intrigues me quite a bit. The idea of uniting with the Divine here and being brought out of non-existence into existence can be pondered as the implication of human consciousness.

WHAT DID YOU DISLIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK?

As for the book itself, I think the translation can be improved or at least the punctuation modernized, but then the book wouldn't be in the public domain, would it?

As for Eckhart's ideas, the one I struggled with the most is the concept of sanctification, which means to set oneself apart from everything else in order to merge with God. It seems to contradict the pantheistic one-with-everything notion as well as rejects such virtuous feelings as gratitude and joy.

Thou shouldest know that real sanctification consists in this that the spirit remain as immovable and unaffected by all impact of love or hate, joy or sorrow, honor or shame, as a huge mountain is unstirred by a gentle breeze.

I do realize Eckhart is known for his mysticism and mysticism often has the element of asceticism in it as well as an aim to achieve connection with a single (cosmic?) consciousness, which means one has to reject the material world including all the feelings and emotions that go with it, but would one then be better off dead? I'm mean why be alive if not to be alive? I'm wary of anything that is not life affirming at this point in my perhaps stunted ontological edification.

Finally, what I kept thinking about while reading this book was the idea that somewhere in his mind, Eckhart was hard pressed to integrate his great pantheistic thoughts into the Christendom of the Late Middle Ages and into the concept of the Trinity and Christianity itself. Of course, I have always been perplexed by the Trinity, but here's an example of Eckhart's contemplation of it.

[T]he Father draweth to the Son, and the Son draweth to the Holy Ghost, and the Holy Ghost draweth to the Father and the Son; and each person of the Trinity, when He draweth to the Two Others, draweth to Himself, because the Three are One.

DO YOU RECOMMEND THIS BOOK?
It seems to me if you are interested in mysticism, Meister Eckhart is a must. If you like to contemplate abstract ideas, Eckhart provides great prompts, and therefore I highly recommend this book.

[soulAdmitted · Rating 3 out of 5]

Niente è contrario a Dio quanto il tempo. Ma non solo il tempo; significa anche un attaccamento al tempo, e non solo un attaccamento al tempo, ma anche un contatto con il tempo. Non solo un contatto con il tempo, ma anche un sentore e un odore del tempo.

[Jacopo Sciascia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quell’incredibile somiglianza tra Meister Eckhart e Wittgenstein (entrambi difficili da comprendere)

[Joseph Knecht · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meister Echart tries to give more lucidity to the concepts of the Holy Trinity and God. He narrates his view of Christianity from a subjective lens. As such, he shortens the distance between the spirit of the Bible and our spirit. It is a good introduction on Christian Mysticism.

Some excerpts I enjoyed:
but by the resolute endeavour to abstract ourselves from time and space, we can, according to Eckhart, at rare moments, attain to the Absolute by virtue of what he calls "the spark" (Funkelein) of the soul, which comes direct from God. This is really God acting in man; to know God is to be one with God

-If I were a king, and did not know it, I should not really be a king. But, if I were fully convinced that I was a king, and all mankind coincided in my belief, and I knew that they shared my conviction, I should indeed be a king, and all the wealth of the king would be mine.

-Therefore, if the soul is to know God, it must know Him outside time and place, since God is neither in this or that, but One and above them.

-No man desires anything so eagerly as God desires to bring men to the knowledge of Himself. God is always ready, but we are very unready. God is near us, but we are far from Him.

-God in human nature is a lamp of living light, and "the light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not." The darkness must ever more flee the light, as the night flees day

-And thou shouldest know that to be empty of all creature's love is to be full of God, and to be full of creature-love is to be empty of God.

[Frits Haverkamp · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wouldn't say everything Eckhart writes is amazing...at least to me...but who am I to judge? However, there was some profoundly good pearls in these sermons that made them worth the read. They are short and easy get through and it is 'fun' to connect to the a past preacher.

[Joseph Delcourt · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazingly up to date
brilliant & inspired
a life companion

[Sir Badgerly · Rating 5 out of 5]

3rd time reading this book and still discovering more wisdom & grace within. If only all his work had been preserved... I’m pretty sure there is more yet untranslated text actually, though of course much of his work in Latin (those not recorded by the people) were burnt :-( His work is not heretical but orthodox! The problem was that it was being recorded in German & that he lectured in his own language rather than Latin, at an uneasy time for the Holy Catholic Church. He was also quite the mystic, which only added to the issue. Eckhart was offered the same high position St. Thomas Aquinas held in the Church but denied it to continue to preach to the people, as that was his beloved vocation. The Holy Spirit was strong within Meister Eckhart and even translated it can reach the inner landscape which is none other than God’s kingdom.

If you want to get the most out of this book confess your sins, repent (and convert to the one True Faith if you aren’t yet Catholic), receive the body of Christ (when our poor beleaguered Church re-opens) and pray daily. I recommend only attending the Traditional Latin Mass and never receive the Body of Christ in your hand. Until the Church reopens, you can do a spiritual Communion. Most important is to confess your sins and turn away from them; you will see with new sight!

Understand that the Church is again in great turmoil, persecuted from within and without. This is not a fault of the True Faith but of the iniquitous Second Vatican Council, involving infiltration by Freemasons, communists, other progressive heretics, homosexuals & demonic malcontents. This is a story in and of itself. As mentioned stick to the Traditional Latin Mass and the traditional teachings of the Holy Catholic Church to avoid the bad fruits of the 2nd Vatican Council. Recognize and resist all teachings that are not in harmony with the Gospel & the traditional teachings of the Church (see the catechism of Council of Trent and only pre-1960 teachings). The Fatima Center Fatima.org & Tradition in Action https://traditioninaction.org are good resources if you need help.

[Benji · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truthfully I didn't always understand everything Meister Eckhart said in these sermons, but occasionally I found profound passages that moved me and sometimes bore a strong resemblance to Buddhism.

If I understand Meister Eckhart correctly then the present moment is the place in which we find God (it is a mistake to look anywhere else), God can be discovered in all things, we can draw God into us by emptying ourselves and practicing sanctification, and once we have brought God into our hearts we will naturally follow God's Will.

There were a number of passages I found fascinating, for instance he taught how the sanctified individual prays for nothing "the sanctified heart desires nothing, and contains nothing that it wishes to be freed from. Therefore it is free of all want except that it wants to be like God".

I hope I have understood what he said, but understanding is a little tricky because the writing is not always straightforward and ultimately he lived within the framework of 13th and 14th century Christianity (not a context that I am all that familiar with).

Regardless, I found this a very worthwhile read and would recommend to anyone with an interest in religion and spirituality.

[Fred · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valuable book for review. I learn something new every time I reread sections or paragraphs. I have his best for me paragraph taped to the top of my bathroom mirror.

Counsel 21. Of Zeal, page 274,
"People ought to learn to be free of their works as they perform them. For a man who has not practiced this, it is hard, learning to attain to a state in which the people around him and the works he performs are no hindrance---and much zeal is needed to achieve this---so that God is present to him and his light shines in him undiminished, whatever the occasion, whatever the environment. For this a lively zeal is needed, and, particularly, two things. One is that a man should have his inwardness well protected, and that is mind be on its guard against the images that surround him outside, keeping them out, never letting them intrude to occupy him and accompany him, never letting them find a home in him. The second is that a man does not allow himself to be weakened or distracted or alienated by any multiplicity, not by his own inward images, whether these be his own imaginings or an exaltation of his perceptions, not be outward images or whatever else it may be that he has present to him. To this he ought to apply and turn all his power."

[Bobparr · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Abbandonato)
Di questo testo avevo sentito solo elogi e l’ho affrontato curioso e ben disposto. Ho apprezzato molto l’idea del distacco e alcune assonanze con il Buddhismo antico che mi è parso di riconoscere.
Tuttavia, queste due piacevolezze non sono bastate a farmi superare il primo terzo del libro.
Troppe frasi ridondanti; teorie nebbiose di padri, figli e spiriti santi per le quali sono punto curioso; fili logici che onestamente, anche a seconde riletture, facevo fatica a rintracciare; spiegazioni davvero forzose di termini e concetti, con il piglio della sicumera.
Poi ovviamente il valore del testo si ritrova nella sua portata rivoluzionaria per l’epoca e nel suo utilizzo creativo della lingua tedesca, ma non mi si dica che è un breviario per i giorni comuni dal quale trarre ispirazione e conforto.

[Boris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Erich Fromm brought me here.

These sermons would probably appeal to a religious man. Intellectually, I could only come to terms with the sermon on sanctification. To Eckhart, sanctification means something like keeping one's cool at all times - good or bad, ideally while distancing yourself from humanity altogether. He considers this to be the highest virtue, better than compassion, humility or even love (as those require others to properly practice). Only when one is completely unperturbed like that, can one direct all their love and attention to God, Eckhart says. If I consider God to be some all-encompassing cosmic essence, then this makes a lot of sense to me.

[Mattia Agnelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

“C’è qualcosa che sta sopra l’essere creato dell’anima, e che non è toccato da alcuna creaturalità – che è il nulla;…”

“nella interiorità più profonda, dove nessuno è in patria, là trova soddisfazione questa luce, e là essa è in una interiorità più profonda di quanto sia presso se stessa. Infatti questo fondo è un semplice silenzio, immobile in se stesso; da questa immobilità vengono mosse tutte le cose e vengono accolte tutte quelle vite che vivono intellettualmente in se stesse.”

[Fabrizio Valenza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ciò che colpisce in modo particolare, è che in confronto a quelli di altri teologi e/o mistici medievali, i testi di Meister Eckhart sono condivisibili al cento per cento, e risentono pochissimo dell’impostazione culturale della sua epoca. Ottima la traduzione di Marco Vannini.

[Greg Manglitz Sr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heaven bound

To expound on critical verses in scripture backed up by the saints and to discover the deep virtues and how to apply them to reach Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in heaven.😇

[Marlene M. Oaks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Live, Love, Love

Meister Elkhart was incredibly enlightened. I have treasured his writings foe many decades. This little collection of sermons is lovely. I highly recommend reading g them, contemplating them, rereading them and let them penetrate your heart.

[Mad Russian the Traveller · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The soul cannot progress except with the light which God has given it as a nuptial gift; love works the likeness of God into the soul."

[Gillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

work of a megamind

[cinlin]

Read Sermon 52 for Kenosis.

[Ian Greenhalgh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best German

[Vanessa van Vliet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always thought and soul provoking

No one can read Meister Eckhardt sermons and remain untouched by them. He has a way of making you reach deep into mind and soul about our relationship with God

[Katelynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

bedtime story

[Aaron Schuschu · Rating 4 out of 5]

When it wasn’t modern- day born agains meaning of life self- gaslighting type of thing, it was very much what mystics get a hard time for today.

[Phil Calandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fundamental philosophy of Meister Eckhart is that the "Absolute" or "Abstract Unity" or "God" is devoid of all attributes and that we are formed by means of a "spark" of the "Divine". This spark enlivens and sustains us and is the basis of our consciousness. In contrast, our finite self which is an outgrowth of our eternal self, is represented by our mind and body. Unfortunately, we often identify with these finite expressions instead of the eternal aspect of our "Self". This is not an easy book to understand and does not go into the depth of Meister Eckhart's spirituality as some of his other books; however it is inspiring and well worth the read.

[Wylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, short read. There were parts I really got a lot out of, but overall it was a little too complex for my liking.