What do you think?
Rate this book
The Complete Julian of Norwich
The most engaging and complete collection available of this 14th century English mystic
The Revelations of Julian of Norwich is the first book written in English by a woman – in this case, by a 14th century recluse who recounts the poignant, subtle, and radical insights granted to her in sixteen visions of the crucified Christ as she lay on what was believed to be her deathbed. Julian’s miraculous recovery from that illness then led to twenty more years of reflection and contemplation on those revelations and finally to her writing a detailed account of her mystical experience.
Her work – in the same Middle English as her contemporary Geoffrey Chaucer – is dense, deeply intuitive, and theologically complex. The Complete Julian is the first book to offer a modern translation of all of Julian’s writings (including her complete Revelations), a complete analysis of her work, as well as original historical, religious, and personal background material that helps the reader comprehend the depth and profundity of her life and work.
“[Julian’s Revelations] may well be the most important work of Christian reflection in the English language.”
— Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury
The Revelations of Julian of Norwich is the first book written in English by a woman – in this case, by a 14th century recluse who recounts the poignant, subtle, and radical insights granted to her in sixteen visions of the crucified Christ as she lay on what was believed to be her deathbed. Julian’s miraculous recovery from that illness then led to twenty more years of reflection and contemplation on those revelations and finally to her writing a detailed account of her mystical experience.
Her work – in the same Middle English as her contemporary Geoffrey Chaucer – is dense, deeply intuitive, and theologically complex. The Complete Julian is the first book to offer a modern translation of all of Julian’s writings (including her complete Revelations), a complete analysis of her work, as well as original historical, religious, and personal background material that helps the reader comprehend the depth and profundity of her life and work.
“[Julian’s Revelations] may well be the most important work of Christian reflection in the English language.”
— Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury
450 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2009
20 people are currently reading
463 people want to read
About the author
Julian of Norwich
48 books260 followersJulian of Norwich was the most important English mystic of the 14th century. Her spirituality is strongly Trinitarian and basically Neoplatonic.
In her Revelations of Divine Love Julian relates that in May 1373, when she was 30 years old, she suffered a serious illness. After she had been administered extreme unction, she received 16 revelations within the span of a few hours. When she wrote her Revelations, she was a recluse at Norwich, supported by the Benedictine convent of Carrow. Anchorite seclusion was a rather common form of life in 14th-century England among Christians with high spiritual aspirations. A woman of little formal education - she calls herself "unlettered" - Julian writes in a beautifully simple style and shows a solid grasp of traditional theology.
Julian's revelations, a mixture of imaginary and intellectual visions, bear all the characteristics of true mysticism. According to her, her visions came in fulfillment of three petitions of her youth: to have in mind the Passion of Christ, to have a critical bodily sickness at 30 years of age, and to receive the wounds of "true contrition," "genuine compassion," and "sincere longing for God." The revelations consist mostly of visions of the crucified Christ occasioned by the sight of a crucifix which the priest had left at her bedside. But through the Passion, Julian is led to intellectual visions of the Trinity and of the universe as it exists in God. Thus she is confronted by the teachings of sin and damnation, which she finds hard to reconcile with God's grace in Christ. Nevertheless the accepts the traditional Church doctrine of the existence of an eternal rejection. Yet on the sinfulness of those who will be saved she hedges: "In every soul to be saved is a godly will that has never consented to sin, in the past or in the future. Just as there is an animal will in our lower nature that does not will what is good, so there is a godly will in our higher part, which by its basic goodness never wills what is evil, but only what is good." Obviously she finds herself unable to accept that divine goodness could ever allow the elect to be truly sinful. Her fundamental outlook is optimistic. The Lord tells her: "All shall be well," and "You will see for yourself that all manner of thing shall be well."
Little is known of Julian's later years, not even the date of her death. She is last referred to as a living person in a will dated 1416. Apparently even during her life she enjoyed a certain renown, for people came from afar to see and consult her.
Further Reading
There are two versions of the Revelations, one much longer than the other. It is not known whether the short one is merely an excerpt from the older one or whether it is the first authentic report on which Julian elaborated in the longer version. A critical edition is being prepared by Sister Anna Maria Reynolds and James Walsh. Meanwhile, a modernized edition of the short version is A Shewing of God's Love (1958) by Anna Maria Reynolds. Several modern translations of the longer version, under the title Revelations of Divine Love, are by Roger Hudleston (1927), James Walsh (1961), Anchoret Juliana (1966), and Clifton Wolters (1966). Important studies of Julian are Paul Molinari, Julian of Norwich: The Teaching of a 14th Century English Mystic (1958), and James Walsh, ed., Pre-Reformation English Spirituality (1966).
In her Revelations of Divine Love Julian relates that in May 1373, when she was 30 years old, she suffered a serious illness. After she had been administered extreme unction, she received 16 revelations within the span of a few hours. When she wrote her Revelations, she was a recluse at Norwich, supported by the Benedictine convent of Carrow. Anchorite seclusion was a rather common form of life in 14th-century England among Christians with high spiritual aspirations. A woman of little formal education - she calls herself "unlettered" - Julian writes in a beautifully simple style and shows a solid grasp of traditional theology.
Julian's revelations, a mixture of imaginary and intellectual visions, bear all the characteristics of true mysticism. According to her, her visions came in fulfillment of three petitions of her youth: to have in mind the Passion of Christ, to have a critical bodily sickness at 30 years of age, and to receive the wounds of "true contrition," "genuine compassion," and "sincere longing for God." The revelations consist mostly of visions of the crucified Christ occasioned by the sight of a crucifix which the priest had left at her bedside. But through the Passion, Julian is led to intellectual visions of the Trinity and of the universe as it exists in God. Thus she is confronted by the teachings of sin and damnation, which she finds hard to reconcile with God's grace in Christ. Nevertheless the accepts the traditional Church doctrine of the existence of an eternal rejection. Yet on the sinfulness of those who will be saved she hedges: "In every soul to be saved is a godly will that has never consented to sin, in the past or in the future. Just as there is an animal will in our lower nature that does not will what is good, so there is a godly will in our higher part, which by its basic goodness never wills what is evil, but only what is good." Obviously she finds herself unable to accept that divine goodness could ever allow the elect to be truly sinful. Her fundamental outlook is optimistic. The Lord tells her: "All shall be well," and "You will see for yourself that all manner of thing shall be well."
Little is known of Julian's later years, not even the date of her death. She is last referred to as a living person in a will dated 1416. Apparently even during her life she enjoyed a certain renown, for people came from afar to see and consult her.
Further Reading
There are two versions of the Revelations, one much longer than the other. It is not known whether the short one is merely an excerpt from the older one or whether it is the first authentic report on which Julian elaborated in the longer version. A critical edition is being prepared by Sister Anna Maria Reynolds and James Walsh. Meanwhile, a modernized edition of the short version is A Shewing of God's Love (1958) by Anna Maria Reynolds. Several modern translations of the longer version, under the title Revelations of Divine Love, are by Roger Hudleston (1927), James Walsh (1961), Anchoret Juliana (1966), and Clifton Wolters (1966). Important studies of Julian are Paul Molinari, Julian of Norwich: The Teaching of a 14th Century English Mystic (1958), and James Walsh, ed., Pre-Reformation English Spirituality (1966).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 4, 2018
Reading this book is a bit like having a mystical experience. Julian describes the visions that she has had in such a natural and realistic way that it feels as if I could watch over her shoulder when she saw them.
The book consists of descriptions of these visions, and then also the spiritual insights on their meaning that she received in the years afterwards, when she was pondering them and asking God to explain things.
The version of the book that I read contained lots and lots of notes, interspersed through the text, they were helpful notes, but did rather break the line of the story. I would have preferred that the notes had been somewhere in the back of the book. (but perhaps that was mostly a problem because I read the e-book, the paper version probably had the text on one side and the notes on the opposite side)
The notes were very helpful in providing the necessary background. It is hard to imagine what her life was like, being an anchoress in a time that was so dark with all the wars and the pest and other disasters. Plus the fact that most people were very afraid of God and judgments and trying to buy forgiveness.
I think perhaps for that reason, God thought it was necessary to give someone these visions about his love, to comfort the people that were so afraid. And, although I do not live in that time, thankfully, I still have experience with the same fears. I think perhaps all people naturally fear God, especially the more we realize how holy he is, and how much we are failing. So her message is still most welcome.
I especially remember her vision of the Lord and the servant, and its explanation. That was most clarifying. It shows the deplorable state we are in, but without attaching any blame. On the contrary it shows only God's love, and also our love for God. And how much we are united to Jesus.
There is just so much in this book! As I read it, it sometimes felt as if it was the same message (love) over and over again, but now that I am trying to summarize, I realize that there was much more in it. Lots of beautiful things said about the Trinity, and how Jesus is also our mother. And we are in God, but God is also in us. And we can only know God inasmuch we know ourselves and, paradoxically enough, also vice versa. How we are always united to God, even though it often doesn't feel that way.
Amazing how she tells so abundantly about God's love for us. Never making light of sin, but always pressing that in God's eyes we are his beloved children who unfortunately keep falling. At one point near the end of the book she summarizes it thus: "And I understood that while we are in this life, it is most helpful to us that we see both of these at once; for the higher point of view keeps us in spiritual solace and true rejoicing in God, and the other, that is, the lower point of view, keeps us in fear and makes us ashamed of ourselves. But our good Lord wills always that we see ourselves more from the point of view of the higher (but not give up knowledge of the lower) until the time that we are brought up above, where we shall have our Lord Jesus for our reward, and will be filled full of joy and bliss without end."
The book consists of descriptions of these visions, and then also the spiritual insights on their meaning that she received in the years afterwards, when she was pondering them and asking God to explain things.
The version of the book that I read contained lots and lots of notes, interspersed through the text, they were helpful notes, but did rather break the line of the story. I would have preferred that the notes had been somewhere in the back of the book. (but perhaps that was mostly a problem because I read the e-book, the paper version probably had the text on one side and the notes on the opposite side)
The notes were very helpful in providing the necessary background. It is hard to imagine what her life was like, being an anchoress in a time that was so dark with all the wars and the pest and other disasters. Plus the fact that most people were very afraid of God and judgments and trying to buy forgiveness.
I think perhaps for that reason, God thought it was necessary to give someone these visions about his love, to comfort the people that were so afraid. And, although I do not live in that time, thankfully, I still have experience with the same fears. I think perhaps all people naturally fear God, especially the more we realize how holy he is, and how much we are failing. So her message is still most welcome.
I especially remember her vision of the Lord and the servant, and its explanation. That was most clarifying. It shows the deplorable state we are in, but without attaching any blame. On the contrary it shows only God's love, and also our love for God. And how much we are united to Jesus.
There is just so much in this book! As I read it, it sometimes felt as if it was the same message (love) over and over again, but now that I am trying to summarize, I realize that there was much more in it. Lots of beautiful things said about the Trinity, and how Jesus is also our mother. And we are in God, but God is also in us. And we can only know God inasmuch we know ourselves and, paradoxically enough, also vice versa. How we are always united to God, even though it often doesn't feel that way.
Amazing how she tells so abundantly about God's love for us. Never making light of sin, but always pressing that in God's eyes we are his beloved children who unfortunately keep falling. At one point near the end of the book she summarizes it thus: "And I understood that while we are in this life, it is most helpful to us that we see both of these at once; for the higher point of view keeps us in spiritual solace and true rejoicing in God, and the other, that is, the lower point of view, keeps us in fear and makes us ashamed of ourselves. But our good Lord wills always that we see ourselves more from the point of view of the higher (but not give up knowledge of the lower) until the time that we are brought up above, where we shall have our Lord Jesus for our reward, and will be filled full of joy and bliss without end."
April 15, 2025
"All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well."
There have been many times I have remembered the quote from Julian of Norwich.
When you feel everything spinning beyond your control, this can bring a soul back to center and calm.
There have been many times I have remembered the quote from Julian of Norwich.
When you feel everything spinning beyond your control, this can bring a soul back to center and calm.
August 3, 2013
Hard for me to review this, as I'm a bit invested in Julian, being in the Order of Julian and all. Julian's theology gets five stars, but her rambling style keeps the book from being five stars as a whole. Fr. John-Julian's translation (the founder of the Order of Julian of Norwich) is as far as I know the most accurate, and the tons of notes are what makes the Paraclete Giants series so worthwhile. Reading all the notes gets a bit overwhelming, but you certainly don't HAVE to read all the notes, and can in fact ignore them completely. My first read of Julian was Fr. J-J's earliest translation, which did not have a page of notes for each page of text. When it's time to read Julian, this is the edition you need.
June 24, 2025
I love this book. Love it!
If you want to slow down and spend more time meditating on Jesus Christ, this is your book.
It might become a yearly read for me.
If you want to slow down and spend more time meditating on Jesus Christ, this is your book.
It might become a yearly read for me.
September 26, 2020
A mystical revelation from God to a 30 year old medieval woman. Consider me intrigued.
The language used, the expression of her relationship with God, the setting she wrote from- it all made the experience almost ethereal. I do think Julian downplays the severity of sin throughout her writings, but that didn’t take away from the beauty of everything else she had to say. I felt immensely loved by God and aware of his goodness in a way I really needed after reading this book.
“For as the body is clad in the cloth, and the flesh in the skin, and the bones in the flesh, and the heart in the whole, so are we, soul and body, clad in the Goodness of God, and enclosed.”
The language used, the expression of her relationship with God, the setting she wrote from- it all made the experience almost ethereal. I do think Julian downplays the severity of sin throughout her writings, but that didn’t take away from the beauty of everything else she had to say. I felt immensely loved by God and aware of his goodness in a way I really needed after reading this book.
“For as the body is clad in the cloth, and the flesh in the skin, and the bones in the flesh, and the heart in the whole, so are we, soul and body, clad in the Goodness of God, and enclosed.”
April 9, 2022
I only recently discovered Julian of Norwich and am blown away by her deeply compassionate, seemingly ahead-of-her time views.
December 5, 2022
She’s so slay
December 16, 2024
All shall be well
August 6, 2014
I enjoyed the footnotes because it gave me a chance to reflect and better grasp what Julian was speaking about. I didn't agree with a lot of the concepts the author came up with from her writings. Keeping in mind the teachings of the Holy church is what you need in order to tackle this book. There are a lot of subtle and direct conflicting ideas with Catholic teaching if you read her words in a certain way. it doesn't help with the author trying to direct the conversation away from the Holy church. There are concepts that are aligned with Julian's faith and as a whole, the text seems to lead to the Holy church besides her thinking that her writing will become doctrine.
Her words are beautiful and helped me to ponder my own faith and further seeking God through humility, active pursuit, obedience and love for God's gift of grace.
Her words are beautiful and helped me to ponder my own faith and further seeking God through humility, active pursuit, obedience and love for God's gift of grace.
March 8, 2012
I'm glad I read this book, but it was tough sledding in places. She was repetitious and my modern ears were not used to some of her ideas. Nevertheless, Julian is notable for being the first woman to write a book in the English language. She also articulated a much more loving picture of God than her contemporaries who were more about fear of judgment. Julian was among the first to speak about the "motherhood" of God. She was not seeking to be a feminist, rather God is without gender as we know it and demonstrates aspects of both fatherhood and motherhood.
This edition was wonderful. Julian's text is on the right-hand side of the page and the editor's notes are on the left side. There are also many helpful articles in the back. The editor gets 5 stars.
This edition was wonderful. Julian's text is on the right-hand side of the page and the editor's notes are on the left side. There are also many helpful articles in the back. The editor gets 5 stars.
December 17, 2013
The Revelations to Julian of Norwich is one of the great masterpieces of Christian spirituality. The vision of a God of love with now wrath that Julian could see is so badly needed in our times. Fr. John-Julian's translation from the middle English is readable with thorough scholarship. Parallel pages with footnotes on the ME vocabulary & other scholarly questions are handy for the reader. For the reader wanting a good translation, I would strongly recommend this one.
November 12, 2010
This edition of the Showings of Julian of Norwich is put together by someone who really knows Julian, and who explains Julian well to those who know nothing of the Christian mystical tradition or 14th century England. A terrific edition of a wonderfully profound book.
July 5, 2012
Very clear book and I loved the notes. Some of them were not needed, but a number of them were nice. I especially love the introduction and the background information given about Julian's time and Julian's possible identity.
April 17, 2013
Uplifting, encouraging, comforting and challenging are adjectives I would use to describe Julian's work. She has quickly become one of my spiritual greats! I appreciated the notes included; they were quite helpful. Also the format was pleasing to me.
January 9, 2019
Reading her words inspired me so much. There is so little awareness about this incredible mystic. The book is filled with her prayers and experiences of visions with our Lord. I read it over the year, not in just one sitting. It became a companion for me throughout the year.
May 5, 2012
Translation is easy to read contemporary language. Authors notes are every helpful, giving keen insight into medieval spirituality.
Read
December 9, 2015Julian's writings have endured through the centuries with all their charm, with and profound insignt.
May 11, 2015
Potential upgrade of rating pending a reading in Middle English.
July 11, 2020
I reread or listen to an audio of this book regularly. For me it is scripture.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews