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Revelations of Divine Love

(Sacred Literature Trust Series)

Julian of Norwich,

Elizabeth Spearing (Translator),

A.C. Spearing (Introduction)

3.91 · Rating details · 7,114 ratings · 356 reviews

One of the first woman authors, Julian of Norwich produced in Revelations of Divine Love a remarkable work of revelatory insight, that stands alongside The Cloud of Unknowing and Piers Plowman as a classic of Medieval religious literature

After fervently praying for a greater understanding of Christ's passion, Julian of Norwich, a fourteenth-century anchorite and mystic, ex ...more

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Paperback, 193 pages

Published August 27th 1998 by Penguin Classics (first published 1393)

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· 7,114 ratings · 356 reviews

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Mar 31, 2010 rachel rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2010, own, lady-lit

"And I saw quite certainly in this and in everything that God loved us before he made us; and his love has never diminished and never shall. And all of his works were done in this love; and in this love he has made everything for our profit; and in this love our life is everlasting."

I don't know what sort of criteria one should use to rate this book, so I'm not going to attempt it. I approached it from the perspective of an agnostic leaning towards atheist, and I came out of my reading experience realizing that the reason I was so unshakably stuck in this position, unable to even consider the possibility of personal belief, is because I was looking at faith in the wrong way. The conservative God of the political right-wing and the forced church attendance of my childhood were never going to have any spiritual impact on me. But a God of love, discovered on my own terms, could and would.

Thinking of God as existing -- not in epistemological terms but in spiritual terms -- in human manifestations of love (family, friends, and the man Jesus) had a powerful effect. So many times, Julian would mention that sin and times of suffering only exist to help bring the sufferer into the fold of God's love, which is stronger and outlasts all suffering. It has been a miserable year for me and I picked this book up not understanding why I did. As I read it, I felt my anxiety relax -- this while standing in the bookstore on a browse trip, even before the realization that a part of me might be susceptible to actual, genuine belief.

I still believe that faith or lack of faith is a highly personal feeling, so it is not something I plan to talk about too much beyond this review. But I will say that personally, I didn't realize how much of an impact this book and #22 in particular had on me:

For although the dear humanity of Christ could only suffer once, his goodness makes him always ready to do so again; he would do it every day if it were possible; and if he said that for love of me he would make new heavens and a new earth, it would be but little in comparison, for he could do this every day if he so wished, without any hardship; but to offer to die for love of me so often that the number of times passes human comprehension, that is the most glorious present that our Lord God could make to a man's soul, it seems to me.

Until I went to church willingly this morning for the first time in years, just to see if it felt differently, and it was so moving to be there after internalizing all of these things (maybe even believing them for once in a rare while) that I almost cried.

Time will tell if this reaction stands. Being naturally skeptical, I'm sort of inclined to chalk up these new feelings to Julian's hypnotically lovely prose rather than any real faith. But again, as I type this and think about the book, my usually tense body is calm. So I don't know. ...more

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Aug 21, 2013 Jan-Maat added it · review of another edition

Shelves: autobiography-memoir, 14th-century, british-isles, read-in-translation, medieval-history, religion

From about four in the morning until nine on the eighth of May 1373, Julian of Norwich, then thirty years old, sick and believing herself to be near to death, had a series of visions of Christ. After this she had a vision of the Devil (he had tile red skin, dark freckles, red hair, white teeth and smelt terrible (view spoiler)) before seeing Christ again that night and then the Devil again (who upon departing left only his ...more

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Jun 10, 2020 Ines rated it really liked it

This reading was really special, at first i was curious and I decided to read this book because I really liked the cover only, found it in my father’s bookshelves... I had no precise reason for a book with such a unique subject, as can be the mystical revelations of the Saints.
Instead, the revelations and commented words are very smooth, so the reading is likable and never verbose.
The contemplation of the Beatitude of our Lord Jesus Christ.... all the theme on which the revelations relate, and t This reading was really special, at first i was curious and I decided to read this book because I really liked the cover only, found it in my father’s bookshelves... I had no precise reason for a book with such a unique subject, as can be the mystical revelations of the Saints.
Instead, the revelations and commented words are very smooth, so the reading is likable and never verbose.
The contemplation of the Beatitude of our Lord Jesus Christ.... all the theme on which the revelations relate, and the grace that faith can give, when in every circumstance, even the most adverse, is a sign that everything is for a greater good. The Passion and death of Christ, others are not to defeat the nowadays material condition of our life. Death will not be the last word on us, but a sign of a total belonging of man to his creator, who, by dying for us, has given to us an eternal salvation.
For a not believer these words can only seem a blasphemy or a shame, for those who see in Christ, the eternal salvation of our living, are a sign of a total love of our miserable and sinful condition of life. In the mystery we will find eternal salvation....

Questa lettura è stata veramente particolare, primo, ho deciso di leggere questo libro unicamente perchè mi piaceva moltissimo la copertina, scovato nella libreria di mio padre.... non avevo un preciso motivo per un libro con un argomento così unico, come lo possono essere le rivelazioni mistiche dei Santi.
Invece le rivelazioni e le parole commentate sono molto scorrevoli, quindi la lettura risulta piacevole e mai prolissa.
La contemplazione della Beatitudine di nostro signore Gesù Cristo. , tutto qui il tema su cui vertono le rivelazioni, e la grazia che la Fede può dare, quando in ogni circostanza, anche la più avversa, è segno che tutto è per un bene più grande. La Passione e la morte del Cristo, altri non sono per sconfiggere il qui ed ora materiale del nostro vivere. La morte non sarà l' ultima parola su di noi, ma segno di una appartenenza totale dell' uomo al suo creatore, che morendo per noi ci ha donato una salvezza eterna.
Per un non credente queste parole possono solo sembrare una bestemmia o una vergogna, per chi vede nel Cristo, la salvezza eterna del nostro vivere, sono segno di un amore totale della nostra condizione misera e peccatrice di vita. Nel mistero troveremo la salvezza eterna.... ...more

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Jan 28, 2012 David Sarkies rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Those who like Medieval Christian Spiritual literature

Recommended to David by: Bible College Lecturer

Shelves: christian

Visions of a Medieval Mystic
28 January 2012

I discovered this book when my Bible College lecturer mentioned it and then proceeded to mock it for the rest of the lecture. Once the lecture had finished I went straight to the library, located it, and borrowed it, and I must admit that I quite enjoyed it (it was a much easier read than An Imitation of Christ. Basically the book is about a series of 16 visions that a female recluse had in the 1300s and her interpretation of these visions.

The story Visions of a Medieval Mystic
28 January 2012

I discovered this book when my Bible College lecturer mentioned it and then proceeded to mock it for the rest of the lecture. Once the lecture had finished I went straight to the library, located it, and borrowed it, and I must admit that I quite enjoyed it (it was a much easier read than An Imitation of Christ. Basically the book is about a series of 16 visions that a female recluse had in the 1300s and her interpretation of these visions.

The story goes that Julian of Norwich wanted to have a revelation from God and then one day fell extremely ill, and while she was ill she had a series of 16 visions in which she learnt about God's loving nature. It is not the most theologically sound book that I have read, and there are a few areas that I simply don't agree with, namely that God's love is incompatible with his being angry, and that because of God's love, sin does not matter as much, but it does delve deeply into grace and is a book in which God's love that is demonstrated through his death upon the cross is explored deeply.

What stands out the most about this book is how Julian breaks through the gender barrier, for at the time theology is very much a male dominated discipline, and though things have changed, Julian was writing in the 14th century, and it further appears that she was not as well versed in the scriptures as others probably where. Yet for a book to have lasted for so long from a time when a recluse woman who had visions and then taught from them and was not burnt as a witch is impressive.

There are a couple of things I've noticed about her teachings (if that is what you wish to call it). Firstly, everything occurs in threes. Okay, she has 16 visions, but as she describes these visions, she always describes them in triplets, which reflects the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. The second thing is how she explores the feminine nature (or what she sees as the feminine nature) of God, and she generally expresses that Jesus is the mother, however that is something that I don't necessarily see as entirely supportive simply because my reading of the scripture indicates that God is male, and if there is any feminine aspect to God then it is the church. That does not necessarily mean that God does not have feminine characteristics, but it is not something that I have any desire to speculate on at this time. ...more

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Oct 29, 2018 Quirkyreader rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This was a moving testimony by a woman in great pain who used her faith to get through it.

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Nov 01, 2020 Quirkyreader rated it it was amazing

This was a re-read. This time around it was for the longer text.

I like the longer text better. It elaborates more on what Julian of Norwich saw during her visions.

While I was reading this I used a copy of the Wycliffe Bible as reference work. Anytime scripture was mentioned I looked it up in that translation. For me it wasn’t that difficult to read. But, this is coming from a person who had to memorize Chaucer while in High School. So something you can try, is to have both the Wycliffe and King ...more

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Dec 30, 2008 Saralyn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

The first book known to have been written by a woman in the English language. Julian is loved by feminist theologians and Catholic conservatives alike. Out of her mystical visions of Christ, comes an exploration of the feminine aspects of God, the problem of evil and suffering, and God's love for humanity. Most known for the phrase "all shall be well", but I also love "Love was His meaning". I love this book. ...more

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Jun 13, 2019 Melody Schwarting rated it really liked it

Shelves: ladies-i-love, favorites, ly-advent, book-girl, home, r-2020, r-nf-spirituality, prayer, r-2019, books-read-in-2021

2021 Review

My third year in a row spending the summer with Julian. Always worth it! Her focus on comfort was particularly needed this year--as it was last year, too--and her invitation to rest in God's goodness and love remains enticing. It struck me this time that Julian herself never says "all shall be well." The many times it's repeated in the text always come as quotations from her visions.

"...the goodness of God is the highest object of prayer and it reaches down to our lowest need." (49)

"A ...more

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Nov 24, 2011 booklady rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: church-documents, non-fiction, prayer, religion, 2013, autobiography, classic, favorites, spiritual, worth-reading-over-and-over

Julian likes lists! So do I! ☺ At another time in my life, her writings might have sounded like an old-time sermon. The recording I listened to read by Pam Ward and produced by Hovel Audio did use many quaint unfamiliar expressions. And yet, I found myself compelled to love Julian's ‘Gracious Lord’, so I might be able to claim as she did,

‘Our courteous Lord endlessly beholds us in this work, rejoicing. And we please him best by wisely and truly believing these things, and by rejoicing with him

...more

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Oct 31, 2008 Stephanie Ricker rated it did not like it

Shelves: classics, religion-and-philosophy, medieval

Medieval Lit: sometimes you are so cool, and other times you make me want to stab my eyes out with a quill pen.

Julian of Norwich falls into the category of written dream vision, of which there seems to have been jillions in the middle ages. Nobody just had regular dreams, oh no; they had religiously significant dreams that must be recorded for all to read about and for professors today to torture their students with. Thanks, Julian. Thanks a bunch.

In all seriousness, I appreciate her sincerity a ...more

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Sep 02, 2020 Ellie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: monastery-convent, religion, spiritual, 2020indchal, non-fiction, medieval

I love those medieval mystics and Julian is one of the best--"And all shall be well and all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well".

There are so many beautiful things in The Showings. God as Mother and Father, the idea (and new word) of "one-ing" with God. The vision of a God incapable of anger where sin is what makes us unhappy not what angers God. A God that delights in his/her creation. A God that is trustworthy.

I'll admit I skimmed through some of the more gruesome Catholic vis ...more

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May 25, 2020 Catherine added it · review of another edition

Shelves: religion, diy-canon, books-catherine-owns, build-something-better, nonfiction

I have never read anything like this. I love it. I will be meditating on it for a long time.

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Jan 24, 2019 Gary Beauregard Bottomley rated it really liked it

A fourteenth century mystic’s guide for the human experience written with a spiritual coherence that surpasses any other modern day book of divine appreciation.

I stumbled onto this book when I noticed that Sister Julianne from ‘Call the Midwife’ had this book as one of her few possessions. That would have been time appropriate since this book very well would have been known in 1961 or before and would had made a good companion for an Anglican nun. The series also made notice of the movie ‘Whist ...more

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Mar 28, 2012 Jeremy rated it did not like it

Shelves: christian-life

This books seems pretty divisive. Readers either give it five stars or 1-2 stars. For me, I suppose I had a difficult time reading it with it's original milieu in mind. I couldn't stop thinking "This would never get published today, this would never get published today".

Obviously, it is a very significant work, as the first recorded English writing by a woman; as a well-recognized anchorite bio. However, I simply didn't get much from it. Also, I am "tainted" by my rebellious protestant upbringin ...more

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Dec 30, 2014 Emma rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: benedictine-cistercian, received-from-publisher-author, read-in-2015, christian

Since the late 1970s, thanks to the series Classics of Western Spirituality, English readers have had access to an excellent text in modern English of the Book of Revelations by Julian of Norwich, both in its short and long versions. Mirabai Starr thought time had come for a much more daring translation, theologically speaking, of the mystic’s sixteen visions (in its long version). She states doing so on the basis of what she thinks are Julian’s ideas. This leads her to move quite far away from ...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Melissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, religion, essays

This book is a series of essays that Julian of Norwich wrote about 16 revelations she had about God's love. Well worth reading.

She is also the first known woman to write a book in English.

Things that stood out to me:
At one point Julian of Norwich had a vision in which God showed her a hazelnut, and from that very simple ordinary thing she learned three lessons. 1) God made it 2)God keeps it and 3)God loves it. If it is true of a hazelnut, how true it is of any human that God is our Maker, Keepe ...more

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Nov 01, 2015 Ygraine rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

medieval mysticism and the movement towards becoming one with divinity, losing the self in god and finding god in the self, is something both fascinating and unsettling; these are works of vast intimacy, calling upon god as father in his divine creation, and mother in christ's self-sacrificing nurture of humankind, as son in the images of the virgin mary's pain, and as lover in the burning, all-consuming nature of his love, as teacher, as brother, as spouse. this is a vast, all-encompassing year ...more

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Apr 30, 2019 Bethany rated it it was amazing

With grace and poetry the English mystic known as Julian of Norwich offers a view of God that is unique for her time. Born out of an era of disease and religious terror, Julian's words offer an image of a Divine Mother who made, loves, and keeps all things. With great depth of tenderness we see the desire for God met in abundant visions that comfort and reassure Julian. Reading Revelations of Divine Love one can't help but be drawn and enclosed within a God who will make all things well. ...more

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Mar 08, 2018 Brooke rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This was just what I needed just when I needed it.

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Mar 23, 2020 Marta rated it it was amazing

Not a terrible book to read while the world's burning down around you, quite frankly. ...more

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Mar 20, 2021 Samantha B rated it liked it

I have A LOT of thoughts about this.

On the one hand, she has so much in here that is beautiful, but most of it is stuff that I already know. Like how much God loves us all the time. (That one is at least 50% courtesy of our current pastor who thinks, and rightly so, that it's really, really important for us to internalize that. I didn't know how much I HADN'T internalized God's love until he started preaching and teaching about it on a semi-regular basis). And how He loves us even when we sin, a I have A LOT of thoughts about this.

On the one hand, she has so much in here that is beautiful, but most of it is stuff that I already know. Like how much God loves us all the time. (That one is at least 50% courtesy of our current pastor who thinks, and rightly so, that it's really, really important for us to internalize that. I didn't know how much I HADN'T internalized God's love until he started preaching and teaching about it on a semi-regular basis). And how He loves us even when we sin, and how His grace surrounds us, and how He is the root of our prayer. I also thought it was really cool how she talks about joy in suffering, and how she has an almost Lewisian view of the joys of heaven. So: the vast majority of the time, I really enjoyed/appreciated this.

That said. She's trying to be very careful to stay within the teachings of the Church (i.e. the Catholic Church, which was the only Christian Church at that point). Which I appreciate. BUT.
-Some of the time, it takes a certain amount of knowledge of theology and looking at what she's saying through a couple of different lenses before you can quite figure out how what she's saying fits into the framework of the Faith. That's not necessarily a problem, but I definitely wouldn't recommend it for someone who doesn't have a solid foundation in philosophy and theology.
-Sometimes she veers close to the edge. For instance, when she's talking about humans, and souls and bodies, she comes dangerously close to the "meat-puppet fallacy" (by which I mean, the soul just kind of lives in the body, or the body is bad, etc. The correct conception of this is that humans are union of body and soul. Credit again goes to our pastor for the coinage of the term "meat-puppet fallacy" XD). In addition, she has some strange idea about a human will which never consents to sin??? And I'm not sure that's legit. Oh, and she has one statement which implies EITHER that everyone is saved OR that Jesus only suffered for those that were saved? And I'm pretty sure that neither of those is true. (Catechism says: we can't say the first one for sure, and the second one is completely false.)
Within context, these things are fairly minor, but they did bug me. So. Yes. Enjoyable, but read with caution.
[Edit]: Also, I forgot to say how much the secular edition of this book irritated me. Because, like, the notes were so condescending? And so much of the notes/cover material assume that she's BREAKING MOLDS and BEING UNORTHODOX and it's like, no, she veers close to the edge sometimes, but it's NEVER THE TIMES THAT YOU ARE SAYING SHE'S BEING UNORTHODOX. /rant over/

Three stars, methinks. ...more

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May 18, 2020 Joy Matteson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: christianity, contemplative

Mirabai Starr's translation of Julian of Norwich's Showings are simply stunning. Modern language doesn't detract from the beautiful and poignant words of Julian's visions. It's also surprisingly practical, which on my second time reading the Showings I had forgotten about. I think every evangelical Christian needs to read and fully understand how Julian calls Christ "God the Mother", and how he mothers us and births us into new life. It is not heresy, it is a a beautiful metaphor that challenges ...more

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Jan 27, 2021 Ty rated it liked it

I don't know about you but sometimes I wonder if the problem is that I haven't read enough medieval mystics. Is there some great secret hidden in some semi-obscure text that'll make everything make sense for me?? Probably not, but how will I know unless I read every single book ever written! Julian of Norwich was a 14th century anchorite, probably now most well known for her phrase "but all shall be well and all shall be well and all manner of things shall be well." This book, REVELATIONS OF DIV ...more

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Jul 10, 2018 Rendi Hahn rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classic, non-fiction, spirituality

It's hard to encapsulate this book in a brief review, but let me say this: if you want to have your heart and thinking stretched about the love of God, read this book! It's unlike any other book I've ever read. Written around 1395, it is the first published book in the English language known to have been written by a woman ... a woman who was both humble and bold in her approach to God. You may find some parts make you uncomfortable, and some you don't feel you can agree with, but if you'll read ...more

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Mar 12, 2020 Elizabeth rated it liked it

Hearing a book described as “theologically bold” is a tried-and-true way to get my guard up. However, there were bright spots to this book—Julian’s description of the love of God is maternal, overflowing, infinitely tender. Sadly, for every pop-out good sentence, there were many more times I caught myself rereading a sentence with my heresy Kill Bill sirens starting up in the back of my head. Yes, God is love. No, that is not all he is. While Julian’s revelations helpfully extrapolated on aspect ...more

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Feb 09, 2021 Mattea Gernentz rated it it was amazing

I'm speechless after finishing and am tempted to immediately pick the book up once more. I would so love to have a cup of tea with Julian. What a woman. Her abundant wisdom and humility are evident on every page. These are the most beautiful, soul-comforting words I have read in a long time—a reminder that we are never not held in God's love and that Christ is our true Mother. Wow. ...more

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May 01, 2019 Peter rated it it was ok

I’m more of a Simone Weil stan. My rating reflects that this book wasn’t written for wretches such as myself

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Mar 16, 2021 HD Tolson rated it it was amazing

You can't not just be hyped by this book! ...more

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Mar 16, 2021 Dawson Cole rated it really liked it

I #BelieveWomen, even when they write about divine hallucinogenic visions sent from God and then become an anchorite and cement themselves inside one small room until they die.

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Dec 28, 2020 Michelle rated it really liked it

Wow! The parts I understood were brilliant, beautiful, sometimes edgy, and very thought provoking. I may read this one again.

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About Julian of Norwich

Julian of Norwich

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Julian 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 Re Julian 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).
...more

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Sacred Literature Trust Series (1 - 10 of 19 books)

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The Writings of Julian of Norwich: A Vision Showed to a Devout Woman and a Revelation of Love

Julian of Norwich: Selections from Revelations of Divine Love--Annotated & Explained

Enfolded in Love: Daily Readings with Julian of Norwich (Enfolded in Love)

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“He said not 'Thou shalt not be tempested, thou shalt not be travailed, thou shalt not be dis-eased'; but he said, 'Thou shalt not be overcome.” — 182 likes

“Truth sees God, and wisdom contemplates God, and from these two comes a third, a holy and wonderful delight in God, who is love.” — 71 likes

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