Julian of Norwich (1343 – after 1416) was an English anchoress (religious recluse), devoted to prayer. During her life the Black Death reached Norwich and probably killed over half the population. There were more outbreaks up to 1387. Julian lived during the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. Those were deadly times, much like our own.
“When I was thirty years old and a half, God sent me a bodily sickness,
in which I lay three days and three nights; and on the fourth night I took all my rites of Holy Church,
and weened not to have lived till day.“
During that illness, Julian had a series of visions of God. Against all expectations, she recovered to live thirty-three years longer. Twenty years’ meditation upon that experience led to her book, Revelations of Divine Love, the best-known surviving book in the English language written by a mystic, and also the earliest surviving book in English known to be written by a woman.
“See that I am God.
See that I am in everything.
See that I do everything.
See that I have never stopped ordering my works, nor ever shall, eternally.
See that I lead everything on to the conclusion I ordained for it before time began,
by the same power, wisdom and love with which I made it.
How can anything be amiss?“
Revelations of Divine Love is a message of optimism based on the certainty of being loved by God and of being protected by his Providence. She believed that “Our Lord wants us to know” God’s unconditional love, mercy, and grace.
“And I saw that truly nothing happens by accident or luck,
but everything by God’s wise providence.
If it seems to be accident or luck from our point of view,
our blindness and lack of foreknowledge is the cause;
for matters that have been in God’s foreseeing wisdom since before time
began befall us suddenly, all unawares;
and so in our blindness and ignorance we say that this is accident or luck,
but to our Lord God it is not so.“
Julian was known as a spiritual authority within her community, where she also served as an adviser. Even now, more than 6 centuries later, Julian is considered an important Christian mystic and theologian.
“But all shall be well, And all shall be well,
And all manner of things shall be well…
He did not say, “You shall know no storms, no travails, no disease,”
He said, “You shall not be overcome.”“