10: Reading for Devotion

Women writers, vernacular language, and devotiional writings: how do they relate?

our example: Catharine of Siena (1347-1380)

another sort of example:

Rule of St. Benedict with translations into Old high German

Growth markets: vernacular religious writings; writings by women

Controversies and complications: access and correctness

Heresies:
  • Cathars
  • Waldensians
Friars:

Francis of Assisi 1182-1226

OFM

Giotto. St Francis preaches to the birds

Dominic of Osma 1170-1221

OP

Allegory of the Dominicans as
Domini canes
Fresco in S. Maria Novella, Florence,
by Andrea di Bonaiuto

 

Genres and types of vernacular writings
  • sermons:
    • Dominicans, Franciscans
      •               Ex: Meister Eckhart, OP (ca 1260-1328)
  •     prayers, devotions
  •           Books of Hours
  •            Devotional reading: Fioretti
  •   prophetic, visionary, and mystical literature
    •    prophetic
      •       Book of Revelation Apocalypse
    •    visionary: author describes a vision
    •    mystical:  author describes union with divine or hopes to inspire reader to experience

Examples:

Joachim of Fiore (ca 1135-1202): “Joachite Prophecies”

   Liber Concordie, Expositio in Apocalypsim.

 Joachim of Fiore Bernard McGinn for PBS

3 Joachite Ages: manuscript illustration

 

confraternities

tertiaries

  Women as writers

Nobles
Ex: Christine de Pisan. (b. 1364, Venice [Italy]–d. c. 1430)

C de P Master of the Bedford trend. Christine de Pisan Instructs Her Son, Jean de Castel, 1410–11. Paris

  
Nuns
Ex: Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
inspiration straight from God rather than from study

Hildegard Hildegard, Scivias ms.

Tertiaries

           Ex: St. Bridget of Sweden (ca 1303-1373)

  •                Visions
  •                1344  Campostela;  death of husband; becomes ascetic
  •                1349   order of nuns,  to Rome
Bridget St. Bridget’s Eucharistic Vision

Italy, Naples

Late 14th century

Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan, 1912

MS M.498, fol. 4v

  Ex: Catharine of Siena (1347-1380)

  • Visions
    Dominican tertiary age 16
    1370 major series of visions
    Dictates letters
    1375   Stigmata
    1377 miraculously learns to write
    “Dialogue”

War of the Eight Saints

Gregory XI

Urban VI

Great Schism

c of S Catherine of Siena, The Orcherd of Syon

(Dialogo) , London: Wynken de Worde, 1519

     Catherine of Siena: Giovanni di Paolo di Grazia (c. 1403-1482)   

Pinturicchio (Bernardino di Betto)

The Canonization of Catherine of Siena by Pope Pius II (1461)

1502-08
Fresco
Piccolomini Library, Duomo, Siena