Flowing Light - Mechthild Of Magdeburg

1207–97?

Mystic poet Mechthild of Magdeburg was well ahead of her time. Born around 1207 in a German castle, presumably from a well-to-do family, she decided to simplify her life in her twenties, joining a religious community, the beguines. The focus of this movement was Christian service, spiritual deepening, and voluntary poverty. Beguines were not officially nuns, and this gave them some freedom from the church hierarchy.

Since the age of twelve, Mechthild had experienced ecstatic visions. She said once that she saw “all things in God and God in all things.” These visions continued throughout her life, and at the béguinage, she was encouraged to write them down. This resulted in some beautiful poetry and stunning prose, full of stark imagery and punchy phrases—very modern in its style. She wrote in the Middle Low German dialect, the speech of the common folk, not the church’s high Latin. She was not shy about criticizing church leaders, and this earned her some official opposition.

Among other subjects, she wrote extensively about purgatory and hell. Some of her ideas may have been picked up in Dante’s Inferno in the next century, and some scholars think that Dante’s character Matelda is based on Mechthild.

But Mechthild’s major theme was oneness with Christ. Borrowing styles from the biblical Song of Songs, she penned love poems that were both highly romantic and deeply devotional.

The tender caress between God and the soul,

The Lord in the highest makes all things whole. . . .

The undiluted joy of unity

Vibrant love through eternity

Ill health forced her to take refuge in a convent in her seventies. There she completed her book, The Flowing Light of the Godhead. She also mentored two other women, including another visionary who became known as Gertrude the Great (see the February 28 devotion).

The love and light of God flowed through Mechthild’s life—into some amazing words, and into the lives of others. May that the same vibrant love flow through us.

Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death.

Song Of Songs 8:6