Ave Maria, O Auctrix Vite: Mary in the Visions of Hildegard of Bingen (1 098--1179)
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Ave Maria, o auctrix vite: Mary in the Visions of Hildegard of Bingen (1 098--1179) By Gregory E. Roth A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Licentiate in Sacred Theology at the International Marian Research Institute University ofDayton 1998 Abbreviations Works ofHildegard ofBingen Anderson Strehlow Hildegard of Bingen 's Medicine [Handbuch der Hildegard-Medizin} Folk Wisdom Series. English. Ed. Gail Vivino. Trans. Karin Anderson Strehlow. Briefwechsel Briejwechsel. Trans. Adelgundis Fuhrkotter, O.S.B. Salzburg. 1965 C&C Hildegardis Causae et Curae Ed. Paul Kaiser. Bibliotheca Scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana. Lipsiae: B.G. Teubner, 1868. 254. Cunningham Hildegard of Bingen's Book of Divine Works with Letters and Songs. Ed. Matthew Fox. Trans. Robert Cunningham. Santa Fe, New Mexico Bear & Company, 1987. Dybdal Hildegard ofBingen's Book of Divine Works with Letters and Songs. Ed. Matthew Fox. Trans. Jerry Dybdal and Matthew Fox. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Bear & Company, 1987. Ep Hildegardis Bingensis -- Epistolarium. Tumhout, Belgium: Brepols, 1991. Vol. 91 of Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales (CCCM). Ed. L. van Acker. Ep2 Hildegardis Bingensis -- Epistolarium. Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols, 1991/1993 . Vol. 91A of Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales (CCCM). Ed. L. van Acker. Handbuch Handbuch der Hildegard-Medizin . Trans. Wighard Strehlow, Dr. and Gottfried Hertzka, M.D. Freiburg im Breisgau: Verlag Hermann Bauer, 1987. Hart & Bishop Hildegard~~ Bingen's SCIHAS. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Trans. C Hart and T Bishop. Holistic Healing Holistic Healing. Trans. Manfred Pawlik, Patrick Madigan, S.J., and John Kulas. Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1994. · Hozeski Hildegard of Bingen: The Book of the Rewards of Ltfe [Liber Vitae Meritorum}. Ed. James J. Wilhelm and Lowry Nelson, Jr. 11 Trans. Bruce W. Hozeski. The Garland Library ofMedieval Literature 89 Series B. New York & London: Garland Publishing, Inc, 1994. 290. LDO Hildegardis -- Liber Divinorum Operum. Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales(CCCM) . Ed. Albert Derolez, Peter Dronke LVM Hildegardis -- Liber Vitae Meritorum. Turnhout Belgium: Brepols, 1995. Vol. 90 of Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales (CCCM). Ed. Angela Carlevaris. Miller Hildegard of Bingen 's Book of Divine Works with Letters and Songs. Ed. Matthew Fox. Trans. Ronald Miller. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Bear & Company, 1987. Physica Hildegardis -- Physica. Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales (CCCM) . Ed. Irmgard Muller. PL197 Sanctae Hildegardis Abbatissae Opera Omnia. Vol. 197 of Patrc:logiae Curus Completus. Ed. J.P. Migne. Series latina 197. SCIVIAS Hildegardis Scivias. Turnhout Belgium: Brepols, 1978. Vol. 43/43A of Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales(CCCM) . Ed. Adelgundis Fuhrkotter, Angela Carlevaris. Symphonia Saint Hildegard ofBingen's Symphonia: A Critical Edition of the Symphonia Armonie Celestium Revelationum (Symphony of the ·Harmony of Celestial Revelations) Trans. Barbara Newman. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1988 . Writings Secrets of God: Writings of Hildegard qf Bingen. Trans. Susan Flanagan. Boston: Shambhala, 1996 Wisse Wisse die Wege--Scivias. 8th. Trans. M. Bockeler. Berlin: St. Augustinus Verlag/Otto Muller Verlag, 1928/1954,1957. lll Works about Hildegard ofBingen Kraft Kraft, Kent. "The Eye Sees More Than the Heart Knows: The Visionary Cosmology of Hildegard of Bingen." Diss. Wisconsin, 1977. Life Gottfried and Theoderic, The Life of the Holy Hildegard, edited by M. Palmquist and J. Kulas, O.S.B. (Collegeville, Minnesota, The Litrugical Press, 1995), p. 134, translated by A. Fiihrkotter, O.S.B and J. McGrath. materia Aurea Schmidt, Margot. "Maria - •>materia Aurea« in der Kirche nach Hildegard von Bingen." Munchener Theologische Zeitschrift 32.1 (1981) Marienlexikon Schmidt, Margot. "Hildegard v. Bingen." Marienlexikon. Ed. Remigius Baumer, Prof. Dr. and Leo Scheffczyk. Erzabtei St Ottilien: Eos Verlag. Newman, 0 feminea forma Newman, Barbara. "0 Feminea Forma: God and Woman in the Works of Hildegard (1098-1179)." Diss. New Haven, CT: Yale University, 1981. Newman, Sister of Wisdom Newman, Barbara. Sister of Wisdom: St. Hildegard's Theology of the Feminine. Berkeley: Scholars Press, 1987. Spiegel der Schonheit Schmidt, Margot. "Maria, Spiegel der Schonheit." Maria for aile Frauen oder iiber allen Frauen? Ed. Elisabeth Gossmann and Dieter R. Gauen. Freiburg: Hinder Verlag, 1989. Vita Vita Sanctae Hildegardis. Turnhout Belgium: Brepols, 1993. Vol. 126 of Corpus Christianorum: Continuatio Mediaevales (CCCM). Ed. Monika Klaes. Weeks Weeks, Andrew. German Mysticism from Hildegard of Bingen to Ludwig Wittgenstein: A Literary and Intellectual Histmy. SUNY Series in Western Esoteric Traditions. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1993. Weibliche Gestalt Schmidt, Margot. "Maria - Die 'Weibliche Gestalt der Schonheit des Allerhochsten'." Mariologisches 21.8. IV Table of Contents Abbreviations ..... ... ....... ..... .. ............... .... .. ..... n Works .. ... .. .. .. ... .... ... ......... ............ ...... n Works about Hildegard ofBingen ... .. .. .. ... ... .. ..... ........ .... iv Introduction . 1 Mary in Hildegard in German . 3 Mary in Hildegard in English .... .. .. ... ...... .. ........... ...... ... 9 The Contribution of this Thesis . 10 Hildegard' s Life and Times . 12 Hildegard 's Life After 113 6 . 15 Hildegard's Public Ministry .... .. ...... ........ ...... .. ..... ...... 20 A Synopsis ofHildegard's Writings .......... .. ...... ..... .... 28 The Visionary Works . ... ................... .. ....... 28 Hildegard' s Scientific Works . ..... .............. ...... .. ... 30 Hildegard' s Other Works . 3 1 Mysticism . .................. .. .. ... .. .. ......... ................ ... 33 The Character ofMysticism .. .. ... ... ....... ..... ... ... ... .. 33 The Character ofMysticism in the Twelfth Century ............ .. .... .. .... 36 A German-The Character of the German Mystical Tradition ... .. ....... ... 3 7 Hildegard the Benedictine .. .. .. ... ... .... ..... ... ........... .... 45 Hildegard a Woman-The Character ofFemale Mysticism .. .. ................ 47 Conclusions . ... ................ .... .. .. .. .... .. 56 Twelfth-Century Cosmology ........... ............................. .... .. 58 Hildegard's Cosmology . ........ ... .. .. ... 62 Mary and Wisdom . .. .... ...... .... .... ... ... .. 67 Conclusion ........ .. .. .. .. ... ...... .. .. .... .. .. .. .... 68 Hildegard' s Anthropology: An Incarnational Vision ..... .... .......... ....... 70 Genesis 2-3 . ... .... .... ...... .. .. ... 70 Man and Woman . ... .. ... .. 76 Woman and Women in Hildegard . .... 82 Virginity . 83 Woman's Generative Role . .. 85 Adam and Eve and Ordinary Women and Men .. ... ... ... .. .. .. ... 86 Conclusion . ..... .. .. .. ... .. .... 90 Hildegard' s Ecclesiological Vision ............. .... 91 The Church as Virgin and Bride . 92 v Synagoga and Ecclesia ............. ............. .. .. .. ...... 96 The Church -- Baptism and Eucharist . 100 Conclusion . 103 Pre-Scholastic Medieval Mario logy in the West . 105 Anselm of Canterbury . 107 Bernard of Clairvaux . 109 Eadmer ...... .... ..... ..... .. ......... .. ..... ...... 109 Abelard and Heloise . 11 0 Alan ofLille . 112 The Immaculate Conception Debate . 114 Conclusion . 116 Mary in Hildegard's Thought . 11 7 Marian Cosmology ... .. .. .. ·. 11 7 The Two Virgin Mothers ...... .. .. ....... ................... .. ... 119 Virginity and Mary's Virginity ... ... .. ... ... ..... .... .. 120 Virgin and Mother . 122 The Immaculate Conception . ...... ...... .. .. ..... ... 127 The Assumption . 129 Mary/Eve . .. ...... .. .. .. ... ... .... ..... 130 The Annunciation and the Incarnation . .. .. ... ................. 133 Conclusion . .. .... .. .... .... ... .. ... .. .. ..... .. 137 Appendix ........... .. .. ................ .. ......... ...... ... 139 List ofthe sources ofthe most important Marian texts in Hildegard ........ 139 Works Cited . 141 VI Introduction The twelfth-century Benedictine nun and visionary Hildegard of Bingen is not widely recognized for her Mariological contributions. In English two of the major resource books for Mariological research, Theotokos and Hilda GraefsMary, do not include her. This is not the case in Germany where there have been a few articles written on Mary's role in Hildegard's works. But it perhaps illustrates how difficult it is to glean Hildegard's Mariology. When faced with Hildegard we encounter several difficulties which hinder the appreciation of her Mariological thought. Difficulties in Hildegard The first difficulty we encounter is that we are tempted to take her words anachronistically and believe that they confirm our contemporary ideas. She is not involved with the debates about the Immaculate Conception nor the Assumption. Hildegard is primarily concerned with a cosmological, incarnational vision of the Creator and His creation. She considers the natural environment as an illustration, an image ofthe Creator's plan. We may draw our own conclusion from that, but she was interested in the heuristic value of creation as an icon of God's plan. The second difficulty is that she has given us no separate treatise on Mary. Hildegard does not deal with the personality, psychology, or affective elements ofMary. She develops her Mariology contextually within her visions. Mary is implicit in Hildegard's visions Her role in creation is that of Sophia: