An Investigation of the Active versus Contemplative Life of Women in the Medieval Church Affiliated with Rome between the Twelfth and Fifteenth Century

Nathanael P. O’Der

M.A. in Theology Final Paper

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Elizabeth Groppe

September 2016

1

Introduction

The theological paradigm of Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42) posits two distinct

roles for women. In the Roman Church in the High and Late Middle Ages,

women were offered two roles that correspond to Luke’s story. Mary, according to Jesus,

having chosen the “better” path, is the woman who exemplified discipleship through the

, while Martha is the medieval housewife. In the medieval church, the

role of “Mary,” which was a life of virginal devotion to God, was presented to women as the better path, but women were often forced by family and church into the role of

“Martha,” a life of chaste devotion to God through marriage and family life. Augustine’s influential theology ascribed greater value to the contemplative life, while Meister

Eckhart gives greater value to the active life in his sermon on Mary and Martha. Which is the better path? Or is this a false choice? While this is a question that is relevant in any age, this thesis will demonstrate how the story of Mary and Martha as presented by both

Augustine and Eckhart is a false dichotomy using examples from Eckhart’s time to show that women both in the consecrated life and the married life exemplify aspects of both contemplative and active lives.

This paper will give a brief overview of Augustine’s exegesis as well as Meister

Eckhart’s contrasting sermons on Luke 10. Next, I will discuss the role of women in marriage and family life and some of the struggles and decisions they went through which may have been a cause for their conversion from a “Martha” life of domesticity to a “Mary” role enabling them to take on the devotion of Jesus, which would eventually lead some women to sainthood. Then, I will discuss women’s role in religious life and how they moved from a “Mary” to a “Martha” role to effect change within the church in 2 spite of great adversity from their male counterparts. Lastly, I will conclude that the paradigm of Mary and Martha in the Middle Ages is relevant to post-modern women who have multiple options and maintain a role of discipleship and contemplation in what is very much a “Martha” world.

Mary and Martha

The Gospel Story

Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”1

Prior to the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38 – 42, Jesus and his disciples were traveling in Judea and Samaria. At the end of chapter nine we discover that it is now time for Jesus to “go to Jerusalem” 2 which is an idiom referring to Christ’s passion, death, resurrection, and ascension. It is on this journey back to Jerusalem that Jesus visits

Martha and Mary. The passage does not specifically indicate the village in which Martha and Mary reside, however John 11:1 states that they live in the same village as their

1 The New Oxford Annotated Bible, Luke 10:38 – 42. 2 “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51). 3

Lazarus which is in Bethany.3 In spite of only being about two miles outside of

Jerusalem, Bethany may have been a good stop before his entry into Jerusalem.

Jesus knows that his time on earth is coming to an end, and aside from merely

having a convenient stop it would be reasonable to visit friends if one’s days on earth are

numbered. Mary and Martha are most definitely friends of Jesus. The writer of John

states that Jesus is friends with Lazarus and loves his sisters, Martha and Mary.4 This

seems likely also, given the way Martha speaks to Jesus saying, “Do you not care that my

sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.”5 It seems

reasonable to assume that if Jesus does indeed know that his betrayal is coming, he may

have been more interested in spending quality time in fellowship with Martha and Mary

whom he chose to spend some of his last days with. Instead, he is faced with Martha’s

anger about Mary not helping tend to the household.

Jesus’ visit to Mary and Martha allow the reader to see that women have a role in

the that is more than just one of service. Martha is the Aramaic

feminine version of lord. “Martha” literally means, “mistress”6 or “the female head of a

household”7 and “Mary” means “rebellion”.8 Given that Jesus rebukes the sister who is

3 “Now a certain many was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (John 11:1). 4 John 11:5, 11. 5 Luke 10:40. 6 3137: Μάρθα Martha, mar’-thah; probably of Chaldean Origin (meaning Mistress). (Strong, 46). 7 Definition 1a of “Mistress”, merriam-webster.com. 8 Greek: Μαρία Maria; mar-ee’-ah; or Μαρίαµ Mariam, mar-ee-am’; of Heb. Or. -Miryâm, meer מרים :the name of six Chri.stian Females: -Mary; Hebrew: 4813…[4813] מראח Merîy, mer-ee’; from 4784 מרי :yawm’; from 4805 rebelliously; Mirjam…; 4805 Mârâh, maw-raw’; a primary root; to be (accurasatory make) bitter (or unpleasant); (figurative) to rebel (or resist; accusatory to provoke) – bitter, change, be disobedient, 4

performing her perfunctory role in defense of the sister who is doing that which is not

expected of her, the writer may have been stating that the right thing to do was to shed

the social norm and follow Jesus who was the rebel.

Augustine’s Exegesis

Saint Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430) is considered one of the most significant

thinkers in Christianity. His “adaptation of classical thought to Christian teaching created a theological system of great power and lasting influence.”9 In the grand scheme,

Augustine’s words on many subjects have been taken very seriously throughout Christian

history. As such, his sermon concerning Luke’s Gospel on Mary and Martha has had a

lasting effect on religious communities’ lives and principles.

At the beginning of his sermon 54, Augustine starts the analysis of the passage.

He begins by stating that Jesus became Mary’s advocate when rebuking Martha for her

sharp words demanding that Jesus do something about the sister who was not doing her

part to ensure Jesus’ needs were being met. Jesus had arrived to talk to the sisters, how

could he do so with Martha running around and not paying attention to what he had to

say? Mary on the other hand was, “intent on the sweetness of the Lord’s word”.10

Augustine goes on to analyze why it is that Martha might be blamed. He asks who could possibly be blamed for Martha responding to the reception of Jesus who was such a great guest. If it is true that someone engaged in hospitality is in the wrong, Augustine

disobey, grievously, provocation, provoke (-ing), (be) rebel (against, -lious); (Strong, 72) . 9 O'Donnell, 2016, www.britannica.com. 10 Knight, 2016, www.newadvent.org. 5 says “let men give over their ministrations to the needy; let them choose for themselves

‘the better part, which shall not be taken from’ them….”11 In blaming Martha for her desire for hospitality, Augustine makes the statement that mercy should cease and knowledge only should be sought. In fact, since Christians have the support of Christ’s judgment, then “why do not all do this, when we have the Lord Himself for our defender on this behalf? For we do not fear in this matter, lest we should offend His justice.”12

This question is obviously meant to be rhetorical since Augustine continues his exegesis. Martha had chosen to be concerned with many things when “one thing is needful.” Mary chose the better part. Augustine is quick to point out that Christ did not state that Martha had chosen the wrong part or a bad part. Mary had chosen the better of the two options. He further reminds the church that God created the earth, the sea, and everything in them. Augustine alludes to Mary having chosen God over man by stating that the “One created many and not the other way around.”13

Augustine’s issue with Martha is not that she had chosen a bad part, but that she had chosen the servant role where she is trying to feed the flesh of Jesus, when Jesus was trying to feed the spirit of both sisters. Martha’s occupation with many things includes the refreshment of the flesh. Augustine asks why it is that refreshment is needed. It is because the body has need of food and water. However, if the need was taken away, what would be left?

11 Augustine and Knight, Section 2. 12 Augustine and Knight, Section 2. 13 “One is preferred to many. For one does not come from many, but many from one. The things which were made, are many, He who made them is One. The heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that in them are, how many are they!” (Augustine and Knight, Section 3). 6

Mercy is necessary for the miserable. Thou breakest bread to the hungry; because you have found a hungry man; take hunger away; to whom do you break bread? Take houseless wandering away; to whom do you show hospitality? Take nakedness away; to whom do you furnish clothes? Let there be no sickness; whom do you visit? No captivity; whom do you redeem? No quarrelling; whom do you reconcile? No death; whom do you bury? In that world to come, these evils will not be; therefore the services will not be either.14

Augustine posits that if the misery were taken away, the need to show mercy would no

longer be needed. He states that Martha is of the type concerned with mercy. Eventually, misery will be taken from the earth and that which Martha has chosen will also be taken away. What is better will then be given. Augustine then compares the difference between

Mary and Martha to ships on the water. “Martha is still on the sea, she (Mary) is already in port”. 11 It is likely that if Augustine was concerned with Martha’s role of service in

this sermon, he would have lauded her more for her willingness to be a good servant,

since Augustine did have a great interest in helping the poor.

Augustine does not see either Martha or Mary in the wrong necessarily. He seems

to be stating that they are both praiseworthy for their parts in the ministry of Jesus.

Martha is just not as far along as Mary is when it comes to his teaching because she is

concerned with the service of his flesh. This is not to say that Augustine did not believe

that the “Martha” role was menial or un-Christian. Augustine preached nine sermons on

almsgiving,15 which is very much a treatment of the flesh. He even preached that God

existed in the poor16. However, in Augustine’s sermon 54 on Mary and Martha,

Augustine is warning those to whom he is preaching to rely closely on the Lord, rather

14 Augustine and Knight, Section 2. 15 Santon, 116. 16 Muldowney, 87. 7 than merely on one another. In his closing statement he states “I would not that you should stand fast in us, but in the Lord…For neither is he that plants anything, neither he that waters; but God that gives the increase.”17 With that in mind, Martha’s service to the

Lord, while acknowledged as being a good temporal work, is still inferior to Mary’s higher contemplative role as student.

Meister Eckhart’s Sermon 9

On the other side of the Martha and Mary coin we find the sermons of Meister

Eckhart (1260 – 1328). Meister Eckhart was a Christian mystic and accomplished

Dominican academic who played several roles as an orator, preacher, professor, and vicar for the Master of the . Eckhart’s work with the Dominican in

Strasburg undoubtedly influenced his theological writing since they were the audience to whom he preached a large number of his sermons. 18 One sermon in particular is considered to be a controversial sermon about Martha and Mary. Sermon 9 contradicts

Augustine’s exegesis on Luke 10 in that it assigns the primary enlightened role to

Martha, rather than Mary.

Meister Eckhart opens his sermon with an image of Mary as a younger, sort of gooey-eyed girl, innocent and new in her understanding and education of God’s world.

“Three things made Mary sit at our Lord’s feet. One was that the goodness of God possessed her soul…second was unspeakable longing…third was the sweet solace and

17 Knight, Section 4. 18 In 1313, as the vicar for the Master of the Dominican Order, Eckhart spent a great deal of time “giving spiritual counsel to convents of Dominican nuns and some houses of Beguines” (Eckhart Society, 2016, www.eckhartsociety.org). 8 joy she gained from the eternal words that flowed from the mouth of Christ.”19 Eckhart presents Martha as the obverse of Mary. She had an interest in Christ as well, but different from Mary’s. Hers was one of waiting. There were three reasons for this:

One was her mature age and the ground of her being that was so fully trained that she thought none could do the work as well as she. The second was wise understanding, which knew how to do outward works perfectly as love ordains. The third was the great dignity of her beloved guest.20

She waited on Christ because she believed that her beloved guest deserved unparalleled service.

Eckhart goes on to show that Martha’s words at the end of verse 40 demanding

Jesus to tell her to help were not “said in anger, but it was rather affection that constrained her”.21 Eckhart makes the case that Martha observes a longing in Mary. It was a longing for the satisfaction of her soul. He goes on to say that she sees this in Mary because Martha had been there too. Martha was older and knew Mary better than Mary knew Martha. It was also likely that Martha knew Mary better than Mary knew herself. It was specifically because Martha was older and because her life was older, that gave her the finest understanding. Her words “Lord, tell her to help me” were the same as ‘my sister thinks she is able to do what she wishes to do, as long as she sits and received solace from you.”22 Eckhart claims that Martha is asking for this because she fears that

19 Walshe, 83. 20 Walshe, 83. 21 Walshe, 84. 22 Eckhart’s previous paragraph states that “masters come to such profound discernment that they recognized the nature of each virtue more clearly than Paul” He is trying to set up the idea that Martha’s experience and age have allowed her to have the virtue to see that Mary was probably “sitting there out of her own happiness than for spiritual profit” as he mentions in the next paragraph. (Walshe, 84) . 9

Mary will get no further in her education if she is merely caught up in the joy that is

Christ.

Meister Eckhart then moves into Jesus’ response. He believes that Christ’s reply was not a rebuke of Martha but rather a reassurance that Mary would continue on in her education and eventually become as Martha desired. Eckhart then considers why Jesus may have called Martha by name, not once but twice. He remarks that God “never called any man by name who was lost; but about those whom He did not call by name it is doubtful.”23 Eckhart makes the claim that he calls Martha by name twice to show that she was good in all ways, both temporal and eternal.

Martha’s nature is of the world, but not in the world. Eckhart feels that Jesus knows this when speaking to her. When Jesus states that she is troubled by many things, he means that she is not troubled by the one thing that would cause her to be anxious and distressed. Martha is in eternal bliss because she is calm, well-grounded in virtue, and not troubled by the one thing that would “spoil her joy”.24 Martha wanted her sister to be in that same eternal bliss.

When Jesus states that the one thing is needed, he is referring to God. He states that God is what all creatures need and if God took back what was God’s, all creatures would perish. It is at this point that Jesus is offering Martha reassurance that Mary will be

23 Walshe, 84. 24 The many thing is means, which are described by Eckhart as creatures that circle outside of the one way from John 14:6 where Christ says that he is the way, the truth, and the light (Walshe, 87). 10

like Martha. Martha has indeed chosen the best part. “The best thing that can befall a

creature shall be hers: she shall be blessed like you”.25

Eckhart’s next statement is quite interesting and I can understand how people of

action would be drawn toward it. Martha’s fear is that, according to Eckhart, Mary will

dally in her joy and bliss, but never learn to live. Martha wants Mary to rise up to learn

how to live and become perfect through an active life. Eckhart reminds the church that

Mary did just this. She would go on to receive the Holy Ghost and travel overseas to

preach and teach. She acted as a servant and washerwoman to the disciples. His final

remarks include this very inspirational and effective statement, “Only when the

become saints do they do good works, for then they gather the treasure of eternal life”.26

Mary, Martha, and the Life of Medieval Women

After the 12th century, the story of Mary and Martha was used in women’s conduct literature depicting their positive qualities of faith and loyalty as models for women. They are represented in visual art in the late Middle Ages as being Mary –who was confused with Mary Magdalene due to their similar names27, worldly woman representing a life of

sin and repentance, and Martha, the model medieval housewife.28 These are fairly typical

of the images of women in the Middle Ages who generally had two similar options. They

could lead a single and celibate religious life spent in prayer and contemplation or they

could marry and lead a life of service to their husband in payment of a marriage debt. One

thing is certain, women living in Europe in the late Middle Ages were not often given the

25 Walshe, 88. 26 Walshe, 90. 27 Beavis, 2016, www.bibleodyssey.org. 28 Ashley, 531. 11

choice of being the Mary or Martha depicted in their time. Many led subjugated lives and

were forced into the ranks of marriage as a “Martha” or raised in the seclusion of the

cloister as a “Mary”. In spite of the choice being made for them, women somehow still seemed to rise above the cultural assumptions that they were the weaker human to become some of the most iconic saints in history. In so doing, some integrated the active and contemplative lives – following the exemplars of both Martha and Mary

Medieval Women in Married Life

Marriage was more than just a matter of love or lust. It was instrumental to the lives and livelihood of those in the family as well as anyone who tended the land which that family owned. A multitude of factors played into the marital choices for women, especially women who belonged to houses of nobility. Families used marriage as one method of reinforcing family relationships and loyalty.29 Both women and men were entered into marriage to help end feuds, create alliances, and increase money and power.

While the secular idea of marriage may have been to keep houses of nobility safe, the morality of marriage belonged to the theology of the .

The theology of marriage in the Middle Ages originates with Augustine of Hippo in the fifth century. He indicates in book one of his On Marriage and Concupiscence, that marriage was an institution with a threefold purpose. First, marriage is a symbol of the sacramental bond. This bond “lost neither by divorce nor by adultery, should be guarded by husband and wife with concord and chastity. For it alone is that which even an unfruitful marriage retains by the law of piety, now that all that hope of fruitfulness is

29 “Marriage, choice of godparents and various other patronage relationships were used to reinforce the family” (Mulder-Bakker, 165) . 12

lost for the purpose of which the couple married”.30 Two, it is also a symbol of mutual fidelity between husband and wife. This is a natural good. After all, what husband would want an adulterous wife and what wife would like an adulterous husband?31 Third, and one of the more important reasons is children.32 The book of Genesis mandates that humans should “be fruitful and multiply; and fill the earth; and subdue it”.33 While

Augustine has stated that marriage between man and women had a threefold purpose,

God permitted marriage as a “divine institution” for the purpose of producing offspring.

To have children meant that a husband and wife needed to engage in physical union. Sex,

in and of itself was not considered to be sinful in Medieval Europe. It was the lust that

inevitably accompanies sex that is sinful.34 This led married couples to engage in sex

only for the purposes of procreation. This was known as a “chaste marriage”, which

seems to have become popular in the Carolingian renaissance and survived long after.35

For women especially, marriage meant coitus, which also meant the possibility of

sinful action. This was a double–edged sword, since two of the main reasons a woman

was supposed to marry –according to the church– were to escape sin and have children.

These two ideas, while noble in intent were also dangerous and not just because of the sin

of lust. There was a perception pushed by “medieval moralists” at the time about the

danger of childbirth.36 The idea of child birth being dangerous must be understood in the

context of a historical period in which many other situations that could cause death –such

30 Dods, 118. 31 Dods, 725. 32 Mulder-Bakker, 167. 33 Genesis 1:28. 34 Mulder-Bakker, 69. 35 Mulder-Bakker, 175. 36 Bynum, Holy 20. 13

as the plague which killed one-third of all of the people in Europe.37 Studies performed in

1986 by Roger Schofield, B.M. Wilmott Dobbie, and Irvine Loudon estimate that

maternal mortality rates were “between 1 and 3 percent of all pregnancies. Most often,

women died in childbirth due to protracted labor caused by a narrow or deformed pelvis,

fetal malpresentation, postpartum hemorrhage, or puerperal fevers. The health risk was

renewed at each pregnancy. Since a woman averaged five pregnancies, 10 percent of

these women died during or soon after childbirth.”38

In addition to the dangers to women that accompanied childbirth, there was the reality of domestic abuse. Domestic abuse was not only common in the Middle Ages, it was supported by the church as a way to ensure obedience.39 According to Gratian, a

twelfth-century legal scholar, men were allowed to force their wives to fast as long as

they do not kill them.40 Additionally, between 1450 and 1480, Cherubino of Siena, a

Franciscan compiled the Rules of Marriage which contained a rule that allowed

husbands to beat their wives should they commit an offense. He wrote the following:

When you see your wife commit an offense, don’t rush at her with insults and violent blows…Scold her sharply, bully and terrify her. And if this still doesn’t work…take up a stick and beat her soundly, for it is better to punish the body and correct the soul than to damage the soul and spare the body…Then readily beat her, not in rage but out of charity and concern for her soul, so that the beating will redound to your merit and her good.41

37 Wheeler, 2016, web.cn.edu. 38 Lingo, 2008, www.faqs.org. 39 McCue, 118. 40 “Clericis autem conceditur, si uxores eorum peccauerint, sine mortis acerbitate habere eas in custodia, et ad ieiunia eas cogere, non tamen usque ad necem affligere.”(Friedberg, 959) . 41 Statsky, 331. 14

There is also reference to several other sources that indicate the acceptance of

violence against a wife, should “Martha” choose to step out of line and make an

attempt to usurp a husband’s authority.42 Canon law allowing husbands to

physically “correct” their wives, the dangers of childbirth, and the interest in

leading a life of “Mary” led many women of nobility to resist marriage. Those who did marry were seen to have a “Martha” role where they lived a life of service to the church through raising children and tending to the will of her husband.

Married Women in a “Martha” Role

Around the beginning of the fourteenth century, Birgitta of Sweden was born. She would later be known as Saint Birgitta (Bridgett) of Sweden who, at around the age of 42 founded the Order of the Most Holy Savior. It is unclear if Birgitta was forced into her marriage to the Ulf Gudmarsson at the age of thirteen.43 According to a hagiography

about Birgitta, she and the Ulf lived a “chaste” married life for two years. Thereafter, the

fifteen year old bore the first of eight children (four sons and four daughters, one of

which was Saint Catherine of Sweden).44 Birgitta’s own writings indicate that

“procreation should be the primary aim of marriage and sexual intercourse”.45 In her

42 References to domestic violence include the Customs of Beauvais –which as not discussed due to the geographical regionhical of this law being in the Kingdom of France. Additionally, there is a popular reference to Friar Cherubino of Siena who apparently compiled a “Rule of Marriage” which included the authority of the husband to “take a stick and beat her soundly…” This reference appears in several books on domestic violence and family law books. This was not directly referenced due to the inability to locate the actual text Rules of Marriage by Cherubino of Siena. 43 Statsky, 306. 44 Gascoigne, 1991, monasticmatrix.osu.edu. 45 Mulder-Bakker, 300. 15

Revelaciones, she asks, “Why did you give men and women the seed of intercourse and a

sexual nature, if the seed is not to be spilled according to the carnal appetite?” She then

answers with, “I gave them the seed of intercourse so that it might germinate at the right

place and in the right way and bear fruit for a just and rational cause.”46 Birgitta seems to be asking this question honestly. In spite of being devoted to Christ, and understanding the sin of lust in the flesh, Birgitta acknowledges in her Revelaciones that she “enjoyed the physical contacts with her husband”,47 and must have found it confusing that the

duties given by God that she enjoyed with her husband could be sinful.

“Marthas” were needed for procreation and with sex being a main focus in

marriage, it would be reasonable to assume that children would be the focal point of the

post–coital marriage. However, there is not a great deal of evidence that children were the

focal-point of the parents who bore them. This is not to say that no information is

available on the topic of motherly (or parental) love or character. Based on writings by

and about Birgitta, it is apparent that she had a great love for her children. Birgitta wrote

quite a bit on the topic of motherhood, although the writing seems to focus more on

“bad” mothers or her feelings on her own failings as a mother.48 In spite of her own

failings though, she does seem to consider the life she chose as being the one correct for

her life. For instance, when her son Karl died of an illness on March 9, 1372,49 she had a

dream or vision of Karl’s judgment, and due to Birgitta’s devotion to Jesus the

worked as Karl’s intercessor. A popular belief of the time was that if “Mary speaks up for

46 St. Bridget of Sweden, Saints' Books, saintsbooks.net, Book 5, Interrogation 3. 47 Mulder-Bakker, 307. 48 Mulder-Bakker, 306. 49 Gronberger, 48. 16

a soul, Christ cannot refuse its ”.50 In Birgitta’s eyes, it was because of her that

Karl could find salvation.

Writings about the lives of saints were special in that they needed to be written in a way that depicted the saint as having saintly qualities. Those saintly qualities needed to have existed from birth. Saint Catherine of Sweden, the daughter of Saint Birgitta, is depicted in this very same way. What is special about Catherine’s story though, is the unique way in which she is identified. Birgitta and Catherine are represented through the most motherly of all symbols, breastfeeding. While Birgitta’s writings only occasionally cross the topic of breastfeeding, it is the vita of Saint Catherine that tells the reader that in her infancy, Catherine would only drink milk from the breast of Birgitta or another continent woman. This part of the story may have belonged to the perception that the

“qualities of the milk were thought to influence the shaping of the child’s character and behavior”51 as well as developing the child’s moral center, intellect, and even physical

characteristics.52

As mentioned, Birgitta apparently breastfed Catherine. This does not seem out of

the ordinary by today’s standard. However, for a noble woman such as Birgitta, this was

something of note. Noble women had a requirement to be in and of society. Because of

this, situations like mothering a newborn child could be a bit of a hassle. Since newborns

require feeding every couple of hours, it would be very difficult for a woman of means to

tend to her place if she is constantly having to excuse herself to breastfeed her children.

50 Mulder-Bakker, 315. 51 Mulder-Bakker, 303. 52 Atkinson, 24. 17

Just as it is now, the likelihood that public breastfeeding would have been accepted

amongst nobility was very slim. Noble women needed to keep up appearances. This is

why the employment of wet nurses may have been popular.

Giving one’s child to a wet nurse to feed, sending the child away to be fed by a

peasant wet nurse which was popular in Renaissance Tuscany, and giving your child to

your family members to raise were all practices that women did throughout the Middle

Ages.53 Children were important to maintaining the family line and solidifying a family’s

ability to keep up the farm. They were important because they would eventually become

Christian adults who followed Christ and maintained houses from which they came. They

were just not seen as important for simply being kids. That did not mean that they were

not loved or that those who cared for them needed to be the “right” kind of people. The

“right” kind of people were those women that had suitable lodging for the child who

might have been away for up to two years or until weaning. They were also the ones that

were deemed good wet nurses. They were the product of God and for that, it is certain

that they were loved.

Married Women Living also a “Mary” Role

In spite of the raising of children and tending to their husbands, some women

living the “Martha” lifestyle were destined to become saints. To do that, they would have needed to live the contemplative life of “Mary” which sometimes led two successive

forms of life, a domestic life of “Martha” followed by a contemplative life of “Mary.” A

few of the married female saints who were originally placed into a life of “Martha”,

53 Miles, 36 – 37. 18

became “Marys” because of a vow they took to marriage. Because of this vow they took early in life, saintly women such as St. Elizabeth of Thuringa (Hungry) – who had originally resisted marriage– upon the death of her husband, disavowed their fortune for a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience to Christ; and simply left to pursue the contemplative life of “Mary.”54

Others practiced disciplined contemplative practices within their marriages. Saint

Elizabeth of Thuringia, for example, according to her confessor, Conrad of Marburg,

stated two years prior to her husband’s death that she mourned the fact that she would not

be allowed to end her life (at present) in the “flower of virginity”.55 In spite of this

statement, various hagiographies depict the marriage between Elizabeth and Louis IV,

Landgrave of Hungary, as being a “praiseworthy and pious matrimony”.56 Louis was said

to be a good Christian man, which ultimately is what convinced Elizabeth to agree to the

marriage. Louis was faithful to his wife. He apparently did not take part in the custom of

adultery which was practiced by princes and royalty of the time. Elizabeth also seemed to

enjoy the marriage in some respects, as it was reported in, Dicta Quatuor Ancillarum

(Things the Four Handmaids Said) that she thought it was “castigation not to sleep next

to the landgrave”.57 According to Caesarius of Heisterbach, the Cistercian who first attempted a full life hagiography of Elizabeth, the two lived the “ideal Christian

marriage”, which meant that they were chaste except for the purpose of procreation.

54 Mulder-Bakker, 307. 55 Mulder-Bakker, 265. 56 Mulder-Bakker, 265. 57 Mulder-Bakker, 262. 19

While Saint Elizabeth may have loved her husband, her faith in Jesus grew and so did her religiosity. Elizabeth’s love for Christ drove her to leave Louis’ bed every night on vigil. During these vigils, she would pray at the altar. Additionally, in similar imagery to the “Mary” role, she would sit at the foot of her husband’s bed in prayer and contemplation –while her husband slept on.58 In addition to the vigils, Elizabeth chastised

her flesh through mortification and scourging. An unknown eyewitness testifies to

Caesarius that:

‘Indeed she, faithful as she was and devoted to prayer, and preferring the company of the eternal spouse to the temporal, consistently-whenever possible without violating the marriage debt-rose from the side of her husband to pray, he all the while asleep or pretending to be. After her prayers she was scourged in some room by her handmaidens, whereupon she would joyfully return to the bed of her husband, or fall asleep on the carpet in front of the bed while in the sweetness of prayer.’59

Another hagiography by Theodoric of Apolda depicts the bridge between the temporal and the contemplative life of Elizabeth. In his tale, he uses Elizabeth’s life and her engagement in chastisement, prayer, a chaste marriage, and fasting to point out that people “do not have to withdraw from the world to attain a standard of piety” but also, good “will and intention also do not suffice in the service of God”.60 It is interesting that

he makes the statement in spite of the fact that Elizabeth does technically withdraw from

the world after her husband’s death. Eventually Elizabeth would pursue the

58 The imagery of Elizabeth in prayer and contemplation at the feet of her husband’s bed is very similar to that of Mary at the Feet of Christ in prayer and contemplation in Luke’s Gospel. However, a popular hagiography, the Life of Radegund at the time of Elizabeth depicts Radegund also praying at her husband’s feet, in which Elizabeth’s Hagiographer, Caesarius of Heisterbach, or Elizabeth herself may have drawn the reference. (Mulder-Bakker, 270). 59 Vita Sanctae Elisabeth Langraviae Thuringia, 253. 60 Mulder-Bakker, 277. 20

contemplative role of a “Mary” as an unaffiliated religious woman. That is not to say that

she converts from a “Martha” to a “Mary” completely as will be detailed later.

Medieval Women in Religious Life In the early Middle Ages, specialized religious roles, those specifically directed at

the “Mary” lifestyle, were usually restricted to the aristocracy and were not easy for all

women to assume. Due to war and hardship, religious leaders of the time “showed little

concern for encouraging women’s religiosity”.61 Males on the other hand had a much

easier time following a contemplative lifestyle. They were generally allowed to do as

they pleased with regards to the pursuit of the religious life. For instance, during the

Cluniac Reforms (est. 910), the raised around 1,20062 monasteries. There

was also one convent raised for women “whose husbands wished to become Cluniac

”.63 To put this into perspective, while Elizabeth and Birgitta waited for their

husbands to die before pursuing the religious life, there were some men who felt

compelled to “retire” to the monastery while their wives still lived. “In accordance with

the Church’s views a married couple could take such a step on by mutual consent.”64

Religious Women in a “Mary” Role

At the end of the twelfth century, the population of people entering into the contemplative life was increasing. These contemplatives were called mendicants due to their itinerate lifestyles in which they used begging as a method of nourishment and survival. The evolution of the “itinerate” preacher attracted groups of followers, many of

61 Bynum, 15. 62 Benedict XVI, 2009, w2.vatican.va. 63 Bynum, 14. 64 Mulder-Bakker, 167. 21

whom were women. Some of the wandering clergymen, like Norbert of Xanten and

Robert of Arbrissel had mixed feelings about this form of life for themselves and liked it

even less as a form of female piety. These men stopped wandering the country and built

double monasteries so that both men and women could cloister together –although in

different houses.65 This may have been out of their own interest, or for later mendicants

after Norbert’s death, upon the command of Innocent III. For instance, Claire of Assisi

came onto the scene in 1212 and tried to follow Francis around as a beggar, but had to

accept a cloistered role near Bastia.

As the thirteenth century began, so too did several new convents for women. The

Premonstratensians and the had amassed large numbers of female followers.

Women were clearly inspired to devote themselves to Christ and found themselves

invested in more than just a rudimentary role. More than just followers, women played

crucial roles as reformers and leaders of these orders. Women like Santuccia Carbotti

started a Benedictine convent and then proceeded to reform 24 monasteries, placing them

into a strict Benedictine rule.

The power women found themselves with could not last forever. Orders such as the issued legislation that slowed the growth of women’s houses. The

claim was that the convents required a great deal of resources to provide for spiritual

direction and sacramental needs. The belief that women were wicked combined with

male sexual desire prompted some leaders to curtail the leadership women were

65 Bynum, 14 – 15. 22 providing within some of the orders. 66 Conrad of Marchtal, the abbot of the

Premonstratensians reportedly stated:

We and our whole community of canons, recognizing that the wickedness of women is greater than all the other wickedness of the world, and that there is no anger like that of women, and that the poison of asps and dragons is more curable and less dangerous to men than the familiarity of women, have unanimously decreed for the safety of our souls, no less than that of our bodies and good, that we will on no account receive any more sisters to our perdition, but will avoid them like poisonous animals.67

In addition to the Premonstratensians, the Cistercians, Dominicans, and the

Franciscans instituted rules that either prevented altogether or limited the number of women entering into religious communities. The Dominicans even “threatened with censure any brother who gave women religious any pastoral care whatsoever, including allowing them to wear religious habits”.68

Female religious orders not only had their male counterparts placing rules that limited their ability to grow in population, they also had Rome to fight with as well.

There had been a Papal bull issued by Innocent III in 1198 which supported the rule to no longer allow women into the Premonstratensians. In spite of all that was being done by the and the , the limitations placed onto them seem to have done very little to slow the growth of female religious. By the fifteenth century, in some areas of Europe – such as Bavaria and the Rhineland– nuns made up the majority of cloistered religious.69

66 Bynum,15. 67 Voaden, 30. 68 Voaden, 30. 69 Bynum, 16. 23

Women did not always run to a formally church sanctioned convent to find the

contemplative life. While there were many women becoming nuns, there were also lay

women seeking a contemplative life. These groups of “Marys” lived chaste, austere, poor

lives apart from the world. These women came to be known as beguines. They took no

vows, had no ties to any order, and lived either in their own home or in a community

known as a beguinage like Ter Weyngaerde in Bruge, Belgium. Ter Weyngaerde –which

translates to “the vineyard”– was founded by Johanna of Constantinople in the mid -

thirteenth century and housed widowed and unmarried women until 1926. The women

who lived here were required to pay for their own residence and food. Most women who

lived here came from wealthy families but they also provided manual labor to help the

poor and destitute.70

These non–orders popped up all over Europe. In Spain, these women living

penitential ascetic lives and performing acts of charity were called beatas. These types of

orders were so popular that in areas like Cologne and Strasbourg, the communities

accounted for between 2.5 percent (Strasbourg) and 15 percent (Cologne) of the adult

female population.71 By the fifteenth century, in addition to nuns in both new and old orders, there existed a large variety of vocational paths for pious women including the tertiaries, Cathars, recluses, Waldensians, and pilgrims.72

Religious Women Taking on a “Martha” Role

70 Handbill, Begijnhof, Beguinages of Bruge, Bruges, Belgium. 71 Bynum,18. 72 Bynum, 23. 24

Women seeking out the contemplative “Mary” role sought this life as a way of devotion to Christ. While women seeking the contemplative “Mary” role may have intended to devote themselves to Christ, their societal roles as a woman may have prevented those intentions from coming to fruition, at least immediately. Women like

Birgitta of Sweden and Elizabeth of Thuringa would eventually be able to see their intentions come into being. That is, after the death of their husbands, they would be able to pursue the contemplative life through religious consecration.

In Birgitta’s case, she pursued a life of religious asceticism and contemplation after her husband’s death. While it would seem that her life converted from that of a

“Martha” to that of a “Mary” role, Birgitta most certainly carried on her “Martha” ways.

Just after her husband had died, she had a vision of Christ who ordered her to start a new monastic order. Seeing that her religious intentions were genuine, with the help of

Swedish bishops, Elizabeth managed to influence Magnus Eriksson, King of Sweden into donating a castle73 to her “Brigittines” and founded the order of St. Saviour.74

In addition to starting a new monastic order for contemplatives, her active role did not cease. The religious order had 60 nuns, 13 priests, 4 , 8 lay brothers, and one . However, Birgitta never saw any of this. In 1349, she received another vision from Christ who ordered her to travel to Rome and wait for the Pope’s return from

Avignon.75 She never returned. Birgitta is considered a “spiritual mother”. That is, it is

73 Mulder-Bakker, 297. 74 Knight, 2012, www.newadvent.org/cathen/02782a.htm. 75 This is occurring during the when there were multiple and Pope Clement V had moved the papal capital to Avignon, France. This would be the capital until 1377. (“Avignon papacy”, 2014, www.britannica.com). 25 said that people came to her for advice and prayer, and she often put others before herself, never giving up her “Martha” tendencies.

In addition to Birgitta, Elizabeth led a “Mary” role incorporating “Martha” as well. Elizabeth of Thuringa did not establish a religious order like Birgitta. Instead, she established a hospital with the help of the . Her life was much like that of the

Mary’s discuss in the previous section. Although, there is no indication that Elizabeth was a beguine, her life in the “grey cloth” 76 as an unaffiliated lay religious woman was similar in that she lived the ascetic, contemplative religious life.

While it may have been true that Elizabeth enjoyed her marriage and perhaps even her life as a “Martha”, it is also written that each night after her marriage, she would leave the bed chamber and conduct vigils chastising her flesh and praying while her husband slept, “in search for the true husband of her soul”.77 Elizabeth had no interest in marriage and felt a greater calling to Christ. Because of this, when Louis died in 1227 on his way to Jerusalem in the Holy Land to crusade with Frederick II, Elizabeth took the

“grey cloth” by her confessor, Conrad of Marburg and divested herself of her title to lead a life of religious obedience to Mary and Jesus, as she had originally vowed as a youth.

Her departure from a worldly life allowed her to open a hospital where she became the spiritual mother and midwife for the poor.78 Her life’s work after marriage became symbolic and after canonization was the basis for the founding of hospitals and medical facilities such as those in the United States and the United Kingdom.

76 Unaffiliated with an order but still devoted to God. 77 Mulder-Bakker, 278. 78 Mulder-Bakker, 263 – 264. 26

Reflection on the Application to Women in the Church Today

Medieval women took up Martha and Mary roles in a culture in which Thomas

Aquinas wrote in his influential Summa Theologica that a “woman is defective and

misbegotten, for the active force in the male seed tends to the production of a perfect

likeness in the masculine sex; while the production of woman comes from defect in the active force or from some material indisposition….”79 Because women were thought of

as less than equal by nature, men were deemed their supervisors since men were created

in the perfect image of God. A husband’s control over his wife was not meant to be questioned. Women had the option of living the “Martha” role who kept the house, tended to her husband, and provided children to ensure the family line continued. They also had the other option of living the “Mary” role. This meant living in a cloistered environment under the direct guidance of patriarchs. Their life was mean to be one of prayer with some service to the poor.

Mary and Martha have two distinctive roles. Those roles existed at the time of

Augustine. They existed at the time Meister Eckhart was talking to his flocks of

Dominican and beguines. They exist today. I have attempted to demonstrate that

Meister Eckhart and Augustine of Hippo tried to place women into one of two categories.

What I have essentially done was to do exactly what they have done. I have picked out women and assigned them into categories of “Mary” or “Martha.” I then went on to demonstrate how some women cross-trained from one category to the other. In truth, the

79 “foemina est aliquid deficiens, et occasionatum: quia virtus activa, quae est in semine maris, intendit producere sibi simile perfectum secundum masculinum sexum: sed quod foemina generetur, hoc est propter virtutis activae debilitatem, vel propter aliquam materiae indispositionem…” (Aquinas, 709). 27

ability to actively participate in one’s own spiritual community only demonstrates how

truly contemplative a woman needs to be to grow in her relationship with God. Her

actions are led by the contemplative lifestyle.

The social norms that the church deemed reasonable for women in medieval times

seem to be found in today’s church as well. Today’s Roman Catholic Church claims to

celebrate the vocations of marriage, holy orders, life, and single life. In the four vocations mentioned, the most talked about are holy orders and marriage. Even in the prayer for

vocations the majority of people being prayed for are male.80 Many events are intended to serve families with children. Single people are prompted to look forward to marriage or some type of religious order. That may seem like there is only the choice of living a “Mary” or “Martha” role, but that is not the case.

Life is different for religious women today. Women have a multitude of choices in what type of life to pursue. Women who pursue the vocations of marriage or the single life still lead active lives in the church. There are roles open to women that include taking part in the parish, such as singing in the choir, being a lector, server, and even Eucharistic minister. A life of action does not stop there. There is also room for the contemplative role as well with Bible classes or scripture study, as well as in Jesuit or other Christian universities which offer classes, workshops, and degree programs which promote contemplative practices through service.

Within these schools of thought exist some fantastic examples of women who live the “Martha” role of service and domesticity, but have also taken on the contemplative

80 Schnurr, 2016, www.cincinnativocations.org. 28 role of “Mary”. Dr. Gillian Ahlgren of Xavier University is one such person that comes to mind. Her life has been one of contemplative action with her focus on the mystical life.

Her work has mostly been in pursuit of the mystical life of Teresa of Avila and she has written three books on the subject. Proof of Dr. Ahlgren’s use of both the contemplative and active life is reflected in an earlier part of her life. She was in Spain working on a dissertation on the “challenges that Teresa of Avila faced as a female teacher of spirituality during the time of the Spanish ”. During her research, Dr. Ahlgren discovered stories of other female reformers who were tried by the Inquisition for “false mysticism”. Rather than merely carrying on with her research, she recovered and translated one of the trials, which gave access and perhaps even a voice to this woman whom many had long forgotten. Her translation and publishing of The Inquisition of

Francisco won her “Best Translation” in 2006 from the Society for the Research of Early

Modern Women. 81

In addition to her work with Teresa of Avila, Dr. Ahlgren is also the Director of the Institute for Spiritual and Social Justice at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. The

ISSJ program is a program that focuses on the integration of knowledge, spirituality, and social engagement. With those areas as a focus, Dr. Ahlgren stated that “the Institute’s programming is designed to challenge, inspire and encourage (members) to understand deeply the resources of our spiritual traditions in ways that empower you toward more purposeful action.”82 Her work with the ISSJ program and her work with Teresa of Avila

81 Ahlgren, 2016, gillianahlgren.com. 82 Ahlgren quoted in “The new Institute for Spirituality and Social Justice launches with a weekend of lectures and meditations” (Xavier University. 2014, Xavier.edu). 29

–who taught that “God deeply wants a relationship with us”–83 points directly to a

woman whose life as an academic, mother (she is also a single mother),mother, and

active member of her community has been combined with a spiritual life of prayer,

devotion, and contemplation to Christ.

Gillian Ahlgren has certainly exemplified the contemplative life of Mary as well

as the active service life of Martha, but she is not the only person combining those two

roles. The lives of female religious orders have changed to include both contemplative

and active elements as well. In 1980, the Plenaria of the Sacred Congregation for

Religious and for Secular Institutes designed guidelines which highlighted the

“importance of the spiritual in all forms of consecrated life”.84 In these guidelines, the

Plenaria encouraged religious orders to follow both a contemplative and active lives. The

Catholic Church has called contemplatives to take an active role seeing a need for service in addition to contemplation.

Orders such as the Felician Sisters of North America are making the most of the active and contemplative life. These “Marys” spend part of each day in contemplation through quiet meditation, communal prayer, and daily Eucharist. Then the rest of their time is spent in the “Martha” role providing service to a diverse group of people. They provide clothing, food, and education to the poor and underserved. They have a chaplaincy program for the imprisoned, and a school for young children. Their ministry

83 Ahlgren quoted in “Still a Beloved Friend” (Odell, 2015, http://globalsistersreport.org). 84 Pironio,1980, http://www.vatican.va. 30

goes above and beyond contemplation. Most of all, through their actions, they bring hope

to the hopeless and help to create a relationship with others and also with God.85

In addition to the Felician Sisters of North America who are a prime example of female religious leading both a “Mary” and “Martha” life, there is also Sister Barbara

Busch of the of Cincinnati. Sister Barbara is an excellent example of a

“Mary” taking on the active service life of “Martha”. In 1978, while serving in the

Northside community of Cincinnati, Ohio, Sister Barbara became deeply concerned as the residents of low to moderate income neighborhoods increasingly struggled to improve their communities. Her neighbors faced high utility bills, unavailability of mortgage loans for low and middle-income people, rising crime, and blight from vacant and abandoned homes. That is when she got together with her other sisters, as well as banks, corporations, individual and other nonprofit organizations to create Working in

Neighborhoods (WIN). As a Nonprofit organization, WIN has been successful in assisting low and moderate-income families bring stability to their neighborhoods through rehabilitation, low interest home loans, housing development, and energy conservation for the last 35 years.86

Eckhart’s words may have been true with regard to Martha wanting Mary to be

more like her, especially considering the lives of religious women today. So too, are the

words of Augustine concerning their work with the poor. The service work performed by

Sister Barbara and the Felician Sisters of North America has been successful because of

their calling to a life of prayer and contemplation. There is also no doubt that their active

85 Sisters of North America, 2016, feliciansistersna.org. 86 Working In Neighborhoods. 2016, www.wincincy.org. 31

lives have allowed them to be more contemplative and prayerful, since they rely on God

to guide them in their active mission.

Concluding Remarks

In closing, it occurs to me that this pericope of Mary and Martha from Luke’s

gospel is quite allegorical and there are many ways in which one might choose to analyze

the story of Martha and Mary. I chose to demonstrate how the dichotomous relationship

existing between Mary and Martha, when applied to women in the Middle Ages proves

over simplistic when presenting evidence of actual lives of religious women. Women

drawn to a relationship with Christ who were only given the two choices of marriage or

religious life, showed that the combination of the two created a better example of

discipleship to which we are all called.

It is also important to point out that these women who have combined the roles

both in the Middle Ages and today are living out a mission Christ set before us. Christ

states in Matthew that “just as you did to the least of these who are members of my

family, you did it to me.”87 Just as Christ set his disciples to do for the least of people, the

women combining the “Mary” and “Martha” roles have done. Paul says “we are justified

through faith.”88 That is certainly true, but “faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”89

Mary and Martha are role models for all of us because their lives are justified through their faith which is proven by their action with the poor.

87 Matthew 25:40, NRSV. 88 Romans 5:1, NRSV. 89 James 2:17, NRSV. 32

The lives of Mary and Martha of Bethany have had a ubiquitous influence on the

lives of Christians. The role of discipleship is an extraordinarily important topic that

requires much investigation since we are all called to be disciples. However, the question

that Augustine and Eckhart have prompted about which is better, service or

contemplation, while important, is distinct from the question about “who” Christ wants.

Mary and Martha are clearly disciples of Christ (not unequal to his male disciples), but the equality they share with their male counterparts seems to be lost in history given the unequal roles women have been granted by the Church.

In spite of the number of canonized women who have been perfect examples of discipleship because of their lives of service and contemplation, avenues of discipleship are still very limited. For example, Saint Teresa of Kolkata was canonized on September

4, 2016. Her work with the poor and sick in India is well known by virtually the entire world. Given her nature, I wonder how influential she could have been had she been given an even greater voice as priest, bishop, or even pontiff prior to her death? If part of the mission of Christianity is to help the least among us, should not part of this mission include looking for leadership among the disciples who are our best examples?

33

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