Matelda and the Cloister of Hellfde

Mechthild von Magdeburg, a German mystic of the 13th century, recorded descriptions of her visions of God in her book The Flowing Light of Divinity. More often than not, Mechthild recounted her visions in poetry rather than in prose. Passionately and exuberantly, she wrote of Heaven, Hell, and her unique and powerful love of Christ. Some scholars conjecture that Dante alluded to the German nun in his Divine Comedy with the character of Matelda. Frances Bevan, translator of German hymns by Gerhard Tersteegen and others, offers here an English translation of selections from Mechthild’s work.

Kathleen O’Bannon
CCEL Staff