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Illuminations of Hildegard of Bingen

matthew fox

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An introduction to the life and work of Hildegard.

• Reveals the life and teachings of one of the greatest female artists and intellectuals of the Western Mystical Tradition.

• Contains 24 full-color illustrations by Hildegard of Bingen.

• Includes commentary by Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing (250,000 sold).

Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179) was an extraordinary woman living in the Rhineland valley during most of the twelfth century. Besides being the abbess of a large and influential Benedictine abbey, she was a prominent preacher, healer, scientist, and artist. She also was a composer and theologian, writing nine books on theology, medicine, science, and physiology, as well as 70 poems and an opera. At the age of 42, she began to have visions; these were captured as 36 illuminations--24 of which are recorded in this book along with her commentaries on them. She also wrote a text describing these visions entitled Scivias (Know the Ways), now published as Hildegard of Bingen's Mystical Visions .

Author Matthew Fox has stated, "If Hildegard had been a man, she would be well known as one of the greatest artists and intellectuals the world has ever seen." It is a credit to the power of the women's movement and our times that this towering genius of Western thought is being rediscovered in her full grandeur and autonomy.

Virtually unknown for more than 800 years in Western history, Hildegard was featured as one of the women in Judy Chicago's Dinner Party in the early 1980s and published for the first time in English by Bear & Company in 1982. In addition to her mystical teachings, Hildegard's music has been performed and recorded for a new and growing audience.

216 pages, Paperback

First published April 1,1985

This edition

Format
216 pages, Paperback
Published
January 30, 2003 by Bear \u0026 Company
ISBN
9781879181977
ASIN
1879181975
Language
English

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About the author

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matthew fox

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Timothy James "Matthew " Fox is an American priest and theologian. Formerly a member of the Dominican Order within the Catholic Church, he became a member of the Episcopal Church following his expulsion from the order in 1993.
Fox has written 35 books that have been translated into 68 languages and have sold millions of copies and by the mid-1990s had attracted a "huge and diverse following"

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Community Reviews

Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 34 votes)
5 stars
11(32%)
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8(24%)
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34 reviews All reviews
Profile Image for Kimberly .
taro_yanaka
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Finally, a man has done the work of revealing what Hildegard would really have said if she hadn't been so cowed by oppression—and spoilers, it's a bunch of heresy. "Hildegard did not know all that she was saying ... her writing and visioning were truer than her conscious awareness could articulate."
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Cuteholic
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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I wasn't aware that this sort, or much of any, Christian mysticism existed. Also, not often do we hear of such a highly intelligent and talented woman of the middle ages. With that said, I am giving this book only two stars because I believe it to be poorly written. It appears it was published by the people of this same religious persuasion for other people of the sort. Readers unfamiliar with the terms and concepts might find them poorly explained. However, I'm sure it wasn't easy to translate this from 12th century German. I would rather read a secular book on this topic, but as far as I know there is not one in existence.
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MrTazocin
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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While Hildegard is a great luminary, Fox is not. I found this book exhausting, having to keep checking the primary sources due to Fox's proclivity to omit information that doesn't fit the narrative he is trying to spin. I would be more forgiving if I could believe they were mere mistakes or accidental omissions, but when he takes incomplete sentences out of a paragraph to insinuate something that that same paragraph would later go on to contradict I am left with little other option but to believe him a dishonest scholar.

If you want to read Hildegard, read Hildegard, not Fox.
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Baffled-Anton
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Although this book sometimes strays a bit too far into over-intellectualized territory, it is pretty balanced overall, and seeing Hildegard's art along with some of what she herself had to say about it is great. Some of the other insights by the author that connects Hildegard's mysticism with the wider spiritual world are also interesting, but occasionally I think the author stretches a little far to make a point.
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-IguanaMilk-
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Matthew Fox and Hildegard von Bingen. Always inspiring.

Love this book.

If you like hildegard, check out this awesome website:
http://www.hildegardchristianmystic.com

Peace & love,
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aypikillsu
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Incredible life, incredible works. Someone that should be taught in our Medieval history courses
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bimbambusse
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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This is not a "thick" book, but the prose was a bit "thick" for me in a lot of places. It took me a while to finish it. Others may have a different experience. One of my favorite bits of the book was seeing Plates 5 and 6, which were essentially a depiction of "Vitruvian Man" by a woman, this Hildegard of Bingen, living three centuries before Leonardo da Vinci and his cronies. I appreciated Fox's realization that the crucifixion on its own was simply not yet for Hildegard the central and isolated preoccupation it became for many Christians in later medieval times... she was focused on life and resurrection. I felt her vision of hell, as elucidated by Fox, bore similarities to that of C.S. Lewis, with the emphasis on the refusal of the individual to "see" the grace of God. And I was particularly pleased with the final chapter, which likens the communion of saints and the operation of the universe to a musical symphony.
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