Hildegard of Bingen
Visionary German mystic
Hildegard of Bingen was a twelfth-century German Benedictine abbess, mystic, composer, and polymath.
She wrote theological treatises, natural history, medical texts, and liturgical music still performed today.
Her reported visions, which she called "the living light," brought her influence with popes and emperors.
She is now recognized as a Doctor of the Church and cited as an early example of female intellectual authority in medieval Europe.
Monk following ancient rule
- conventReligious sisters' dwelling
- monasteryReligious seclusion dwelling
- nunneryMonastery for women
- cloisterCovered monastic walkway
prioress · sisterhood · vows · habit · vespers · liturgy · enclosure · scriptorium
Decorative lighting displays
- visionsImagined or prophetic sights
- divine revelationDeity communicates to humanity
- prophecyForetelling of future events
- mysticismPursuit of divine union
contemplation · ecstasy · theophany · apocalyptic · cosmology · allegorical · symbolic imagery · mandala
Study of organisms and environments
- cosmographyDescribing cosmic structure
- bestiaryMedieval animal treatise
- lapidaryWorker of precious stones
- scientific observationStructured witnessing for research
encyclopedic · correspondent · advisor · intellectual · writer · artist · innovator
Unaccompanied liturgical melody
- antiphonAlternating liturgical song
- sequenceOrdered succession of elements
- hymnReligious song of praise
- canticleScriptural text sung devotionally
monophony · notation · melody · modal · chant · sacred music · morality play
Saint recognized for doctrine
- correspondenceExchanged written communication
- Bernard of ClairvauxTwelfth-century Cistercian abbot
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
- cosmologyStudy of universal structure
Frederick Barbarossa · virtue · vice · soul · salvation · Trinity · incarnation · exegesis
Plant-based healing tradition
- botanicalsPlant-based ingredients
- remediesTreatments that restore health
- speltHulled wheat species
- fennelLicorice-tasting culinary herb
galangal · medicinal plants · natural philosophy · holistic · bodily humors · dietetics · healing stones · bloodletting
Benedictine
Monk following ancient rule
cloister · prioress · sisterhood · vows · habit · vespers · liturgy · enclosure · scriptorium · oblate
illuminations
Decorative lighting displays
- visionsImagined or prophetic sights
- divine revelationDeity communicates to humanity
- prophecyForetelling of future events
mysticism · contemplation · ecstasy · theophany · apocalyptic · cosmology · allegorical · symbolic imagery · mandala · cosmic egg
natural history
Study of organisms and environments
- cosmographyDescribing cosmic structure
- bestiaryMedieval animal treatise
- lapidaryWorker of precious stones
scientific observation · encyclopedic · correspondent · advisor · intellectual · writer · artist · innovator
plainchant
Unaccompanied liturgical melody
- antiphonAlternating liturgical song
- sequenceOrdered succession of elements
- hymnReligious song of praise
canticle · monophony · notation · melody · modal · chant · sacred music · morality play
Doctor of the Church
Saint recognized for doctrine
- correspondenceExchanged written communication
- Bernard of ClairvauxTwelfth-century Cistercian abbot
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
Frederick Barbarossa · cosmology · virtue · vice · soul · salvation · Trinity · incarnation · exegesis
herbalism
Plant-based healing tradition
- botanicalsPlant-based ingredients
- remediesTreatments that restore health
- speltHulled wheat species
fennel · galangal · medicinal plants · natural philosophy · holistic · bodily humors · dietetics · healing stones · bloodletting · purgatives
- Medieval Abbesses
- historical womenCleopatra, Joan of Arc, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria, Marie Curie
- notable womenRosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Eleanor Roosevelt, Florence Nightingale, Susan B. Anthony
- 12th CenturyThird Crusade, Richard the Lionheart, Saladin, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II
- Medieval FiguresGenghis Khan, Joan of Arc, Marco Polo, William the Conqueror, Dante
- Medieval Womenabbess, noblewoman, lady, queen, duchess
Hildegard of Bingenheretic
Challenger of official doctrine
apostate · blasphemer · pagan · infidel · witch
Hildegard of Bingenmaterialist
Values physical over spiritual
atheist · rationalist · empiricist · natural philosopher · skeptic
Hildegard of BingenChurch Father
Early Christian theological authority
Pope · patriarch · Thomas Aquinas · Bernard of Clairvaux · bishop