Introduction: From Theology to Vision
This paper arises from a desire to understand more deeply the theology of Julian of Norwich, whose Revelations of Divine Love stands as one of the most profound contributions to Christian thought in the late medieval period. Writing as an anchoress in fourteenth-century England, Julian articulated a vision of divine love that remains both daring and tender, especially in her assertions that “sin is no thing,” that “sin is necessary,” and that ultimately “all shall be well.”1 Though she described herself as “a simple creature unlettered,” Julian’s work displays remarkable theological precision. The Long Text of her Revelations functions as a theological treatise akin to prophecy—written not for her own spiritual advancement but for the consolation of “her fellow Christians.” Moreover, Julian’s conviction that “sin is fitting” marks a decisive turn from the scholastic “free-will defense” of her time. She insists that divine providence and love permeate all things, even human failure, revealing a cosmos upheld by mercy rather than judgment. These revelations have long invited theological inquiry into their relation to the Church’s doctrines of sin, atonement, and eschatology.2
Julian’s vision parallels that of the Apostle Paul, whose writings proclaim the same mystery of grace and the ultimate reconciliation of all creation in Christ. For both, revelation is not private possession but charism—a gift freely given for the building up of the Church.3 Though separated by fourteen centuries, both bear witness to the same mystery of divine love revealed in the resurrection4—the reconciliation of all creation in Christ (1 Cor. 15).5 Their meeting in dialogue is thus both theologically and historically fitting. In staging this exchange, I aim not to conflate their voices but to let their distinct vocabularies of grace—Paul’s apocalyptic proclamation and Julian’s visionary assurance—illuminate one another.
Notes:
1 Julian of Norwich, Showings, trans. and ed. Edmund Colledge and James Walsh, Classics of Western Spirituality (New York: Paulist Press, 1978), 225.
2 See Denys Turner. Julian of Norwich, Theologian. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2011.
3 1 Corinthians 14:3-4. 2 See Denys Turner. Julian of Norwich, Theologian. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2011.
4 David Bentley Hart. The New Testament: A Translation. (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2017), commentary on 1 Corinthians 15:28, 348.
5 Douglas A. Campbell, Pauline Dogmatics: The Triumph of God’s Love (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2020), Part 1, “Resurrection,” 113–89.