Biography Category
Name :
Hildegard Von Bingen
Date :
Views :
389
Category :
Birth Date :
22/05/1098
Birth Place :
Bermersheim vor der Höhe
Death Date :
September 17, 1179
When Hildegard was 38 years old, Jutta died, and Hildegard was made mother superior. In 1147, a vision commanded her to move her convent and eighteen sisters to Rupertsberg, near the town of Bingen, on the left bank of the Rhine. Approximately 20 years later, she founded another convent on the right side of the Rhine at Eibingen.
[b]Hildegard Von Bingen [/b] has been claimed as one of their own by Catholics, feminists, musicians, scientists, and New Age devotees. In reality, she was a woman ahead of her time, but one deeply attached to tradition and mindful of her duties to the Church.[br /]
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Hildegard was born at Bockelheim on the Nahe in 1098. Her family was one of wealth and nobility, and probably went by the name of Stein. Her father was a professional soldier under the Count of Spanheim. Her parents, Mathilda and Hildebert, dedicated this tenth child to God, and from an early age she learned to sing and chant in Latin, though she was not taught to read and write. Hildegard began to have supernatural visions at the age of three, but did not reveal this gift to others for many years.[br /]
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At the age of eight, Hildegard was placed in the care of an anchoress named Jutta. Anchoresses were not average nuns. Their life was far more solitary and brutal. They lived alone in cells, having food passed to them through a small window, and spent most of their time in meditation or handiwork. Jutta had been a woman blessed with material wealth and beauty, but had turned her back on the world in favor of the religious life. Hildegard emulated Jutta for the rest of her life. She was invested with the habit of St. Benedict while still in her teens.[br /]
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When Hildegard was 38 years old, Jutta died, and Hildegard was made mother superior. In 1147, a vision commanded her to move her convent and eighteen sisters to Rupertsberg, near the town of Bingen, on the left bank of the Rhine. Approximately 20 years later, she founded another convent on the right side of the Rhine at Eibingen.[br /]
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Hildegard was born at Bockelheim on the Nahe in 1098. Her family was one of wealth and nobility, and probably went by the name of Stein. Her father was a professional soldier under the Count of Spanheim. Her parents, Mathilda and Hildebert, dedicated this tenth child to God, and from an early age she learned to sing and chant in Latin, though she was not taught to read and write. Hildegard began to have supernatural visions at the age of three, but did not reveal this gift to others for many years.[br /]
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At the age of eight, Hildegard was placed in the care of an anchoress named Jutta. Anchoresses were not average nuns. Their life was far more solitary and brutal. They lived alone in cells, having food passed to them through a small window, and spent most of their time in meditation or handiwork. Jutta had been a woman blessed with material wealth and beauty, but had turned her back on the world in favor of the religious life. Hildegard emulated Jutta for the rest of her life. She was invested with the habit of St. Benedict while still in her teens.[br /]
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When Hildegard was 38 years old, Jutta died, and Hildegard was made mother superior. In 1147, a vision commanded her to move her convent and eighteen sisters to Rupertsberg, near the town of Bingen, on the left bank of the Rhine. Approximately 20 years later, she founded another convent on the right side of the Rhine at Eibingen.[br /]
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Hildegard was alternately fascinated by and terrified of her own visions. She was aware of the disbelief of others: “Frequently, in my conversation, I would relate future things, which I saw as if present, but, noting the amazement of my listeners, I became more reticent.” Finally, at the age of 42, she had a vision of God that was so blinding she felt that she had to act. Even at this point, however, Hildegard was cautious; unlike many other religious figures of the day, she was not a rebel or a schismatic. She was deeply committed to the Catholic Church and wanted its approval. Pope Eugenius (1145-53) encouraged her in her writings, and this seems to have freed her from the feelings of inadequacy over her lack of education.
Since Hildegard never did learn to read or write, she relied on her faithful secretary, a monk named Volmar, to record her visionary works. The first of these, Scivias, or Know the Ways of the Lord, brought her to prominence in Germany, and her fame slowly spread outside her homeland. Hildegard wrote on philosophy, science, and was an expert on the curative value of herbs—what today is known as “holistic medicine.” The bishop of Mainz declared her works divine, and she corresponded with many other prominent men and women of the Church. Laypeople also came in droves to her convent home in Rupertsberg, seeking advice and wisdom. Hildegard died on September 17, 1179. [br /]
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Hildegard is probably best known today for her music. Its ethereal beauty and abiding truths have led to huge revival amongst the “New Age” crowd. Hildegard wrote in the plainchant tradition, a liturgical form of her time that consisted of a single melodic line. Her works include O Noblissima Viriditis and Ordo Viturum. Modern recordings of her work are plentiful and can be found in many stores and catalogues. [br /]
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Hildegard’s contemporary biographer, Theodoric, refers to her as a saint, and many miraculous healings are attributed to her. She has never been formally canonized, although she appears in the Roman Martyrology and feasts are celebrated in her name. In 1900, Prince Karl of Lowenstein founded a new convent of St. Hildegarde at Eibingen. Work was completed on Sept. 17, 1904, and it became a home for Benedictine nuns. [br /]
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Hildegard is probably best known today for her music. Its ethereal beauty and abiding truths have led to huge revival amongst the “New Age” crowd. Hildegard wrote in the plainchant tradition, a liturgical form of her time that consisted of a single melodic line. Her works include O Noblissima Viriditis and Ordo Viturum. Modern recordings of her work are plentiful and can be found in many stores and catalogues. [br /]
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Hildegard’s contemporary biographer, Theodoric, refers to her as a saint, and many miraculous healings are attributed to her. She has never been formally canonized, although she appears in the Roman Martyrology and feasts are celebrated in her name. In 1900, Prince Karl of Lowenstein founded a new convent of St. Hildegarde at Eibingen. Work was completed on Sept. 17, 1904, and it became a home for Benedictine nuns. [br /]
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