Hildegard of Bingen: A Spiritual Reader

“Humanity, take a good look at yourself. Inside, you’ve got heaven and earth, and all of creation. You’re a world – everything is hidden in you.” –Hildegard of Bingen

She was a Benedictine abbess, artist, composer, dietician, naturalist, poet, travelling preacher, mystic, and political consultant. She was a self-doubter with acute certainty in a merciful and mysterious God; a gifted healer who suffered from illness her whole life. Meet the incomparable Hildegard of Bingen. Nourishing, challenging, and idea-bursting, her writings will stir and awaken your soul.

This essential reader captures the vibrant spirit and intelligence of Hildegard with selections from her songs, theological texts, liturgical music, and letters. Combined with an introduction to Hildegard’s life and era, a map of Hildegard’s Germany, chronology, and a thorough bibliography/discography, Hildegard of Bingen provides the ideal introduction to the thought of this fascinating medieval mystic.

“Nothing short of delightful . . . . I often felt I was reading Hildegard, the real Hildegard, for the first time.”

-Dr. Katharina Wilson, Professor of Comparative Literature, The University of Georgia


“This book is a gift to the church. Carmen Butcher wisely selects and elegantly translates Hildegard’s works, including her soaring music, spiritual visions, and selected letters.”

-Scot McKnight, author of The Jesus Creed and The Real Mary

“Carmen Butcher has tapped into St. Hildegard’s spirit and made it accessible.”

– Br. Benet Exton, O.S.B., St. Gregory’s Abbey and University