Imagine lying in a dark room in 1373. Outside, the Black Death is literally tearing Europe apart, wiping out half the people you know. Inside, you’re thirty years old and convinced you’re dying. The priest is there, holding a crucifix in front of your face because you can’t even lift your head. Your mother is in the room, probably crying, waiting for your last breath.
Then, the pain just... stops.
This isn't a ghost story. It’s the start of the Julian of Norwich showings, a series of sixteen intense, vivid, and frankly bizarre visions that changed the course of English literature and Christian mysticism forever. Julian didn't just see things; she spent the next twenty years of her life trying to figure out what they actually meant. She eventually became an anchoress—basically a professional hermit—living in a tiny cell attached to St. Julian’s Church in Norwich.
She's a big deal. Why? Because she was the first woman to ever write a book in the English language. But more than that, her message was so radical for the 14th century that it’s a miracle she wasn't burned at the stake for it.
What Actually Happened During the Showings?
People often think "visions" means seeing a movie in your head. For Julian, it was way more sensory. She describes three types of experiences: "bodily sight" (seeing things with her actual eyes), "word formed in my understanding" (hearing voices or direct thoughts), and "ghostly sight" (spiritual intuitions that are hard to put into words).
Most of the Julian of Norwich showings focused on the Passion of Christ. She saw the blood trickling down from the crown of thorns, describing it with a level of detail that feels almost like a modern medical report. But the vibe wasn't "look how miserable this is." It was about intimacy.
She used the word "homely."
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Think about that. In a time when God was usually portrayed as a terrifying judge waiting to smash you for your sins, Julian claimed God was "homely" and "courteous." She saw a God who wanted to be your best friend, not your executioner.
The Hazelnut: A Universe in Your Hand
One of the most famous parts of the Julian of Norwich showings involves a hazelnut. Seriously.
She saw something tiny, the size of a hazelnut, lying in the palm of her hand. She looked at it and thought, What is this? The answer she got was basically: "It is all that is made."
It’s a wild metaphor. She realized that everything in the entire universe is as fragile and small as a nut. It could vanish in a second. So why does it stay here? According to Julian, it exists because God loves it.
- God made it.
- God loves it.
- God keeps it.
That’s it. That’s the whole theology. It’s incredibly simple but also kind of terrifying when you think about the scale of the universe. We’re all just hazelnuts in a giant hand.
The "Mother Jesus" Controversy
If you want to know why Julian is still a rockstar in academic circles, look at how she talked about gender. She started calling Jesus "our Mother."
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Now, keep in mind, this was the 1300s. You couldn't just post a hot take on X and move on. She was writing this in a manuscript that could have gotten her in serious trouble. But to her, it made perfect sense. She argued that a mother gives birth to a child into a world of pain, and Christ "gives birth" to humanity through his suffering on the cross.
She saw the act of nursing as a metaphor for the Eucharist. A mother feeds her child from her own body; Julian saw Jesus doing the same. It wasn't about being "woke" or rebellious. It was an honest attempt to describe a love that felt more maternal than anything else she had experienced. Honestly, it’s one of the most beautiful pieces of prose in Middle English.
All Shall Be Well (The Quote Everyone Gets Wrong)
You’ve probably seen the quote on a coffee mug or a Pinterest board: "All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well."
It sounds like a "good vibes only" mantra. But Julian didn't write that while sitting on a beach. She wrote it while looking at the reality of sin, hell, and the plague. She was actually arguing with God in her visions. She basically asked, "If you’re so good, why is there sin? Why is everyone suffering?"
The response she received wasn't a "don't worry about it." It was a promise that despite the "behovely" (necessary) nature of sin, the end of the story is already written.
It’s not optimism. It’s hope. There is a huge difference. Optimism thinks things will get better because the world is good; hope knows things are a mess but trusts that they will be redeemed anyway.
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Why Her Story Disappeared for Centuries
Julian was a "best-kept secret" for a long time. Because she was a woman and an anchoress, her writings (the "Short Text" written right after she got well, and the "Long Text" written decades later) didn't exactly top the charts. They were preserved by groups of nuns, often in secret, and weren't even published in a modern format until 1901.
When Grace Warrack finally edited and published her work at the turn of the 20th century, people were stunned. How did a woman in medieval Norwich have a psychological depth that rivaled modern thinkers?
She didn't use the language of guilt. She didn't talk about a "wrathful" God. In fact, she famously said she couldn't find any wrath in God at all. That’s a massive departure from the fire-and-brimstone preaching of her era.
How to Apply Julian’s "Showings" Today
You don’t have to be religious to get something out of the Julian of Norwich showings. Her life was a masterclass in resilience.
- Embrace the "Hazelnut" Perspective: When life feels overwhelming, remember the hazelnut. It’s a reminder that we are small, and that’s okay. You don't have to carry the weight of the world; you just have to exist in the "keeping" of whatever higher power or cosmic order you believe in.
- Redefine "Homely": We spend so much time trying to be "enough" or performing for others. Julian’s visions suggest that the most profound truths are found in the "homely" moments—the simple, unadorned, and comfortable parts of life.
- Sit With the "Why": Julian spent 20 years thinking about her visions before she finished the Long Text. She didn't rush to a conclusion. If you’re going through something heavy, give yourself permission to not have an answer yet.
If you ever find yourself in Norwich, you can still visit the site of her cell. It’s a quiet spot, tucked away from the main road. It’s a place where a woman once decided that, despite the world falling apart, love was the only thing that actually mattered.
To really dig into her world, grab a copy of Revelations of Divine Love. Don't go for a dense academic version first. Look for the Mirabai Starr translation if you want something that flows like modern poetry, or the Penguin Classics version if you want to feel the weight of the original Middle English. Reading her words is like sitting across from a very wise, very calm friend who has seen the worst of humanity and still decided that everything is going to be okay.
Stop looking for the "secret" to her visions and just look at the love she was trying to describe. That’s where the real power is.