Tag: Julian of Norwich

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Sermon: Julian of Norwich

There is a song by the Beatles—A Day in the Life—and one of the stanzas begins, “I read the news today, oh boy” (Hopefully the tune won’t be stuck in your head all day). To that, I can just say, I also read the news today and… Oh, boy! It is no wonder that so many folks are on antidepressants! (So much so that there are traces of Prozac in our drinking water and even the fish! Given the state of things, that might not be such a bad thing.) But between the news and life in general, there are a good many walking around all day, wondering how it could possibly all work out. Then, in light of this state of affairs, we have someone come along like Julian of Norwich, the patron saint of this chapel, who says something that seems to be absolutely ridiculous—most of you can quote it: “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” 

Those are actually words that Jesus spoke to Julian, and they are also proof texting—pulling out that bit that makes you happy. You see, in Julian’s thirteenth revelation in her Revelations of Divine Love, she reveals that she wondered, “why, in his great foreseeing wisdom, God had not prevented the beginning of sin.” Why doesn’t God stop all this craziness in the world and the harm that people do? It is here that Jesus spoke the “all shall be well” message, but the complete message was, “Sin is befitting, but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” Folks use that message without the “Sin is befitting” bit as some sort of mantra for everything that goes wrong in their lives, even down to a bad hair day, when in truth, it speaks about sin—our sins and the sins of others, both great and small; things that are heard about worldwide and those things that only you know about. But if that is the case, then why would Jesus say sin is befitting? 

Julian explains that it was revealed to her that the crucifixion of Jesus was the greatest possible sin, evil, and harm that had ever occurred or would ever occur. However, sin is befitting because, as the Lord told her, “I have turned the greatest possible harm into good, it is my will that you should know from this that I shall turn all lesser evil into good.” Jesus overcoming the greatest of all sins, which was committed against Him, shows us that he is capable of overcoming all other evil in the world. Hence, all shall be well. The state of the world is, at times, wretched, but… all shall be well. 

There is a second reason that sin is befitting, however, if my understanding of what Julian is saying is correct, the Lord tells her that knowing this second reason is above her pay grade.  

Regardless, in this thirteenth revelation, the Lord sums up for Julian and for us what the “all shall be well” statement ultimately means: “I [the Lord] am keeping you very safe.” “I am keeping you very safe.” Therefore, as St. Paul taught us in our lesson, “Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.”

Dame Julian of Norwich, a 14th-century anchoress (one who withdraws from society), provides us with many beautiful glimpses of our Lord.

A prayer from Julian—Let us pray: God, of thy goodness, give me Thyself; for Thou art enough for me, and I can ask for nothing less that can be full honor to Thee. And if I ask anything that is less, ever Shall I be in want, for only in Thee have I all. Amen

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Sermon: Dame Julian of Norwich

worldDame Julian of Norwich was born in the mid-15th century in England and was an anchoress, that is, one who withdraws from the world for the sake of spending a life in prayer. At age 30 she became ill and was so near death that she was given last rites; however, after seven days she suddenly appeared to heal, and was then given fifteen visions regarding Our Lord’s Passion. She would later write, “From that time I desired oftentimes to learn what was our Lord’s meaning and fifteen years after I was answered in ghostly understanding: ‘Wouldst thou learn the Lord’s meaning in this thing? Learn it well. Love was his meaning. Who showed it thee? Love. What showed he thee? Love. Wherefore showed it he? For Love. Hold thee therein and thou shalt learn and know more in the same.’ Thus it was I learned that Love was our Lord’s meaning.”

Julian recorded these visions – there is a short version and a longer one – and you can find them in the book Revelations of Divine Love. It is a bit too much reading for any sermon, but I would still like to share a short passage from one of the them. It is one of my favorite:

“And in this he showed me a little thing, the quantity of a hazel nut, lying in the palm of my hand, as it seemed. And it was as round as any ball. I looked upon it with the eye of my understanding, and thought, ‘What may this be?’ And it was answered generally thus, ‘It is all that is made.’ I marveled how it might last, for I thought it might suddenly have fallen to nothing for littleness. And I was answered in my understanding: It lasts and ever shall, for God loves it. And so have all things their beginning by the love of God. In this little thing I saw three properties. The first is that God made it. The second that God loves it. And the third, that God keeps it.”

A person could spend hours trying to understand all that is said in that one statement, Julian spent years attempting to understand it herself, but in it we can begin to see the vastness of God. We understand that all of creation rests in the palm of God’s hand. From the smallest particle of the atom to the seemingly infinity of the heavens. But not only does he hold it, but through His Son, Jesus, God is a part of that creation. If it stopped there, then we could at least know that there is someone out there who is in control, but it doesn’t stop there. The first of the three properties were that “God made it.” The third was that “God keeps it.” But the second is that “God loves it.” All that there is was made by God and is held by God and even though he is so vast and we so small, He loves.

The Psalmist asks:

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,

The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,

What is man that You are mindful of him,

And the son of man that You visit him?

Why does God care about this small orb He holds in the palm of His hand? Because He loves you. Julian’s most famous passage sums it up for many, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” All shall be well, because God is love and God loves.

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