Mystical Gardens: Environmental Humility in the St. Katharinental Sister-Book
On March 14th, Elena Lampp gave a talk at the conference “Du potager à l’Hortus Conclusus. Le jardin médiéval dans tous ses états” on Environmental Humility in the St. Katharinental Sister-Book.
Sister-Books are a genre that was developed during the 14th century through the efforts of the mystical movement in Dominican nunneries in southern Germany, Switzerland and Alsace. These collections of short hagiographical texts about deceased nuns had the aim to commemorate, preserve the history of the convent and teach devotion through mystical texts.
Humility cannot be expressed with words without seeming boastful, yet as Herbert McAvoy has highlighted gardens and landscapes can transcend spoken language and express concepts that cannot be voice. For her presentation Elena Lampp used three miracle stories of the St. Katharinental Sister-Book to highlight that interactions with garden spaces demonstrate humility and especially environmental humility – a recognition of the interconnectedness of creation and a shift in focus away from the individual. Through these humble experiences gardens no longer are a mere background for mystical experiences but they are promoted to an integral part of it.
Through close readings of these narratives, informed by the mystical theology of Meister Eckhart, Elena Lampp argued that the garden serves as a site where nuns enact and embody humility through their bodies, imitation of Christ and Saints, and recognition of the Divine through the natural world. The St. Katharinental Sister-book offers a nuanced perspective on the relationship between humans, nature, and God, suggesting a progression from embodiment of humility to a deeper understanding of humility and the interconnectedness of all beings.
More about the conference: Journées d'études 13–14 mars 2025.
