At age thirty Julian of Norwich was gravely ill and lying on what she thought was her deathbed. At that time she received sixteen visions— most notable were of Christ bleeding in front of her, the motherhood of God, and God’s mercy for each and all of us. Julian recovered and lived many more years. She was an anchoress at St. Julian’s Church in Norwich, living as a recluse in times of plague, poverty and famine. People would come to seek her advice. Her message was suffused with hope, compassion and trust in God’s goodness. She is thought to be the first woman to write a book in English which has survived. The dates of her life: c. 1342-1416.
And with this insight he also showed me a little thing, the size of a hazelnut, lying in the palm of my hand. It seemed to me as round as a ball. I gazed at it and thought, “What can this be?” The answer came thus, “It is everything that is made.” I marveled how this could be, for it was so small it seemed it might fall suddenly into nothingness. Then I heard the answer, “It lasts, and ever shall last, because God loves it. All things have their being in this way by the grace of God.”
—Revelations of Divine Love, by Julian of Norwich, Chapter Five
“God did not say: ‘You will not be tempested. You will not labor hard. You will not be troubled.’ Bu God did say: “You will not be overcome.”
“Just as God is truly our Father, so also is God truly our Mother. “
from Julian of Norwich by Brendan Doyle page 58.