R188: Hildegard von Rupertsberg an Äbtissin E. von Obermünster in Regensburg
God as Living Rationality
Hildegard greets Ada and teaches that God is eternal, living rationality, and that Scripture is a mirror reflecting this divine reason.
Hildegard's reply. O daughter, Ada — God is that rationality which has neither beginning nor end. And it is through this that a human being is rational! And this same rationality is an enlivened life within the person, one that will never fail. Now look, and pay attention to the Scriptures, which are rooted in the root of the Holy Spirit. And those also which concern the rationality that is God are written there. For Scripture is a mirror.
Watchfulness Against the Adversary
Hildegard warns that the devil watches for human weakness and tempts people to abandon faithful service through disordered desires.
In this rationality, through faith we behold God, because our adversary is watchful and does not sleep. Therefore, against him we ought to fight with that faith. And we must not tempt God. But we must worship devoutly. For the Devil knows and sees that a person is changeable and of varied dispositions. And because of this, he does not allow the peaceful person to rest in quiet dispositions. Often a person, under an impulse from God, wishes to know what is not permitted to know. And through this, the person abandons the service of God.
Foolish Testing of God
Hildegard condemns the foolishness of seeking forbidden knowledge, declaring that God is to be worshipped rather than tested, and pronounces blessing on the one who resists.
That is why the devil rejoices so greatly. Because he sees him failing on every side. But such questioning is foolish, just as that which is sought from a false prophet.1 And in all these things, God is not to be put to the test. He is to be worshipped. For the devil, in his most savage wickedness, often hurls darts into the heart of man. With these he confounds God himself. But blessed is the man who neither wishes to do these things nor consents to them.
Christ's Suffering and God's Mercy
Hildegard connects Christ's suffering with human sinfulness and repentance, affirming God's mercy in forgiving sins and preserving the faithful.
But just as Christ lived among them with the suffering of death, so a human being, together with original sin, naturally sins. and then repents. and that, for the sake of God's honor, he forgives! Through faith, the devil is resisted. God will never lose the person who offers him the greater part of his own sins! but another part, a lesser one, he remits to him. So then, sweetest daughter.
Entrusted Stewardship
Hildegard urges careful, diligent care of the one entrusted to the abbess, warning of the gravity of negligence and comparing outward show to inward fruitfulness.
Take care, entrusted to you with such strength, to provide for her. Do not let her go on account of weariness or toil. And see to it that you rightly consider whether your intention toward that church and place is good or bad. For it will be a great sin for you, if you have not rightly attended to this.2 For a tree that is full of flowers is beautiful to look at, but when its fruit ripens for eating,
Desire, Work, and Lasting Fruit
Hildegard teaches that good desires are like flowers, but completed good works are the true fruit that feeds the soul from eternal pastures.
It is far more useful. The desire to work well gladdens a person's mind just as flowers do. But the work itself — I mean, when its fruit begins to grow — is far better. And when a person has accomplished good works, the ripe fruits become visible. And his good works provide food for himself from the eternal pastures. when he has departed from this life. Therefore, good daughter of God, bring your good desires to completion in good works!
Final Blessing and Departure
Hildegard prays that the abbess may receive a beautiful reward from God when her soul departs, and commends her to divine grace.
So that when your soul has gone out from your body, the most beautiful reward may shine forth for you from God.3 May this grace of God teach you.45
Read the original Latin
Responsum hildegardis. O filia adę. deus racionalitas illa est quę nec inicium nec finem habet. et per quam homo racionalis est! et eadem racionalitas in ipso animata uita est quę numquam deficiet. Nunc uide et adtende scripturas quę de radice spiritus sancti radicatę sunt. et quę etiam de racionalitate quę deus est scriptę sunt. Scriptura enim speculum est.
in qua deum per fidem aspicimus quia aduersarius noster uigilat et non dormit. ideo aduersus eum cum illa pugnare debemus. et deum temptare non debemus! sed deuote adorare. Diabolus namque hominem mutabilem et diuersorum morum esse scit et uidet! et ob hoc in quietis moribus pacificum quiescere non permittit. Sepe homo in impetu a deo scire uult quod scire non licet. et per hoc seruitutem dei dimittit.
unde diabolus multum gaudet. quia in utraque parte eum deficere uidet. Talis uero sciscitatio stulta est sicut illa quę a falso propheta queritur! et in omnibus his deus non temptari. sed adorari debet. Diabolus namque ex seuissima nequitia sua iacula in cor hominis sepe mittit! quibus ipse deum confundit. Beatus autem homo ea nec facere uult nec eis consentit!
sed sicut cum passione mortis in eis uiuit. Homo itaque cum originali peccato naturaliter peccat. et deinde penitet. et illud propter honorem dei dimittit! diabolo per fidem resistit. Deus etiam hominem illum qui maiorem partem peccatorum suorum ipsi offert numquam perdet! sed aliam partem minorem illi remittit. Vnde dulcissima filia.
curam tibi traditam in tali uirtute prouide. ne propter tedium aut laborem eam dimittas. et uide ut recte adtendas utrum bona an mala ęcclesię loci illius cogitatio tua sit! quia magnum peccatum tibi aderit. si istud recte non adtenderis. Nam arbor quę floribus plena est. pulcra ad uidendum est. sed cum fructus eius ad uescendum maturescit.
multo utilior est. Desiderium bene operandi mentem hominis uelut flores letificant. sed studium operis scilicet cum fructus crescere incipit multo melius est. cum autem homo bona opera perpetrauerit. fructus maturi apparent. et bona opera ipsius in eternis pascuis cibum uitę sibi prestant. cum de hac uita migrauerit. Vnde bona filia dei bona desideria tua in bonis operibus perfice!
ut cum anima tua de corpore tuo exierit. pulcherrimum premium a deo tibi emicet. Hęc gratia dei te doceat.
Notes
- 1 ↩The manuscript reads 'quę' (likely a scribal form of 'quae'). The normalized text preserves the form; the translation assumes the relative pronoun 'which' to complete the comparison.
- 2 ↩adtenderis is ambiguous between future perfect indicative ('you will have attended') and present subjunctive passive; rendered as present-perfect sense ('have attended') to fit the conditional warning.
- 3 ↩emicet rendered as 'may shine forth' reflecting jussive subjunctive force in epistolary blessing.
- 4 ↩Manuscript spelling Hęc normalized; both split tokens assigned lemma hic.
- 5 ↩doceat rendered as 'may teach' reflecting jussive subjunctive in epistolary blessing.
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