Late Medieval Christian Female Mystics

This paper is mainly to grasp the late medieval Christian women mysticism from the perspective of religious studies. Firstly, to study the religious and social background, it’s the Christian tradition of mysticism, objective condition of the late medieval and the boom of nunnery to be its conditions and soil. Secondly, to introduce some of representatives of the late medieval Christian women mystics, they are Hadewijch, Mechthild of Magdeburg, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe. Thirdly, to analyze the religious characteristic of the late medieval Christian women mysticism from the perspective of religious studies, mainly grasp two aspect:on the one hand, it’s a kind of religion way of mysticism; on the other hand, it’s a kind of religious groups which have feminist perspective. Form this two aspect, at the end to summarize three key features of the late medieval Christian women mysticism:tend to have the illogical and perceptual expression base on the direct experience of object of faith; mysterious religious experience expression is often filled with sexual things; tend to dig the female image in the object of faith. Finally, described the religious influence and social impact of the late medieval Christian women mysticism.