Born into an important family in Strasbourg, at the time a free city of the Holy Roman Empire, Rulman Merswin became a banker and amassed a large fortune. Always “a man of watchful conscience and of great fear of God,” he gave up business at age 40, “took leave of the world,” and devoted himself to God as a layman, after the manner of the Franciscan Tertiaries, or the Waldensians. Embarking on his new spiritual life, Merswin was moved to keep his money “to use for God,” a decision which precipitated an experience of ecstasy; he felt himself float off the ground and fly around the garden.
Although married to Gertrude of Bietenheim, Merswin resolved to remain celibate. This led to struggles against evil temptation, which he tried to quell through extreme ascetic practices. On the advice of Johannes Tauler, his confessor, Merswin gave up self-mortification. He then fell into severe depression, convinced he was destined for eternal damnation in the fires of Hell; however, he persevered and found, “the joy and peace of the Holy Spirit.” He heard voices and often fell into states of ecstasy. In The Story of the First Four Years of a New Life (which his secretary, Nikolaus von Löwen, claimed was found in a locked cabinet after Merswin's death), Merswin recounts a meeting with a mysterious Friend of God from the Oberland, a confessor, prophet and teacher, to whom Merswin submitted himself completely.
Johannes Tauler brought Merswin into the Friends of God, a lay religious society with a mystical focus.
In 1367, Merswin purchased an old cloister on an island near Strasbourg to serve as a refuge for study for the Friends of God and as a “school of prophets.” The house, which he called "das grüne Wört" or Grünenwörth ("the green island"), produced a number of mystical texts, such as the Book of the Nine Rocks. Many of the works were attributed to The Friend of God from the Oberland, although probably written by Merswin himself.[1] In 1371, Grünenwörth was put under the care of the Knights of St. John.
The Friends of God, as led by Tauler and Henry Suso, sought a mystical path in line with established Catholic doctrine, following Thomas Aquinas. Rulman Merswin, under the guidance of The Friend of God from the Oberland, wanted to purify the Church. This stress on reform brought The Friends of God into conflict with the Church and not long after Merswin's death in 1382, they were condemned.[2]
rulman, merswin, 1307, 1382, german, mystic, leader, time, friends, contents, life, also, notes, external, linkslife, editborn, into, important, family, strasbourg, time, free, city, holy, roman, empire, became, banker, amassed, large, fortune, always, watchfu. Rulman Merswin c 1307 1382 was a German mystic leader for a time of the Friends of God Contents 1 Life 2 See also 3 Notes 4 External linksLife EditBorn into an important family in Strasbourg at the time a free city of the Holy Roman Empire Rulman Merswin became a banker and amassed a large fortune Always a man of watchful conscience and of great fear of God he gave up business at age 40 took leave of the world and devoted himself to God as a layman after the manner of the Franciscan Tertiaries or the Waldensians Embarking on his new spiritual life Merswin was moved to keep his money to use for God a decision which precipitated an experience of ecstasy he felt himself float off the ground and fly around the garden Although married to Gertrude of Bietenheim Merswin resolved to remain celibate This led to struggles against evil temptation which he tried to quell through extreme ascetic practices On the advice of Johannes Tauler his confessor Merswin gave up self mortification He then fell into severe depression convinced he was destined for eternal damnation in the fires of Hell however he persevered and found the joy and peace of the Holy Spirit He heard voices and often fell into states of ecstasy In The Story of the First Four Years of a New Life which his secretary Nikolaus von Lowen claimed was found in a locked cabinet after Merswin s death Merswin recounts a meeting with a mysterious Friend of God from the Oberland a confessor prophet and teacher to whom Merswin submitted himself completely Johannes Tauler brought Merswin into the Friends of God a lay religious society with a mystical focus In 1367 Merswin purchased an old cloister on an island near Strasbourg to serve as a refuge for study for the Friends of God and as a school of prophets The house which he called das grune Wort or Grunenworth the green island produced a number of mystical texts such as the Book of the Nine Rocks Many of the works were attributed to The Friend of God from the Oberland although probably written by Merswin himself 1 In 1371 Grunenworth was put under the care of the Knights of St John The Friends of God as led by Tauler and Henry Suso sought a mystical path in line with established Catholic doctrine following Thomas Aquinas Rulman Merswin under the guidance of The Friend of God from the Oberland wanted to purify the Church This stress on reform brought The Friends of God into conflict with the Church and not long after Merswin s death in 1382 they were condemned 2 See also Edit nbsp Christianity portalChristian Mysticism Theologia GermanicaNotes Edit Rufus M Jones Studies in Mystical Religion Eugene OR Wipf and Stock no date pp 247 252 originally published London Macmillan 1909 http www newadvent org cathen 06306a htm Catholic Encyclopedia The Friends of GodExternal links Edita text containing some biographical information The Friends of God Entry on Friends of God in the Catholic Encyclopedia Rulman Merswin in French http wn rsarchive org Books GA007 English GA007 About html nbsp This biographical article about person in connection with Christianity is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte nbsp This biographical article about a German religious figure is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rulman Merswin amp oldid 1160507764, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
