Celebrating 850 Years of Kloster Lüne

As congratulations by the Nuns’ Network Project, here a couple of letters on the Feast of the Church Consecration from the first Lüne letter book as a commemorative gift. Dedicated to the Abbess and Convent of Kloster Lüne on the Occasion of the 850th Anniversary. The edition is accessible online: http://diglib.hab.de/edoc/ed000248/start.htm Herzog August Library Wolfenbüttel. Excerpt from the print edition which will be published by Mohr-Siebeck in 2023 in the ‘Late Middle Ages, Humanism, Reformation’ series. The Nuns’ Networks. Critical edition of the Letter Collection of the Lüne Benedictine Nuns (Hs. 15, ca. 1460–1555). Edited by Eva Schlotheuber, Henrike Lähnemann, Philipp Trettin, Lena Vosding, Philipp Stenzig, Simone Schultz-Balluff, Edmund Wareham, with the collaboration of Timo Bülters and Konstantin Winters. Technical implementation by Wolfgang Seifert and Torsten Schaßan. The translation has been added for this booklet. ISBN 978-3-16-160898-8

Download the German version of the booklet or the English version of the booklet optimised for A4 (two on one page), read it inline or as running text. Thanks also to Horst Hoffmann (Uelzen) who arranged a nice version for ‘Der Heidewanderer’, the colour supplement of the local newspaper (‘Heimatbeilage der Allgemeinen Zeitung, Uelzen’).

Letter 220 Letter of congratulation on the Feast of the Church Consecration in Lüne

The nuns at Lüne copied incoming letters as well as their outgoing correspondence. This particular letter seems to be written by a nun from another convent who congratulates the Lüne prioress on the forthcoming feast of church consecration, celebrated on the eve of St Bartholomew’s Day (24 August). It is not clear in which year this was sent; the bulk of the letters were written between the reform of the convent in 1481 and the early 16th century. In any case this would have been a welcome missive, reminding the convent of the significance of their patron saint, of the spiritual meaning of the celebrations and of the prayer fraternity between the religious houses of the sender and Lüne which provided a network of mutual support.

Klosterarchiv Lüne, Hs. 15, quire 16, fol. 9v. Latin and Low German.

Summum regem, quem omnis sacra et dilecta civitas Jerusalem trinum et unum Deum iugi laude predicat prothomissum cum affectu totius salutis, venerabilis domina, utique in ipso immortali sponso nostro michi integerrime dilecta!

• The supreme king, whom the whole holy and beloved city of Jerusalem proclaims as triune God with united praise, as a kind greeting, venerable Domina, especially loved to me in the bond of our immortal bridegroom!

In celeberrimo prosollempnio templi materialis, quod iam instanti celebratur in domo vestra¹ sub figura sollempnizationis aule celestis, congaudent omnia nostra precordia, vestris exultantibus animis unione divini amoris, quoniam, iuxta dictum ewangelicum, ubi thesaurus unius cuiusque hominis, ibi et competenter cor extat ipsius.² Ita revera fixa est nostre mentis intentio in domo vestra, ut promissum est, gaudens et jubilans. Quia Jesus Christus, rex immensus et immortalis, elegantis­simus sponsus noster, licet ubique sit presens, maiori tamen et singulari gratia, benignitate et clementia, pietate et misericordia indubie iam adest domui vestre,
cui nunc largitur prefigurare illa festa celestia,      
que continue frequentantur in superna celorum curia.

• In the most famous day preceding the dedication of the material temple, which is soon to be celebrated in your house  as a prefiguration of the dedication of the heavenly hall, all our hearts rejoice, exulting with your souls in the union of divine love, because, as the Gospel says: where someone’s treasure is, there the heart is also fully present. Our mind is indeed fixed in your house, as promised, rejoicing and jubilant. Because Jesus Christ, our infinite and immortal king, our supreme bride­groom, though naturally present everywhere, is yet with greater and singular grace, kindness and gentleness, godliness and mercy doubtless already present in your house, on which it is now bestowed to prefigure those heavenly feasts which are continually celebrated in the heavenly courts.

Itaque in domo vestra, dat ghenomet is Luna,³ dar is nu upghande unde schynende de ware ewighe levendighe sunne Jesus Christus, rex immense maiestatis, centies ac milies clarior quam sol materialis, sic radiat super universam structuram vestri cenobii, in sunderker leve unde gnade, unde is schynende unde blenkernde in intima animarum ac precordiarum vestrarum habitacula, non solum per cancellas contemplationis prospiciens et fenestras,⁴ quin ymmo per ostium plene fidei intrans,⁵ dar gy ene tam anhelanti desiderio hefft to inviteret, des gy nu moget bruken syner alderbegherlikesten unde sokesten jeghenwardicheit.

• Therefore in your house, which is called ‘Luna’ (moon), Jesus Christ, the true eternal living sun, has now risen and appeared, king of immense majesty; a hundred and a thousand times brighter than the material sun, he shines in special love and grace over the whole community of your convent and shines and sparkles into the innermost dwellings of your souls and hearts, not simply gazing through the openings and windows of contemplation, but rather entering with faith the door where you have invited him with such longing so that you may now enjoy his most covetous and sweetest presence.

Quia ipsa summa sapientia           
per sacram Eucharistiam ponit mensam divine sue providentie,      
ubi ponitur mensale munde vestre conscientie.

• For the highest Wisdom herself through the sacred eucharist lays the table of divine providence where you are served the meal of your pure conscience.

Et ipse rex verus Aswerus⁶ cum tenella regina sua | fol. 16r | Barsabee,⁷ scilicet matre virginea, filioque regis Bartholomeo glorioso vestro patrono⁸ cum duoceno condiscipulorum collegio necnon dilecta sua sponsa N sedit convivans et prestans veri agni paschalis predulce edulium merumque rubeum propinans nectar suavissimum.⁹

• And this true King Ahasuerus himself sits with his delicate Queen Bersheba, namely the virgin mother, and with the king’s son Bartholomew, your glorious patron saint, with the group of twelve other disciples and last but not least with his beloved bride N. at the festive meal and hands the true Easter lamb as a particularly sweet dish and serves the purest red wine as the sweetest nectar.

O quam gloriosa et insignis extat hec presens sollempnitas,¹⁰          
in qua sic prefiguratur eterne felicitatis iocunditas!             
O quam beatum et sacratissimum convivium,        
in quo summus Deus cum suis dilectis hic in terris dulciter epulans donat ipsis corporis et sanguinis sui preciosissimum sacramentum!¹¹

• O how glorious and distinguished is this present solemnity, in which is thus prefigured the joy of eternal happiness! Oh, what a blessed and most sacred feast, in which the Most High God, feasting sweetly with loved ones here on earth and gives them the most precious sacrament of his body and blood!

O quam felix anima, que cum Deo et creatori suo ac sponso ita dulciter epulatur, dar de sponsus immortalis alzo sodliken schallet unde singhet in den clinghenden orghelenspele sui divini cordis unde den soten seyden spele sui melliflui oris den gnadenriken wol­ludenden sangh scilicet: Eya mea karissima soror et sponsa N, inter milia electa. Hec sunt mee delicie,¹² ut corporis et sanguinis mei sacramentali presentia tecum convivam et habitem et cum omnibus filiis homini.  
Accipe ergo et comede, gusta et vide quam suave est hoc edulium.¹³           
Est enim corpus meum et sanguis meus per quod ego hic tecum    
et tu mecum habitabis et vives mecum    
in perpetuum.

• Oh, how happy the soul, which feasts so sweetly with God, both her creator and bridegroom, where the immortal bridegroom so sweetly resounds and sings in the ringing organ playing of his divine heart and on the sweet strings of his honey-flowing mouth, the grace-bestowing melodious song, namely: Eya, my dearest sister and bride N., chosen among thousands. These are my delights, that I may feast and dwell with you and with all the children of man in the sacramental presence of my body and blood. So take it and eat it, taste it and see how sweet this food is. For it is my body and my blood by which I am here with you and you shall dwell with me and live with me forever.

Venerabilis et preamantissima domina: Hec sacrosancta convivia recogitans ac contemplans asto et ego mentali intuitu, quia, ut promissum est, thesaurus noster unicus tam liberaliter habundantiam gratiarum et suavitatum vobis iam ministrat. Quare iure tam sibi quam vobis corde et animo congaudeo ymmoque talium gratiarum ac suavitatum aliquam portiunculam michi fieri totis precordiis exopto, per devotarum orationum participationem quidquam ego libenter re impendam quamvis oraciunculis aridis, quatenus pro invicem orantes in hoc exilio pro amore et Dei gratiam et in patria sempiternam gloriam eiusdem divini amoris vinculo coniungemur.

• Venerable and most esteemed Domina: Pondering and contemplating this most holy banquet, I also stand here in inner contemplation, because, as promised, our only treasure is already so liberally ministering to you an abundance of graces and delights. For which reason I rightly rejoice in my heart and mind, both for myself and for you, and indeed I desire with all my heart that some portion of such graces and favours may be bestowed upon me through partaking of the humble prayers. However meager my little prayers are, I will offer them gladly, as we pray for one another in this exile out of love and the grace of God, and we shall be united in the bond of divine love to eternal glory in the heavenly home.

Cum his commendo caritatem vestram ei regi summo homini in utroque, qui nos in via sic cibet et in futuro satiet | fol. 16v | optabili sua presentia,    
ubi dies una melior quam hoc milia,¹⁴       
gaudium et gloria erit, sempiterna letitia. Amen.

• With that I entrust your love to him, the supreme king and at the same time man, who will thus nourish us on the way and in the future saturate us with his desirable presence, where one day will be better than a thousand, where joy and honor will be everlasting Happiness. Amen.

Raptim ex N octava Assumptionis gloriose Dei genitricis, anno Domini etc.

• Hastily from N., in the octave of the Ascension of the Glorious Mother of God, in the Year of the Lord, etc.

_______

¹ From the statute book of the Kloster Lüne, Klosterarchiv, Hs. 14, fol. 66r, it can be inferred that the Lüne church consecration was celebrated on the day before the patron saint’s festival (St Bartholomew), i.e. on August 23rd. The letter was written on August 22, the octave of the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, as the final date shows. – ² Mt 6:21. –

³ Julius Caesar is said to have built seven castles in Germany and named them after the Roman planetary ­deities ­, including Lunaburg, see Lucae, Fürstensaal (1705), p. 612. –

⁴ cents 2.9. – ⁵ Io 10.2. – ⁶ King Ahasuerus from the Book of Esther (Asverus in the Vulgate). –

⁷ The (second) son of Bethsabee is King Solomon, interpreted here as the Old Testament prefiguration of Christ. Bethsabee is thus a typological figure for Mary. –

⁸ The patron saint’s festival of Kloster Lüne, that of the apostle St Bartholomew, was celebrated on 24 August, the day after the church consecration festival. –

⁹ The king is Christ himself, who, surrounded by his mother, St Bartholomew and all the disciples, the edulum veri agni paschalis and the nectar rubeum suavissimum, namely the Eucharistic species. –

¹⁰ ie Assumption of Mary. – ¹¹ The passage echoes the Corpus Christi hymns ‘O sacrum convivium’ and ‘Sacris solemniis’, both by Thomas Aquinas. –

¹² Language of the Song of Songs without being a direct quotation. ¹³ Based on Psalm 33:9. ¹⁴ Ps 83:11.

Letter 270 Letter of thanks from a nun in Kloster Lüne to her parents, before 24 August 1489

The girls entered the convent aged 5 to 9 when they received their first habit. They then spent ten years in the convent school, being educated in a wide range of subjects and skills, including music, Latin, and theology. At the end of their education, they were received as brides of Christ in a coronation ceremony where they were given a ring and a crown. In 1489, this ceremony was performed for eleven girls on the day of the patron saint, St Bartholomew, 24 August. The Lüne nun who wrote this letters to her parents to inform this of this festive occasion uses the letter to thank them for sending her to the convent and to explain the spiritual siginificance of monastic life. Even if the parents cannot be present at the spiritual marriage, they will later invited to the eternal wedding feast.

Lüne, Kloster Lüne, Hs. 15, Lage 19, fol. 18v. Low German.

Jesum Christum, den wisen hochghebornen vredesamighen koningh Salomon, ghekronet myd dem durbaren hovetgolde, dar en syn hemmelsche Vader mede kronede in dem heren, hochtideghen daghe syner brudlacht, do he sik vortruwede myd der mynschliken naturen unde trat uthe dem guldenen scrine syner zarten, junchvrowelker moder Marien alze eyn erwerdich brudegham uth syner brudkammer,¹ den sende ik juk vor enen annamen grod tovoren!

• Jesus Christ, the wise, high-born, peaceful King Solomon, crowned with the precious ring of gold with which his heavenly Father crowned him on the majestic, festive day of his marriage, when he was betrothed to human nature, and from the golden casket of his tender, virgin mother Mary stepped out of his bridal chamber like a venerable bridegroom, I send you as a pleasant greeting in beforehand!

Alderleveste N N, ik, juwe leve dochter, dancke juwer wederken unde moderken leve hochliken unde fruntliken vor alle gud, dat gy my van myner kyntheyt wente an desse stunde lefliken dan hebbet, sunderken darvore, dat gy my in dit closter hebbet ghegeven, dar ik rouwesamighen inne leven mach alze in enem wunni­ghen, lustighen paradyse unde mach spasseren ghan in dem soten rosengarden mynes brudeghammes mangt den witten lillien unde mangt den roden roseken in gheyst­liker wollust, wo vake my des lustet, dar my juwe leve io to holpen heft, des ik juk nummer to vullen danken kan alle de daghe mynes levendes; mer Christus Jesus, de koning der ere, de dat afgrunde syner overvlodighen barmherticheyt openet allen ruwighen, ynnighen herten, de mote juk dusentvolt belonen juwelk word, dat gy my to gude spraken hebbet unde alle gud, dat gy my dan hebbet, dat mote he thomale vorgelden myd dem groten lone, dat he sulven is.

• Dearest N&N, I, your dear daughter, thank your fatherly and motherly love in the highest and most kind manner for all the good that you have lovingly shown me from my childhood up to this hour, especially for having placed me in this convent, where I can live peacefully as in a blissful, merry paradise, and can walk in my bridegroom’s sweet rose garden among the white lilies and between the red roses in spiritual bliss as often as I desire, what your love has helped me to do, for what I can never fully thank you all the days of my life; but may Christ Jesus, the King of glory, who has opened the abyss of his abounding mercy to all repentant, devout hearts, repay you a thousandfold for every word that you have spoken in my favour, and may he repay all the good that you have done me with the great reward that he himself is.

Vortmer, alderleveste N, so juk wol witlik is, wo grote tekene der leve dat God de here by my heft bewiset, indeme dat he my mangt dusent dusent² mynschen heft uterkoren to ener eghenen brud, nicht van myner werdicheyt, sunder van syner mylden, endelosen barmherticheyt weghen; alzo do ik juwer leve nu vorder to wetende, dat de Vader in der ewicheyt, de syne grundelosen myldicheyt vaken bewiset synen armen creaturen, de heft nu jeghenwardighen upgheslaghen ene sunderghe, grote werschop unde de wel he don in dem neddersten synes koninghrikes, dat is in dessem clostere, | fol. 1r | dar wel he werschoppen myd synen eghenen leven kynderen, de he uterkoren heft; unde to desser groten werdicheyt heft he my, syne armen denerinnen, ok gheladen unde gheesket.

• Furthermore, dearest N., since you well know what a great sign of love the Lord God has shown to me by choosing me among hundreds of thousands of people to be his own bride, not because of my worthiness but because of his mild, endless mercy; so I let your love know now further that God the Father in eternity, who frequently shows his bottomless kindness to his poor creatures, has now presently planned a special, great banquet, and he will hold it in the lowliest place of his kingdom, namely in our convent, where he intends to celebrate with his own dear children whom he has chosen; and he invited me, his poor servant, to this great honour.

Wente ik schal nu de schonen, eddelen cronen entfanghen in dem hoch­gehe­loveden werdighen festdaghe des hoghen hemmelvorsten unde werden aposteles sancti Bartholomei, unses alderlevesten hovetheren,³ den God de here dar sunder­ken heft to uterkoren umme syner groten werdicheyt willen, wente desse leve, eddele apostel is van hogher art unde van eddelem slechte unde he was enes riken koninghes sone unde vorled dat ganse koningrike synes eghenen vorstendomes, dat eme van rechtes weghen ervet was van vader unde van moder, dat gaf he tomale over umme de leve Godes.

• Because I am now to receive the beautiful, noble crown on the highly praised, worthy feast day of the high prince of heaven and worthy apostle St Bartholomew, our dearest patron saint, whom God the Lord has specially chosen for the sake of his great dignity, because this dear, noble apostle is of high class and of noble lineage, and he was the son of a mighty king, and left all the kingdom of his own principality, which he had by right inherited from father and mother; he gave that up entirely for the love of God.

Wente he was so sere entfenghet myd dem vure der gotliken leve, dat eme dar nicht ane noghede, dat he enes riken koninghes sone was, men eme dorstede na dem endelosen springborne Jesum Christo unde he begherde, dat he mochte wesen eyn vrunt des alderhoghesten koninghes, des rike nummer nenen ende heft, unde darumme so vorled he nicht allene syne koningliken walt, sunder he led sik syne eghenen hud van synem lichamme then umme de leve des oversten koninghes, uppe dat he synes rikes mochte werden, dar he nu vordricht dat schone guldene hochtidescled der ere, van rodem golde wracht⁴ unde van eddelen stenen besettet na koningliker wonheit, unde he wert nu gheheten eyn lef vrunt⁵ unde eyn van den hoghesten vorsten des koninghes na dem male, dat he so menliken vochten heft unde heft den groten seghe wunnen alze eyn sterck kemppe; hirumme so mach eme dat boren, dat en de koningh wedder ere myd sundergher werdicheyt alze synen alderneghesten [vrunt]⁶, up dat God de here beyde an hemmelrike unde an ertrike syn lof unde syne groten werdichheyt vorbreden mochten.

• For he was so inflamed with the fire of divine love that it was not enough for him to be the son of a mighty king, but he thirsted for the endless fountain of Jesus Christ and he desired to be a friend of the supreme king, whose kingdom would never come to an end, and therefore not only did he forsake his royal power, but out of love for the supreme king he had his own skin stripped from his body, that he might belong to his kingdom, where he now wears the beautiful golden wedding robe of honour wrought of red gold and set with precious stones according to royal custom, and he is now called a dear friend and one of the highest princes of the king because he fought so manfully and won the great victory like a strong warrior; therefore it can also befit him that the king again honours him with special dignity as one of his closest friends, so that the Lord God may spread his praise and his great dignity in the kingdom of heaven as well as on earth.

So heft de grote rike konigh Asswe- | fol. 1v | rus,⁷ de hemmelsche vader, desse groten werschop unser croninghe upgeslaghen, de he in synem daghe holden wel in geystliker vrolicheyt unde wollust myd my syner armen denerinnen; unde na dem male, dat he van koninglike stamme is, so mach em dat temen, dat he sodane ere heft; unde wol dat ik mynem brudegamme tosecht wart in myner cledinghe, do ik vader unde moder vorsakede dor syne leve unde myd eme do so vaste vor­bunden wart myd der guldenen keden der rechten waren leve, doch so wel de brud­lacht nu wedder vornighen in myner kroninghe wnde⁸ wel my nu geven dat brud­vingherlyn an myne hant unde den erliken lefliken namen, dat ik wesen unde heten schal des ewighen koninghes brud, unde darto wel he my geven de schonen cronen myd den vif eddelen brudspannen syner hilgen vif wunden,⁹ de ik dreghen schal vor alle der werlde, dar ik dat mede bewise, dat ik so vaste myd eme vor­bun­den byn, dat my noch led noch leff van syner leve scheden kan to ewighen tyden unde hirumme so mach ik wol spreken de soten worde, de dar de zarte junch­ziemevrowe sunte Agnete so lefliken schallede, do se sprak: „Myn here Jesus Christus heft my ghehantruwet myd synem vingherlyn unde heft my ghekronet myd ener schonen cronen unde syn blod heft myne vanghen¹⁰ rosenvar ghemaket.“¹¹

• And so the great mighty King Ahasuerus, the heavenly Father, has opened this great feast of our coronation, which he wants to hold on the day of St Bartholomew in spiritual gladness and great joy with me, his poor servant; and as he is of royal stock, it surely befits him that he should have such honour; and although I was promised to my bridegroom when I received my habit, when I left father and mother for his love’s sake and was so firmly bound to him with the golden chain of right, true love, still I want to renew this bridal bond in my coronation, and he will now give me the bridal ring on my hand and the honourable, loving name that I shall be and be called the bride of the eternal King, and in addition he will give me the beautiful crown with the five noble bridal ornaments of his five holy wounds, which I shall wear before all the world, where I can prove that I am so firmly bound to him that neither suffering nor love can separate me from his love in eternity, and that is why I can well speak the sweet words that the tender virgin Saint Agnes proclaimed so lovely when she said: “My Lord Jesus Christ was betrothed to me with his little ring and has crowned me with a beautiful crown, and his blood makes me rosy-cheeked.”

Alderleveste N, konde efte mochte beyde juk unde my ok bed wesen, wen us is, wan we dit andenket; wente de koningh aller koninghe is myn brudegham unde is juwe swagher unde wol dat gy nu nicht jeghenwardich synt efte wesen moghet to myner brudlacht, de hir gestelken vullenbrocht wert; doch so schol gy na dessem levende myd allen salighen to der hoghesten wersschop komen, wente desse brucht­lacht schal nicht allene | fol. 2r | hir beghan werden in dem ertrike, sunder se wert ok beghan in dem hoghen hemmele, dar sik myn brudegham vrouwet in ewigher vrolicheyt myd den hemmelschen borgheren, de dar van dem grunt­borne syner endelosen myldicheyt overvlodighen vorvullet werdet; dar schal desse brudlacht den vullenbrocht werden, wente dar schal ik den dreghen de lucken guldenen croneken, de dar nummede geven wert men allene den junch­vrowen, dar schal ik den medeghan in der junchvrowen dans unde schal den volghen deme snewitten lamme alwor it gheyt.

• Dearest N, how could or would you or I ever be better off than we are when we consider this; because the king of kings is my bridegroom and is related to you by marriage, and even if you are not or cannot be present at my bridal party, which is spiritually celebrated here, you are to come to the highest hospitality after this life with all the blessed, because this bridal party is not only to be observed here on earth, but it is also observed in the high heavens, where my Bridegroom rejoices in everlasting gladness with the heavenly citizens, who are there overflowing with the fountain of his infinite gentleness; there this bridal feast is to be accomplished, for there I am to wear the little golden crown, which is given to no-one but only the virgins, there I am to go along in the dance of the virgins and am to follow the snow-white lamb wherever it goes.

O welk unsprekelik vroude is dar wol deme mynschen, de den wunnichliken, spelenden, vroudenriken dans by des koninghes syden an syner schonen hant in vroudenriker sekericheyt jummer treden mach.

• Oh, what unspeakable joy there is for any person who can always tread the blissful, shining, joyful dance at the king’s side on his fair hand in joyful security.

Item, alderleveste N, ik bidde gik othmodighen umme de leve Godes, dat gy my willen vorgeven allent, wor ik juk mede vortornet hebbe al myne levedaghe myd worden edder myd werken, dat is my tomale van herten led; unde biddet jo den leven God vor my, dat ik dyt groten ammacht so mote entfanghen unde desse cronen so dreghen mote, dat ik na dessem levende mote ingheleydet werden an dat brudbedde des unbevleckeden lammes unde den de soten wort horen mote: „Kam myn uterkoren brud, ik wil dy kronen myd der cronen der ere unde wil mynen tron in dyn setten.“¹² Dat uns allen dyt besche, des help uns de Vader unde de Sone unde de Hilge Geyst. Amen.

• Likewise, dearest N, I humbly beg you for the love of God, that you will forgive me everything with which I have provoked you to anger all my life by word or by deed, I am sincerely sorry for it; pray to the good Lord for me, that I may receive this great office and wear this crown in such a way that after this life I may be led to the nuptial bed of the immaculate lamb and then hear the sweet words: “Come, my chosen bride, I I will crown you with the crown of glory, and I will place my throne next to yours.” May the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit help us so that this may happen to us all, Amen.

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¹ Ps 18,6: In sole posuit tabernaculum suum; et ipse tamquam sponsus procedens de thalamo suo. Exsultavit ut gigas ad currendam viam. – ² Doubling of dusent as rhetorical device. –

³ Hovethere (“Head-Lord”) is the Low German term for the patron saint, cf. letter 368, where Bartholomew is sent to represent the convent as its patron. Die Chronik, ed. by Stenzig (2009), p. 77 for 24 August 1489: Likewise, in the same year, 11 sisters were crowned on the day of St Bartholomew, our glorious patron. –

⁴ Cf. depiction of St Bartholomew in the star robe in the Medingen prayer book SUB Hamburg Ms. in scrin. 209, fol. 92r, but also the Lüne Bartholomew tapestry, in which the stages of the legend are presented and at the end the veneration of the saint by the nuns is shown (DI 24, Lüneburg: St. Michaeliskloster, Kloster Lüne, No. 45 [Eckhard Michael]).

⁵ Cf. the prayer in the Medinger prayer book HAB Wolfenbüttel, Cod. Guelf. Ms. Extrav. 300.1, fol. 89r, for St John’s Day: O hilghe here sunte Iohannes, en lef vrunt unde en uterkorne apostel Godes: kere dy to my vnde se mj an, alse dy Cristus ansach, do he di van der werlde ladede to siner mesterscop, unde verwarf mj, dat ik eme with vlite moghe to hanghen . – ⁶ After that, a noun may be missing, as would be expected from phrases like four lines above vrunt . –

⁷ King Ahasuerus from the Book of Esther (Assuerus in the Vulgate). Cf. Letter 220 cited above (page 16, fol. 15v), where the comparison with the great festival of King Ahasuerus is also made on St Bartholomew’s Day as a church consecration festival in Lüne. – ⁸ The writer writes w instead of u/v several times , cf. weken for ‘fatherly’ at the beginning of the letter. –

⁹ See Ebstorf, Hs. V 2, fol. 212v-213r, second Ebstorf reform report: In the crown are four red crosses with the five wounds of our crucified bridegroom, which we will wear on the head as a sign of the wounded Christ, so that we may always be mindful of our bridegroom, recalling the Song of Songs where he says: “You have wounded my heart, my sister, my bride” [Ct 4:9], namely through love. See on this Schlotheuber, Klostereintritt (2004), S. 164. – ¹⁰ Here use of v for w . – ¹¹ Antiphon from the Feast of St Agnes (Song ID 001426): The Lord Jesus Christ put his ring on my finger and adorned me with a crown as a bride . – ¹² See a translation of the ‚Passio sanctae Barbarae virginis’, British Library, Add. MS 29727, fol. 267v, ed. by Rudy, A play (2015), p. 81: Com, mijn wtvercoren biruut [sic], com mijn vriendienne, mijn schoen. Com, du salt mytter meechden cronen ghecroent werden, die ic dy van aen begynne bereit heb in mijnen rijck, in quoting Ct 4:8 the top of Sanir and Hermon, from the dens of lions, from the mountains of leopards ). –

Kloster Lüne, cover Hs. 15. Photography: Wolfgang Brandis, rights: Kloster Lüne