As truly as God is our Father, so truly is God our Mother.
Julian of Norwich
God Is Our Father and Mother
Topic: Divine Love & Goodness
Whereof it follows that as truly as God is our Father, so truly is God our Mother… And therefore it belongs to us to love our God, in whom we have our being… for in these three is all our life… And therein is a forth-spreading, by the same grace, of a length and breadth, of a height and a deepness without end. And all is one love.
Julian of Norwich (c. 1343–after 1416) was an English anchoress and mystic of the Middle Ages. She is renowned for her book Revelations of Divine Love, which is considered one of the earliest surviving works of English literature written by a woman.
Julian lived in the city of Norwich during a tumultuous period marked by the Black Death and the Peasants' Revolt. In the midst of these upheavals, she experienced a series of profound visions of the Passion of Christ in 1373, when she was around 30 years old. These visions transformed her understanding of God's love, leading her to believe that all people are loved unconditionally by God, even in their sinfulness.
Julian's Revelations of Divine Love is a beautiful and moving meditation on the love of God, exploring themes such as the compassion of Christ, the forgiveness of sins, and the hope of salvation. She also delves into the mystery of suffering and the role of pain in spiritual growth. Although her writings were not published during her lifetime, they were carefully preserved by her followers and later rediscovered and translated into English in the 19th century. Today, Julian of Norwich is recognized as one of the most important Christian mystics and theologians, renowned for her profound insights into the nature of God's love and her emphasis on the harmony between faith, nature, and grace.
Revelations of Divine Love
Julian of Norwich. The Revelations of Divine Love of Julian of Norwich, trans. James Walsh (Harper and Brothers: 1961), 162. [The Fourteenth Revelation, ch. 59 (Long Text)].
Julian of Norwich
Theme: Divine Father and Mother
About This Julian of Norwich Quote [Commentary]
Julian of Norwich affirms with clarity, “As truly as God is our Father, so truly is God our Mother.” Both Fatherhood and Motherhood belong to the fullness of divine love. These are not opposing qualities but expressions of the one God, who is the source of our being and the giver of all life. Julian of Norwich recognizes the “Might and the Goodness of the Fatherhood” and the “Wisdom of the Motherhood,” united in the same divine presence. God’s love is both the will that brings us into being and the care that sustains us. Divine Fatherhood and Motherhood are equally worthy of our love and reverence.
Julian of Norwich deepens our understanding of divine Motherhood through the language of tenderness, closeness, and belonging. She writes that “the deep wisdom of the Trinity is our Mother, in whom we are enclosed.” This maternal presence is more than an image of care; it is central to our relationship with God and the very ground of our existence. Julian of Norwich also teaches that “we were created by the motherhood of love, a mother’s love which never leaves us.” The Divine Mother holds us in a love that is both intimate and enduring, beyond the limits of earthly parenthood. In this loving relationship, “it belongs to us to love our God, in whom we have our being.”
Julian of Norwich brings this understanding to its fullest expression through divine Motherhood in creation, in Christ’s taking of human nature, and in the continuing work of grace. She describes “a forth-spreading, by the same grace, of a length and breadth, of a height and a deepness without end.” Divine love extends beyond every measure, embracing our beginning and our continuing life in God. The love that brings us into being also offers mercy, sustains us through difficulty, and draws us toward wholeness. Julian of Norwich concludes with words that unite her understanding of divine Fatherhood and Motherhood: “And all is one love.”
The Motherhood of God: Julian’s Expanding Vocabulary of Love
To encounter Julian of Norwich’s understanding of the divine feminine is to step into a relationship of immediate, nurturing intimacy that transcends the patriarchal expectations of fourteenth-century theology. Grounding the divine nature in absolute tenderness, Julian famously asserts, “As truly as God is our Father, so truly is God our Mother”. In her writings, the rigid boundaries of earthly parentage give way to an ultimate, cosmic belonging. She observes that “the deep wisdom of the Trinity is our Mother, in whom we are enclosed”. For Julian, this maternal dynamic is not merely a metaphor, but the very foundation of human existence and spiritual safety. She writes that “we were created by the motherhood of love, a mother’s love which never leaves us”. By prioritizing this vocabulary of motherly devotion, Julian crafts a mystical reality anchored entirely by love, revealing a Heavenly Mother whose sheltering presence is the most natural and surest bond a soul can experience.
—Work Cited: Julian, of Norwich. Showings. Translated by Edmund Colledge and James Walsh, Paulist Press, 1978, pp. 285, 296-297.
Richard Rohr’s Commentary about this Quotation in The Divine Dance:
The Trinity and Your Transformation, reflects deeply on Julian of Norwich’s proclamation, “As truly as God is our Father, so truly is God our Mother,” highlighting her bold use of feminine imagery to describe the Divine. Rohr notes, “Julian of Norwich, the fourteenth-century English mystic, was not afraid to speak of God in feminine imagery. She even referred to Jesus as ‘our Mother’ because she recognized that the divine nature transcends our limited human notions of gender.”
—Rohr, Richard. “The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation.” Whitaker House, 2016, p. 123.
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