The Sisters of the Common Life, the late medieval women whose devotion and piety are the subjects of my research, wrote accounts of the individual and communal virtues of the sisters in their communities.
These are referred to as Zusterboeken, or Sister Books, and were written in vernacular dialects of Middle Dutch.
The Sisters of the Common Life were women associated with the Devotio moderna (Modern Devotion), a late medieval and early modern reform movement that focused on renewal of Christian community and personal piety.
To explore select excerpts from the Sisters Books, which I have translated and made available online, please see this page:
Thank you!
This image represents Beguines, another movement of medieval semi-religious women, and it is taken from Wikimedia Commons.
The women here are pictured as occupied with their textile work — a “common thread” (if you’ll excuse the pun!) in the lives of late medieval and early modern women who sought to combine the active and contemplative life.