The medieval women who sealed themselves inside churches

[@craftsabode9265]

I had to study on the topic 'Ancrene wisse' for my upcoming semester exams and couldn't find a single video In KZbin which made me satisfied until I came across yours! Thank you so much for this video ❤keep going

[@MimiMortmain]

I hope your exams go well!🤞🍀🍀 I remember the struggle of finding nothing about the ancrene wisse, which makes it especially tricky to study without good glossaries and notes 😵‍💫 I’m happy I could help out a little!!!

[@maxim_edavidwild9734]

Great video. Keep on making those! There is far too little medieval KZbin, especially one that combines ambition and accessibility so well.

[@MimiMortmain]

awwww thank you, that’s a lovely thing to say 💜 I love the medieval period so there is more where this came from!

[@philruane5910]

Superb video. Thank you.

[@TupperWard]

Fascinating video, thank you!

[@MimiMortmain]

thank you for watching 🤩 this whole period is so fascinating!

[@xlmlq]

You have a great channel. I hope you keep uploading videos.

[@MimiMortmain]

thank you and I’m happy you like it 😊 my plan is to upload more often this year!

[@megantvenstrup7687]

Fascinating topic. I had never heard of this, and I appreciate your nuanced view on the matter. You also have a very soothing voice which works well for narration. Good luck with future videos. :)

[@MimiMortmain]

thank you for watching! I’m happy I could let you know about something new 😊

[@godsonggm3186]

Ancrene Wisse is nowhere to be found in KZbin. Your video neatly explains about this topic.

[@MimiMortmain]

I’m happy you found it useful! I struggled to understand the text when I first studied it but it was really rewarding when I did, so I decided to make a video exploring the topic to help anyone else wanting to know more 😊

[@DC-nd3lc]

Fascinating. Thank you

[@MimiMortmain]

And thank you for watching! 😊

[@oo-yh5yj]

Great video, thank you!

[@MimiMortmain]

I’m happy to hear!

[@EmpyreanLightASMR]

I'm watching The Anchoress movie on Kanopy right now and just wasn't understanding what was going on. Really interesting. Thank you for explaining (I'm only a few minutes into your video). I can't even stay in my apartment for more than a few days before getting cabin fever and feeling ill, so I have no idea how women did it for decades.

[@MimiMortmain]

I'm glad you found the video helpful ☺ When I first heard about anchoresses, I couldn't believe it and I couldn't understand how they did it either. So I enjoyed reading about them more to find out what their lives were actually like. Did you like The Anchoress? Now I'm wondering what they did with Christine Carpenter's story 🤔

[@EmpyreanLightASMR]

@@MimiMortmain I'm still watching it! I tend to watch like 3 or 4 movies at once in parts (I know). I'm at the part where she's bricked up and then she helps those who visit her; I don't know where the story is going though. I'll let you know!

[@ashgonza92]

this is very interesting lore. i was looking for the film Anchoress

[@amhunter7556]

I am greatly interested in this subject - even though I find it horrifying, frankly! I mean - not to put too fine a point on it, but what about bodily functions? If you always had to be available for spiritual advice, when did you get to do the basic things in life (which we all have to do) and who cleared it away? And if the anchoress became desperately ill, was someone expected to remove her, to nurse her, or did she just lie there on a straw pallet, for all to see, and painfully die? Anyway, that aside, congratulations, that was fascinating and informative.

[@MimiMortmain]

I'm happy you liked the video! Thank you for watching 😊 I was shocked too when I first studied the Ancrene Wisse! But it seems that there was no 'one size fits all' approach to being an anchoress, which makes sense because it's a practice spanning across many centuries. They would generally have been expected to already have the funds to sustain themselves, which could have included a personal servant who would take care of the private business you're talking about. In the guidance books for anchoresses, there is an emphasis on not allowing talk with others, including spiritual advice, to distract from her devotion, so I think that means the anchoress could have declined a visiter if they came at an inopportune moment, if you know what I mean! The exact level of access to the outside world would have varied for each anchoress, I think, so that means they could have been able to receive treatment for illnesses. That said, I can totally see some anchoresses taking a stricter approach and relying solely on prayer during times of illness. But this is an understudied area of history, so I still have many questions!

[@amhunter7556]

@@MimiMortmain Thank you SO MUCH for your reply - I find this subject deeply disturbing but frankly, fascinating, and I shall be doing some research too. Bless you.

[@MimiMortmain]

@@amhunter7556 If you're looking for more to read, I made a list of anchoress resources on my blog (the link is in the video description) 🙂

[@amhunter7556]

@@MimiMortmain Oh thank you, thank you so much. Come January when it's dark and cold and I've got time on my hands - I'll be in on all of them, I promise!

[@aranyakm]

There were two possible reasons why there were more women than men who chose the life of seclusion of an anchorite: Anchoresses came from the upper class families where marriage meant large dowries often beyond the means of the father. Then there was the law and order situation. Women were not safe. As anchoresses they won't be abducted and ransomed or sold as slaves.

[@MimiMortmain]

Yes! When you did into the context, it’s not as crazy a life as it first seems!

[@Don18k]

The call of an anchorite, for that is what is herein shown, can be a slow process of inner spiritual growth. There would be, perhaps initially, some elderly or often remote person, passing through the area where the young person lived, word would reach her of his presence, and I say he as this would present to the girl, the opportunity to speak with such a one as he would have a status that she could trust, who would have no prejudice to her inquiry, not a gossiper. Scenes from scripture typically featuring John the Baptist or some person, typically male, would command an early appeal to the young minded girl and a sense of generosity to the seeker, that someone cared, in other word, and this was taken as an indication of Divine guidance being demonstrated. The traveler would speak solicitously of the solitary Life to the woman at this time. Comfort and an assurance of God's favour and presence would become valued mental supports, her growing certainty of purpose was to be seen in time, as not of her but of her Saviour..

[@Anna-xh6fk]

Sooo…good video but like so weird to be like “I’m not like those annoying feminists who take patriarchy into account when talking about women’s decisions in the past”, but then you do exactly that. No need to be a “cool girl” who’s ‘not like those other feminists”. Just a weird and unnecessary aside