‘In Spirit the Wiser’

Abstract

This chapter develops the concept of holy writing by examining letters delivered from heaven, gold writing, and the sanctity of inscription. From the New Minster Charter to the Eadwine Psalter, Chapter 6 asks how modern readers can trace the inherent spirituality and joy of medieval manuscripts—their methods of production, appearance, and use. Close examination of the post-Conquest story of St Wulfstan’s youthful delight in manuscripts reveals the importance for medieval readers of the oculi mentis, the ‘eyes of the mind’—a perceptive form of reading that made spiritual writings accessible and wondrously so. Accessing the potential of holy texts and connecting with them also meant having oneself set into manuscripts, like Books of Hours, or envisioning the potentiality of space for the demonstration of delight through vibrant display of skilful writing.