‘Solitary Even in Mind’:

Medieval Women Mystics Through a Neurodivergent Lens

Preface

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Marta Cobb, for her support and suggestions during the research and writing of this dissertation. Also, to my parents, Wilbur and Carole Paley, for their unending encouragement and Karen Sejer Ravn for listening to my ideas and giving moral support.

Finally, I would like to thank the online Neurodivergent Community for helping me to accept myself and for inspiring this dissertation.

Introduction

On reading the vitae of various women mystics for a course, I found the experiences of modern neurodivergent people reflected there. In particular, an excerpt from The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth–

Keeping herself apart from them in body and mind as far as she could, with face turned away she gave full attention to reading what she had received from the teacher for memorization. She so strove to avoid her fellow students’ talk and company that she never impressed her appearance on any of them, neither did she presume to join any of them even when she needed something, but amid so many, she remained as if alone, solitary even in mind. Because of such self-control she was frequently criticized by some and laughed at by others who envied her serious manners, but the more harassment and shame she endures from her fellow students, the more resolutely she continued in her laudable intention.[1]

I immediately identified Beatrice’s experiences in childhood with neurodivergent traits in both myself and others. Neurodivergent people have often experienced an isolating childhood with incidences of peer-to-peer abuse being nearly universal.[2] Specific abilities in rote memorisation and hyperfocus are also common in the neurodivergent community.[3] For my part, during my childhood I memorised pi to over 200 decimal places along with all the monarchs of England and the United Kingdom since Alfred the Great plus the dates of their reigns. The abuse from her peers also struck a chord because I had experienced the same thing during school. I also shared some of her experiences with intentional self-injury although our motivations were different. This led to a search of the existing literature to ascertain if medieval mysticism had been discussed in light of the new Neurodiversity Movement.

However, when I came to investigate the topic of medieval neurodivergence I found that the existing literature on historical neurodivergence comes mainly from a medical perspective and the majority of it focused on retrospectively diagnosing cases of autism. Though all of the literature on possible historical cases of autism and Asperger’s Syndrome was authored or co-authored by academics working in the field of history or history adjacent fields in the humanities, the medical perspective is clear. The language used is pervaded with pathologising words and phrases such as ‘handicaps’, ‘symptoms’, ‘deficits’, and ‘impairments.’[4] Moreover, much of the literature focuses on individuals like Brother Juniper and Hildegard of Bingen rather than wider societal trends.

Cornelia Dayton and Rab Houston and Uta Frith in both of their works discuss cognitive disability and suspected autism in individuals living during the 18th century. Houston and Frith investigated the life of Hugh Blair of Borgue in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland.[5] Based on Houston and Frith’s methodology, Dayton focuses her analysis on Joseph Gorham and Cape Code, Massachusetts. They both deal with legal issues surrounding competence and social norms which were highlighted by the transgressions of these norms by their respective subjects. They comment on the changing notions on what was considered disabling and atypical. Dayton notes that Gorham’s affective behaviour and body language, which make up a key component of an autism diagnosis now, were not discussed by his contemporaries.[6] However, whilst they did demonstrate ways in which 18th century societies could react to and accommodate individuals who thought and acted differently to the perceived norms, they did not include the experiences of modern neurodivergent people as a comparison, rather they relied on the diagnostic criteria. Significantly, Houston and Frith portray autism as negative outside force rather than a part of Hugh Blair himself as evidenced in this quote –‘Just as today, the impact of autism on the family was formidable. It split the family apart and caused financial ruin.’

This is reminiscent of the demonisation of autism in an Autism Speaks advertisement from 2009 titled ‘This is Autism.’ The advertisement which was widely condemned by autism advocates speaks about autism in these terms –

I am autism… I work faster than paediatric AIDS, cancer, and diabetes combined, and if you are happily married, I will make sure that your marriage fails. Your money will fall into my hands, and I will bankrupt you for my own self gain.[7]

Autism here is characterise as a malevolent outside force which destroys the lives of the families of the people it affects. However, when reading Houston and Frith’s book it became clear that what actually destroyed the family of Hugh Blair of Borgue was his younger brother’s greed.[8] The demonisation of a neurotype seriously undermines this work which otherwise had some interesting insights.

The literature covering historical instances of ADHD is similar, although seems to have been written by authors whose expertise is in the sciences rather than in history and the humanities. The topic of historical ADHD seems to be focused on finding the earliest descriptions and depictions of conditions which are similar to ADHD. The language used in these articles is comparable to the articles on historical autism mentioned earlier.[9] This medical perspective is inherently othering. It takes an ‘outside looking in approach’ to neurodivergent people, which looks at the natural behaviour of these people and labels it as disordered and wrong without asking the individuals about their experiences. These behaviours which are normal, natural and often unharmful are relabelled as symptoms and traits of diagnoses associated with neurodivergence such as autism and ADHD and often it is the impact on others that is examined rather than the impact on the individuals themselves. As Donna Williams put it – ‘…right from the start, from the time someone came up with the word ‘autism’, the condition has been judged from the outside, by its appearances, and not from the inside according to how it is experienced.’[10]

It is clear that the authors of the existing literature have had little to no interaction with the Neurodiversity Paradigm and are instead using the Pathology Paradigm. The Pathology Paradigm assumes that there is one type of normal brain and those who have brains that are different from this norm are wrong and unhealthy. By contrast, the Neurodiversity Paradigm posits that variation between bodyminds in a society is normal and healthy and that there exists neuromajorities and neurominorities.[11] A familiarity with this paradigm may have prevented the existing literature from pathologizing the lives and experiences of their subjects and the involvement of neurodivergent people with these works could have led to deeper insights into the people and the periods under study.

Instead, I found that the methodology used by historians of queer and trans studies was more relevant to my understanding of neurodivergent identity and doing history with this in mind. I do not intend to diagnose any historical figures as doing so would be both beyond my ability and reductive. What I will attempt to do is to connect with women mystics across time, using Carolyn Dinshaw’s methodology,[12] by using a lens informed by the experiences discussed in the wider neurodivergent community. I will treat neurodivergence as an identity, as it is considered one by the neurodivergent community, and use a similar methodology to that used by historians involved in trans and queer studies. The methodology used and discussion of neurodivergence as an identity will be covered further in chapter 1.

In this dissertation I aim not to privilege the views of neurotypical scientists over the experiences of neurodivergent people. Additionally, there are also important discussions occurring within neurodivergent communities on social media. As such, I will be referencing the blogs and social media posts of neurodivergent people when the topics under discussion have not been covered in more traditional media.

‘Neurodivergent’ should not be considered a synonym for ‘autistic’. Neurodivergence covers a vast array of bodyminds and those who have developed the concept aimed to be as broad as possible in its definition. Nick Walker includes those with developmental diagnoses, intellectual disability, mental illness, brain injury, long term substance users, experienced practitioners of meditation, and endurance athletes.[13] However, I am biased towards literature regarding autistic neurodivergence, both because there exists more of it than for other neurotypes and because I have been diagnosed with autism and am therefore more aware of the discourse surrounding it. I am also self-diagnosed with ADHD, so I have some experience with that literature, but the majority remains autistic.  This is a limitation of this dissertation and I hope future research will compensate for the holes I have left.

The period under discussion will range from 1200 to 1500 as this covers the flowering of Western European mysticism. The period also covers the rise of the scholastics, the philosophy of whom was essential to investigating medieval ideas about the bodies and souls of women mystics.

This dissertation will re-investigate the lives and works of medieval women mystics between the 13th and 15th centuries through a neurodivergent lens and argue for the existence of a concept of ‘soul-divergence’, parallel to modern neurodivergence, in the Later Medieval Period. In Chapter One I will discuss the compatibility of the neurodiversity paradigm with medieval thought. Chapter Two will consider the similarities between the puer-senex topos in hagiography and the description of neurodivergent children as ‘old souls.’ In Chapter Three I will discuss the ascetic practices of mystics in terms of differing sensory profiles and sensory euphoria and dysphoria. Finally, in Chapter four I will consider the intense identification and empathy of many mystics with Christ, exploring the possibility of a neurodivergent Christ in the medieval consciousness.

Chapter 1: Construction of a Neurodivergent Lens and the Compatibility of the Neurodiversity Paradigm with Medieval Thought

In order to write this dissertation and to avoid the pitfalls of retrospective diagnosis I had to develop the idea of a neurodivergent lens. This first requires an explanation of the Neurodiversity Paradigm. The Neurodiversity paradigm as described by Walker has three core aspects –

1.         Neurodiversity – the diversity among minds – is a natural, healthy, and valuable form of human diversity.

2.         There is no “normal” or “right” style of human mind, any more than there is one “normal” or “right” ethnicity, gender, or culture.

3.         The social dynamics that manifest in regard to neurodiversity are similar to the social dynamics that manifest in regard to other forms of human diversity (e.g., diversity of race, culture, gender, or sexual orientation). These dynamics include the dynamics of social power relations – the dynamics of social inequality, privilege, and oppression – as well as the dynamics by which diversity, when embraced, acts as a source of creative potential within a group or society.[14]

This contrasts with the Pathology Paradigm, which aligns with current medical thought, that promotes the idea that there is a ‘normal’ brain type and all other brain types are disordered and unhealthy.[15] As mentioned above, the existing literature on historical neurodivergence quite clearly uses the pathology paradigm to examine the lives of historical figures. What results from this approach is a matching of symptoms from the available texts about a historical figure to modern diagnostic criteria, usually the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition. Unfortunately, as with modern diagnosis attempts, this approach privileges the experiences of those surrounding a neurodivergent individual over the experiences of the individual themselves. This means that the behaviour observed by others (in a modern context this is often parents but in the case of medieval historical figures this would be the author of their vitae) is used to diagnose an individual and not information about how the individual experiences the world. This privileging of neurotypical observations over neurodivergent is also present in contemporary scientific literature on neurodivergence which leads to both actual and perceived objectification and dehumanisation of neurodivergent people.[16]

In recent years, the state of scientific research on neurodivergence has been criticised by neurodivergent advocates and academics. Monique Botha in ‘Academic, activist, or advocate? Angry, Entangled, and Emerging: A Critical reflection on Autism Knowledge Production’ criticises the notion that because an autistic academic cannot be objective about their neurodivergence their research into autism is less valid. They argue that objectivity is impossible to reach for a person of any neurotype, and that this standard is used to ‘side-line’ autistic and minority experiences.[17] Gillepsie-Lynch and others argue that autistic adults should be regarded as autism experts in their own right as they have a greater understanding of autism and what it means to be autistic through experience and consider autism in more neutral and less stigmatising terms than non-autistic experts.[18] This reflects a wider recognition of ‘experts by experience’ both in the study and treatment of mental illness and in fields such as social work dealing with crime, abuse, and substance use issues.[19] This is in line with the concept of ‘nothing about us without us’ in disability activism which posits that disabled people need to be central to discussions about their lives and conditions and that they know what is best for themselves and their communities.[20]

Botha answers the question in their title concluding that they are ‘all three’, academic, activist, and advocate, and that they ‘refuse to abandon [their] community and to engage in the complicit silence.’ [21]

Similarly, I cannot abandon my neurodivergence when studying history and nor would I want to abandon my community when doing so. As such, the discussion of historical neurodivergence seems all the more pressing. Consideration of neurodivergence in history has been criticised for imposing modern labels onto a society that had no concept of them and for being perceived as a form of retrospective diagnosis.[22] However, similar criticisms have been levelled at queer and trans histories.[23] Just as trans and queer histories have added to our understanding of different historical periods, I believe that an analysis of medieval mysticism through a neurodivergent lens can help us to understand their position in society. In addition, preventing neurodivergent academics from discussing the similarities between their lived experiences and those of historical figures is also ableist and may be seen as a form of silencing and oppression.

Queerness and neurodivergence (or neuroqueerness) are comparable as neurodivergence can be treated as an identity rather than a range of medical conditions.[24] This is particularly notable within the autistic community. Individuals ‘come out’ as autistic in a similar way to which people come out as queer.[25] Considering neurodivergence as an identity allows the use of the methodologies used by scholars of queer history. Carolyn Dinshaw in Getting Medieval states that she is following a ‘queer historical impulse’ to make ‘connections across time.’[26] Dinshaw believes both that communities with similar experiences can connect despite the distance of several centuries and that communities can form through time of similar individuals or similar groups of people.[27] Blake Gutt also followed the same historical impulse when writing ‘Medieval Trans Lives in Anamorphosis: Looking Back and Seeing Differently (Pregnant Men and Backward Birth).’ Gutt uses the concept of a ‘queer look back’ to re-examine medieval texts with a trans perspective.[28] Instead of trying to assume the medieval mindset while reading the texts, an action which Gutt believes is impossible to achieve, he reveals new possible interpretations informed by modern ideas surrounding transgender identities. Gutt’s methodology was further developed in the volume he edited alongside Alicia Spencer-Hall, Trans and Genderqueer Subjects in Medieval Hagiography. They argue that more is needed than just the tolerance of transgender existence in the present and that the ability to imagine both transgender pasts and futures is key.[29] I would argue that the same applies to neurodivergent existence and identity as the oppression that both queer and neurodivergent communities is similar and overlapping.

The need to imagine a neurodivergent past is palpable within neurodivergent communities. In 2020, the Twitter hashtag #wasNotNeurotypical was coined by @mykola, Mykola Bilokonsky – an Autistic and ADHD advocate who created the Public Neurodiversity Support Centre website, in order to form a space in which suspected neurodivergent historical figures could be discussed –

As a neurodivergent person I can confirm for you that there are historical writers, thinkers, artists etc who I immediately understand to be fellow weirdos. Maybe not autistic, but not NT.

Help me start the #wasNotNeurotypical hashtag to give us a way to talk bout them?(@mykola, 3 January 2020)

Those who have since used the hashtag have been mostly neurodivergent people who have connected their own experiences with those of historical figures. Others have also wondered how a person with a neurodivergent bodymind like their own would have coped in past societies. @ynwatp wrote in half jest – ‘how did autistic people cope back in the medieval times? imagine being burnout to fuck and wiglaf comes along and tells you it’s your turn to churn the butter. id kill us both’. (@ynwatp, 21 Jun 2022)

 This is reflective both of Gutt’s argument that trans people are essential in establishing trans readings but also E. N Johnson’s 1952 remarks, highlighted by Dinshaw, that – if we cannot justify our interests by some sort of contribution to the solution of major contemporary problems, then we shall be deserted for some system or some one who promises to do what we do not.[30] It is clear that if historians are unwilling to explore historic neurodivergence, the modern neurodivergent community will explore it themselves.

The limitations of the neuronormative[31] lens and the pathology paradigm become obvious when it is applied to medieval mysticism. Mystics do not fit comfortably in to the normal/abnormal dichotomy that it supports. Whilst mystics could be held in awe for their ascetic activities or advise popes,[32] they could also be seen as mad, physically ill, or heretical.[33] The wide range of reactions can be evidenced in The Book of Margery Kempe where Margery is harassed, accused of heresy, and ordered to leave the diocese of York, but she also acquired devoted followers who were inspired by her piety and gained support from the archbishop of Canterbury for her unusual spiritual actions.[34]

In addition to the validity of the study of historic neurodivergence, it is arguable that the Neurodiversity Paradigm is more compatible with medieval mindsets on medicine and bodyminds than the Pathology Paradigm. Firstly, the concept of ‘bodyminds’ which has been developed over the last decade appears closer to the medieval concept of the body than the modern tendency to conceptually separate the body from the mind. Margaret Price resurrected the term ‘bodymind’, first used in 1977, in her 2011 book Mad at School. She used the term in order to ‘emphasise that although “body” and “mind” usually occupy separate conceptual and linguistic territories, they are deeply intertwined.’[35] She later developed this further in ‘The Bodymind Problem and the Possibilities of Pain’ stating that the term imbricates, rather than combines, body and mind and grapples with the implications of the concept of the bodymind within disability studies on both physical and mental pain.[36] Essentially the bodymind as a philosophical concept posits that the mind is not just a consciousness trapped in a flesh suit. The mind is as much a part of the body as the body is of the mind.[37] This is contrary to the Cartesian idea of the duality of the non-physical mind and physical body which has informed modern medical practice.[38] Prior to Descartes, much understanding of the body and the soul was built upon the writings of Classical scholars such as Aristotle and Galen. Aristotle believed human beings were both body and soul/mind together. A human being could not exist without a body, nor could it exist without a soul. That meant that a dead body was no longer a human being because their soul had departed.[39] Galen believed in a series of bodily processes that converted air and food first into natural spirit, then vital spirit, and finally animal spirit in the brain. Animal spirit would flow through the body through the nerves and allow sensation and movement.[40] As such, the body and functions of the soul were woven together as the concept of a bodymind is.

The medieval physiological concept of the bodily humours also lends itself to the Neurodiversity Paradigm. The four bodily humours were thought to be blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. These were present in different levels in the human body and an imbalance of them could make a person ill or even kill them. In addition to this were the four qualities which were hotness, coldness, dryness, and wetness. The combination of the four humours and the four qualities would make up a person’s temperament.  A person’s temperament affected their emotions and behaviour, with a choleric person, being quick to anger since they had more yellow bile than others and had the quality of hotness.[41] This recognised diversity in temperaments is analogous to the Neurodiversity Paradigm’s recognition of different neurotypes which need different conditions in order to be healthy. However, the sanguine temperament was thought to be the optimum temperament which is does not align with the Neurodiversity Paradigm which does not privilege one neurotype over another.[42] It is not a coincidence that the sanguine temperament which was hot and wet was associated with young men in the prime of life, whereas the phlegmatic temperament, cold and wet was associated with women.[43] The sexism inherent in humoral theory is also not compatible with the Neurodiversity Paradigm, although these areas of divergence should not deter us from acknowledging and exploring the commonalities.

However, the same misogyny may form part of the basis for a medieval idea of soul-divergence. Women were considered physiologically inferior to men in medieval medicine and philosophy.[44] Thomas Aquinas argued that because of this, women were weak in reason. He also argued that women were more prone to drunkenness due to the weakness of reason and were more easily tempted into sin.[45] As such, it can be argued that the bodyminds, or rather bodysouls, of medieval women were marginalised due to the perception of them as inferior to the body minds of men.

Mystics themselves were viewed as a class apart from most people. Sarah MacMillan has argued that the vitae of mystics were written for others to wonder at, not as a guide for imitation of their behaviour. MacMillan quotes the English mystic Richard Rolle’s The Contemplations of the Dread and Love of God which warns ‘ordinary’ or ‘weak’ Christians against attempting the ascetic acts of the ‘strong’, i.e., mystics.[46] The combination of the misogynistic philosophy framing women as weaker in reason and easier to tempt and the framing of mystics in vitae as stronger than ordinary Christians who should hold them in awe, puts medieval women mystics in a somewhat contradictory position. They were seen as objects of awe but at the same time their sex meant that they were viewed as intellectually weaker than men. As such, they fall into a liminal space which supports the idea of a medieval concept similar to neurodivergence. While not explicitly stated, it can be argued that since medieval people thought some individuals were different to the make up of their body minds (or body souls) that an idea of soul-divergence existed.

The following chapter will discuss the puer-senex topos and its reflection in the modern concept of neurodivergent children being ‘old-souls’. This will support the notion that women mystics were seen from birth as different from other people and as such were soul-divergent.

Chapter 2: The Puer-Senex Topos and ‘Old Soul’ Neurodivergence in Childhood

A common theme in the lives of women mystics was being perceived as unusually pious and serious in their childhoods. Some modern neurodivergent people have also been perceived as precocious or overly mature children, so called ‘old souls.’ This chapter will discuss the similar perceptions of medieval women mystics and neurodivergent people during childhood and their reactions to this.

The puer-senex topos refers to a literary trope which can be seen in many medieval hagiographies. Literally meaning ‘boy-old man’ topos was used to imbue child characters or religious figures with unusual maturity beyond their years. The maturity of the child was seen as a sign of their future piety.[47] The topos was first described by Ernst Curtius who noted its medieval popularity and traced its origins back to Late Antiquity.[48] The topos had been associated with Christian piety from the Early Medieval period with it appearing in the Early English Life of Saint Anthony,[49] and it can also be seen in literature and art concerning the infancy and childhood of Jesus Christ during the High Middle Ages.[50]

As many women mystics of the Later Middle Ages became saints or were considered candidates for sainthood, vitae were written concerning the events of their lives.[51] These vitae often featured the puer-senex topos with certain aspects of the topos recurring in multiple texts. From very early childhood and sometimes from birth, the mystics are often portrayed as having a pious and serious nature. Jacques de Vitry wrote of Mary of Oignies –

Cast in this way upon the Lord (cf. I Peter 5. 7) almost from the womb, she never or rarely mixed with those who were playing as is the custom of small girls nor ‘did she make herself partaker with them that walked in lightness’ (Tobit 3. 17). Rather she kept her soul from the concupiscence and vanity of them all and foreshadowed in her youth what, through a divine sign, she would be in future in her old age.[52]

Of the infancy of Catherine of Siena, Raymond of Capua wrote –

However it may be, it is quite clear that there was already germinating in her that which was to bear fruit when she was fully grown up. But no tongue or pen could ever adequately describe the wisdom and sense of what she was to say or the sweetness of her holy company; only those who were ever with her can have any idea of it.[53]

As their childhoods progressed, the future mystics began to demonstrate religious devotion that should have been beyond their years. This could be accompanied by feats of religious memorisation and disinterest in or isolation from their peers. One of the clearest examples of this come from The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, in which the young Beatrice memorised a whole psalter before the age of five, rarely played with other children, and was unfailingly obedient, quiet, and serious to the point that she was insulted and ostracised by her peers.[54] In particular the quote mentioned in the introduction would seem to define the experience of childhood for many women mystics according to their vitae.

Beatrice’s childhood experiences were similar to those of some of the Neurodivergent Community who can as children be regarded as mature and solitary, with many autistic individuals showing a talent for memorisation.[55] One good example is from twitter user @ADHDelaide who tweeted –

I really just wanna barge into the closest school and say “gimme all the kids who are old souls who’s best friend is the teacher, dreamy kids who don’t know which page we’re at, and kids who know more about a subject than their teacher” and assess them for autism and ADHD (@ADHDelaide, 7 April 2021).

In addition, a reflection of the puer-senex topos can be seen in modern scientific literature concerning neurodivergent conditions. An early example comes from Hans Asperger[56], for whom Asperger’s Syndrome (a one-time developmental diagnosis that has since been subsumed by the broader diagnosis of ‘Autism Spectrum Disorder’) was named.[57] Asperger described some of his patients as like ‘absentminded professors’.[58] They were young boys who usually had been brought to his clinic by their caregiver(s) who were concerned about behaviour they perceived as odd. These patients were intelligent but seemingly aloof and while they could become experts on their areas of interest in a manner that should have been well beyond their years, they and their typical peers often struggled to form friendships.[59] Asperger particularly noted that some of these children ‘know the name of the saint for every day of the year or… know all the tram lines of Vienna with their terminals, or… show other feats of rote memory’[60] and that they ‘have the ability to see things and events around them from a new point of view, which often shows surprising maturity.’[61]

Asperger’s observations later formed the basis of the diagnostic criteria for Asperger’s Syndrome, a diagnosis which was popularised by Lorna Wing in her 1981 article ‘Asperger’s Syndrome: a clinical account’.[62] In June 2000 the New York Times Magazine published an article titled ‘The Little Professor Syndrome’ which discusses the traits of Asperger’s Syndrome in children and brought the term ‘little professor(s)’ to a wider audience. The article lead describes the children with Asperger’s Syndrome thusly – ‘[t]hey talk like adults and often have sky-high I.Q.’s, but their social skills are nonexistent.’[63]

The term ‘little professor’ is often wrongly attributed to Asperger but seems to have been coined sometime during the 1990s with Christopher Gillberg referring to a 12-year-old boy diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome as a ‘little professor’ in a 1991 work edited by Uta Frith.[64]

When compared side-by-side the similarities between the puer-senex topos and ‘Little Professor Syndrome’ become obvious. Both include a precocious but socially isolated child with interests, skills, or knowledge that should be beyond their years. Repetitive behaviour may also be seen in both with some mystics having religious rites or rituals that they frequently repeated of their own volition during childhood. An example of this can be seen in The Life of Catherine of Siena as when Catherine –

…was about five she learned the Hail Mary, and repeated it over and over again as often as she could, and… she was inspired by heaven to address the Blessed Virgin in this way whenever she went up and down stairs, stopping to kneel on each step as she did so.[65]

As stated above, however, this is not an attempt to diagnose medieval mystics as being autistic, instead these phenomena are being highlighted to show that behaviour and experiences in the childhoods of medieval women mystics can be read as neurodivergent.

Notably, men mystics did not have the same childhood experiences as women mystics. The Officium and Miracula of Richard Rolle of Hampole covers his childhood in two sentences, jumping straight to his extreme reaction to the worldliness of others he experienced at university.[66] More is said about the childhood of Francis of Assisi in his hagiography by St. Bonaventure. Though Francis is protected from engaging in the excesses seen in his peers by divine mercy, he cannot be said to have had an overly pious childhood.[67] There is a pattern in the lives of many Later Medieval male saints and mystics in which they would have a fairly typical or even impious childhood followed by a dramatic conversion during early adulthood.[68]  The striking difference in childhood behaviour between women and men mystics during the Later Middle Ages has been explained by how women’s spirituality was considered at the time. Women were seen as being more tainted by Original Sin due to the actions of Eve in the Garden of Eden. This meant that women were forced to associate their piety with the purity of childhood.  Since women’s spirituality was seen as suspect, any women who were candidates for sainthood would have to be extremely pious from birth, whereas men were allowed to have been worldly and more typical in childhood and experience conversion or a crisis of faith later in life.[69]

Not all women mystics had experiences or behaviour in childhood that would fit into the puer-senex topos. Margery Kempe’s account of her life begins in her early twenties. She chronicles her sinful behaviour followed by her conversion after the birth of her first child and her torment by devils.[70] Another woman mystic who had a conversion experience later in life was Angela of Foligno. She experienced conversion in 1285, but by that time she already had a husband and children. In order to follow a religious life, she prayed for the deaths of her family members which soon followed.[71] Neither of these women had the puer-senex topos applied to them and it does not seem that either thought their childhoods to be of much interest to their readers.  In fact, some mystics had their childhoods recorded against their wishes. In the chapters concerning the life of St. Mechtilde of Hackeborn which were added to the book about her revelations, The Book of Special Grace, the author admits that the chapter had been hidden from Mechtilde because –

‘[h]er humility would certainly have taken alarm at the praises there bestowed on her.’[72]

 This highlights an issue with the puer-senex topos. It is a topos that was applied by others to people considered exceptionally pious, it was not applied by pious people to themselves. This could be problematic when attempting to do history through an approach of identification with experiences as it runs into the same problem that modern studies on neurodivergent people that do not include the input of those same neurodivergent people do. However, a similar phenomenon is seen when neurodivergent people are described as ‘old souls’ and ‘little professors’. There is some dissatisfaction within the online adult autistic community with being labelled with characterisations such as these. Reddit user u/Exhaustedbunny, who describes themselves as self-diagnosed autistic, posting in the r/autism subreddit wrote –

Does anyone ever get told you have an “old soul” or that you seem like you have an old mind in a young body? It annoys me to no end. Yes I may be wise sometimes but I’m still young and it just feels like I was forced to grow up fast and that’s why I seem so mature.[73]

Aiden Tsen, an autistic advocate, criticises the simplistic nature of the label ‘old soul’ writing –

I agree that in some ways I am mature for my age. And yet, I think that this assessment of me as mature is fundamentally flawed. Every day I discover new ways that I’m not emotionally mature. There are some ways where I’m immature that are simply part of my everyday life that I accept.[74]

 Tsen also echoes u/Exhaustedbunny’s assertion that the maturity perceived by others is acquired through trauma.

In addition to dissatisfaction with being labelled as ‘old souls’ or ‘little professors’, there is an acknowledgement that the labels may be lost when proceeding through life. Twitter user @Echickentender wrote –

‘Being Autistic for me means that I talked like/was treated like an adult when I was just a kid. Being Autistic for me also means that I’m treated like a child as an adult bcuz I “talk/act like a child” I’m not a “child adult” and I wasn’t an “adult child”’ (@Echickentender, 2021)

This tweet received a reply from @littleferret22 – ‘Schrödingers autistic; simultaneously mature and wise yet childish and lagging behind’. (@littleferret22, 2021)

Medieval and Early Modern writers had similar views on people who were seen as pueri or puellae-senes. During this period some thought that a child who had an adult-like maturity or piety would be doomed to die young, or become debauched or childlike in old-age, hence the medieval English saying ‘young saint, old devil’.[75] Though the saying was condemned by religious authorities, the number of times it is specifically criticised suggests that it remained a common saying.[76] While mystics did not tend to become debauched in old age, some of them did die at a young age. Catherine of Siena died in 1380 at the age of 33 after an extended fast.[77] Elizabeth of Hungary died at the age of 23 in 1231.[78] Rosa of Viterbo was one of the youngest at the time of her death aged of 18 in 1251.[79] Though the causes of these early deaths were varied and some were linked to extreme ascetic practices, they would have lent support to the idea that precocious piety meant a premature death. Unfortunately, some types of neurodivergence are also associated with a lower life expectancy, though this is not related to precocious perceived maturity. A 2016 study found that the average age of death for autistic individuals was 53.87 years compared to 70.20 years in non-autistic people.[80] Similarly, a 2015 study found that people diagnosed with ADHD had a mortality rate more than double that of people without an ADHD diagnosis.[81] As such, it could be argued that some neurodivergent people, like some mystics, fit into the medieval idea of a puer-senex.

The framing of many women mystics as precociously pious from birth gives credence to the idea that they were seen as fundamentally different from other people. This supports a notion of soul-divergence in women mystics within the medieval psyche. Part of the puer-senex topos included in the vitae of some mystics was the engaging in ascetic practices during childhood and adolescence. These practices and sensory considerations regarding them will be discussed in the next chapter.

Chapter 3: Sensory Euphoria, Dysphoria, and Asceticism

Medieval mystics often took part in ascetic practices as part of Imitatio Christi. This meant undergoing physical suffering in order to bring to mind the bodily suffering of Christ.[82] Whilst this concept will be discussed in more detail in the next chapter, this chapter will focus on the sensory aspect of their devotions and the physical connection over time that engaging in similar acts created both for the mystics and for modern people.

Miriam Díaz-Gilbert is an ultrarunner and author who wrote the 2017 article ‘The Ascetic Life of an Ultrarunner.’ In this article she compares the experiences of ultrarunners with Late-Antique and Medieval ascetics and connects across time with through bodily and spiritual sensations. Ultrarunners can be included in the neurodivergent community as their commitment to extreme endurance sports changes their bodyminds in ways significant enough to make them part of a neurominority.[83] Their running can be compared to a meditative practice and the change in body chemical levels is comparable to long term drug use and so they comfortably fit into the definition of neurodivergence proposed by Walker.[84] Like ultrarunners, medieval ascetics in their own eras were recognised as different. This is highlighted in their hagiographies where, as discussed above, they are often portrayed as saintly from birth or early childhood. This narrative can be used as a device to prove that the mystics and ascetics were built differently from other people. This perhaps can be construed as a recognition of a type of soul-divergence within the medieval consciousness.

Díaz-Gilbert notes that she is not the first person to compare ultrarunning to asceticism, however she has a deeper understanding of what this means than outsider viewers who are just comparing what they see as extreme behaviour.[85] She finds kinship with the medieval ascetics, notably including the mystics Catherine of Siena and Teresa of Avila, through that they put their bodies through. Ultrarunners must undergo a type of fast when running, they spend many hours in complete solitude, they force themselves to eat even when it is extremely uncomfortable, they deprive themselves of sleep, and they ignore injuries.[86]

Significantly, Díaz-Gilbert states that neither ascetics nor ultrarunners are or were ‘crazy’, instead they experience an almost unique connection with God that was tied to extreme physical endurance and privation and inner sensory euphoria.[87] This misunderstanding of a mystic’s experiences and intentions as being borne of madness, possession, or heresy is well documented within the hagiographical literature. Christina Mirabilis was initially thought to be possessed by demons and was restrained in chains.[88] Whilst Margery Kempe was tormented by demons after the birth of her first child which drove her temporarily mad, she had recovered and flourished by the time she was being accused of Lollardy by religious and secular authorities.[89] The unfortunate Marguerite Porete was burnt at the stake as a relapsed heretic after continuing to distribute her book which had been deemed as heretical.[90] The restraint and killing of people whose behaviour was misunderstood has not been limited to the medieval era. The practice has been continued until the present day with neurodivergent individuals and members of other minority groups still being unnecessarily restrained and even killed (sometimes by inappropriate restraint) by law enforcement and health workers and by family members.[91]

The common misunderstanding of mystical and neurodivergent experiences extends to food and eating. Catherine of Siena was known for her prodigious fasts and her ability to survive on nothing but the Eucharist, however she saw much of her inedia[92] as an illness rather than a choice she had made. In her letters, she has to repeatedly tell outside observers that she cannot eat rather than will not eat.[93] As detailed in her vita by Raymond of Capua, she experienced such pain from eating that she thought that forcing herself to eat more than she already did would be a form of suicide.[94] After Lidwina of Schiedam was severely injured ice-skating, she struggled to eat any food whatsoever and eventually stopped eating at all. Her survival was thought by some to be due to demonic possession. Although Lidwina was happy at having her illness, she said that since there was no sin in eating, there was no glory in refraining from food.[95] This misunderstanding of the reasons for inedia are similar to the misunderstanding experienced by modern neurodivergent people who have difficulty eating. Sometimes they are seen as ‘picky eaters’ who will only eat a few types of food. This is attributed to bad parenting and coddling of the child who must be taught to be more adventurous or grateful when it comes to food.[96] However, the reasons for the inedia may be due to sensory issues with certain foods and trauma around eating. The different ways that neurodivergent people perceive sensory information means that some tastes and textures that are fairly normal and enjoyable to neurotypical people can be extremely intense and uncomfortable to the point of pain for them. Quincy Hansen elaborates the distinction between a dislike of a food and a sensory aversion to a food in a comparison to raw chicken.[97] A sensory aversion to something can be compared to the neurotypical reaction to being presented with a plate of raw chicken to eat. The visceral repulsion would make most people unable to even put it in their mouths. Forcing someone to eat raw chicken would be abusive and traumatic, but people with sensory aversions to foods are often forced to eat them, especially in childhood.[98] The trauma from this can cause them to rely on ‘samefoods’. These are foods that are consistent in flavour and texture every time they are eaten, and therefore usually processed foods. Samefoods are viewed as safe to the consumer because of their sensory consistency.

The mystic devotion to the Eucharist, along with Eucharistic miracles, can be seen as comparable to samefoods. Several mystics are said to have survived solely on the Eucharist for extended periods of time. One of these was Catherine of Siena, whose difficulty eating mentioned above did not affect her consumption of the Eucharist.[99] The Host in this time would have had a consistent texture and flavour which was likely fairly bland. This could have been more palatable to the mystics who took part in fasting or who could not normally due to illness because fasting is known to increase a person’s sensitivity to sweet and salty flavours, making them taste more intense.[100] As such, the host could be compared to a samefood for mystics.

The Eucharistic miracles associated with mystics often had a large sensory component. When receiving the host in their mouths, some felt sweetness in their mouths or could sense a sweet smell in the vicinity of it.[101]  An important part of this samefood for mystics was the fact that it had been consecrated. Some mystics such as Catherine of Siena and Margaret of Cortana were able to detect an unconsecrated host.[102] Additionally, receiving the Eucharist was often the trigger for mystics to go into ecstasy and have visions, usually of Christ.[103] For example, Margery Kempe wept loudly upon receiving the Eucharist and became so overwhelmed by her sensations that she cried out ‘I’m dying!’ She sometimes saw the Eucharist as the physical Christ or saw visions of his passion.[104] Overwhelming sensory experiences, both positive and negative are also common to neurodivergent individuals. Sensory overload is a noted phenomenon within individuals diagnosed with autism, ADHD, and sensory processing disorder.[105] One autistic woman described sensory overload as follows –

My brain begins to spasm because it can’t work out what information it needs and what information it can filter out. As all this information gathers, it begins to hurt my sensory organs like my ears, and the water in the kettle bubbles and boils until it nearly bursts.

This is sensory overload. When the loud noises, the bright lights, the strong smells, the peculiar tastes and the uncomfortable sensations you can feel merge together and feel unbearable. You either feel everything at once, or one thing incredibly intensely.[106]

Some neurodivergent people have begun to criticise the concept of a sensory processing disorder, as they believe that it should be referred to as a sensory processing difference in line with the moving away from the Pathology Paradigm of the neurodiversity movement. One autistic Twitter user wrote – ‘I’ve been questioning if my feelings of connectedness with sensory stimuli, if my rich experiences listening to music, feeling certian textures, and the sensory pleasure of stimming can really be considered something “disordered,” which holds such negative connotations.’ (@AutisticFemb0y, 2020) A reply to this tweet noted – ‘I feel that. The overload is awful, but the sensory euphoria is great’ (@Keywork26, 2020)

Sensory euphoria is a concept that is starting to be discussed in some neurodivergent circles as the antithesis of sensory overload.[107] Many cite enjoyable experiences whilst stimming as sensory euphoria. Stimming, short for self-stimulation, refers to repetitive movements or noises made by an individual in order to regulate their bodies or emotions or to help express an emotion and is most commonly associated with autism.[108] Examples of stimming include rocking back and forth or hand flapping, but it can also include listening to a specific song repeatedly or repeating a word or phrase.[109] The repetitive prayer and genuflection of some mystics could be construed as a type of stimming. For example, Catherine of Siena as a child used to pray on every step of the stairs when going up or down them.[110]Of course, an individual need not be neurodivergent to experience sensory overload, sensory euphoria, or engage in stimming. The popularity of both ASMR videos and live music concerts are evidence of neurotypical sensory euphoria, fidgeting is a normalised version of neurotypical stimming, feeling overwhelmed in the presence of a crying baby or nearby building works is common.[111] However the language of neurodiversity helps us to understand and explain these concepts especially when the experiences of mystics fell outside the perceived norms, as the experiences of neurodivergent people do. When Margery Kempe consumed the Eucharist, she seems to have experienced something similar to both sensory euphoria and sensory overload. She was overwhelmed by a euphoric sensation to the point that she thought she was dying.

There is further evidence of the differing sensory profiles of women mystics during the Later Middle Ages. As part of their ascetic exercises some mystics exposed themselves to extremes of temperature. Catherine of Siena bathed in scalding hot water at a spa and Beatrice of Nazareth went about clothed in rags even in winter and became so cold that she could not walk. Catherine should have been badly burnt by the water but miraculously she was unharmed and despite the cold, Beatrice showed no sign of complaint.[112] Ultrarunners also expose themselves to extremes of temperature as there are arctic and desert ultramarathons which attract ultrarunners from across the globe every year.[113] During these races they appear not to let the temperature affect them, though this is due to their preparation and experience with running in extremes.[114] Other neurodivergent people report being hypo or hypersensitivity to different temperatures. In the scientific literature, autistic people have been reported to be under reactive to sensory stimuli.[115] However autistic people themselves have reported being oversensitive to some temperatures.[116]

Medieval mystics were given more leeway when it came to aberrant behaviours and experiences. The same can be said of ultrarunning. Ultrarunners can begin to hallucinate and become delirious during their events in addition to continuing to run on injured limbs, experiences that would usually prompt intervention by family members and healthcare workers. However, the fact that they are ultrarunners means that it is understood that they have experiences outside the norm. This is similar to the understanding that mystics were granted due to their spiritual vocation. Ultrarunners temporarily inhabit a similar liminal space to which medieval mystics existed that allows them to undertake extreme physical and mental feats. The space both the spiritual ultrarunner and the medieval mystic ascetic exist in is part an imitation of Christ which allows individuals to physically and compassionately connect across time with Christ. This will be discussed further in the next chapter.

Chapter 4: Imitatio Christi, Compassion, and a ‘Soul-Divergent’ Christ?

The final chapter of this dissertation will cover Imitatio Christi and how it related to ideas about modern and medieval empathy and compassion. It will also discuss the potential of a soul-divergent Christ in the medieval consciousness.

One feature of mysticism in Later Medieval Period was Imitatio Christi, the imitation of Christ. The imitation of Christ was usually achieved by subjecting oneself to ritualised suffering in an attempt to focus the mind on the suffering of Christ.[117] Thomas à Kempis in the 15th century wrote a book titled Imitatio Christi which served as a guide to spiritual growth and perfection by using Christ as a model.[118] As mentioned above, the ascetic impulse was directed by the life of Christ as recorded in the Gospels. In addition to imitating the physical suffering of Christ, mystics also endeavoured to experience the suffering of Christ’s soul. The internal sense of suffering with or for another today thought of as empathy would have been most recognisable to those in the period under discussion as compassio or compassion.[119] Compassion literally meant co-suffering or suffering for the object of the compassion and is a feature of many mystical texts. One example in the ‘Showings’ of Julian of Norwich after she is shown a vision of the Passion of Christ reads as follows – ‘This shewinge of Criste pains filled me fulle of paines…’[120]

Here the pains are an internal sense triggered by Julian witnessing Christ’s physical torment. Another way that compassion for was triggered in mystics was through seeing art depicting the Passion. This example comes from The Book of Margery Kempe –‘…she regarded a crucifix that was stirringly painted and harrowing to regard, through regarding it, the Passion of Our Lord entered her mind, whereupon she began to melt and utterly dissolve in tears of pity and compassion.’[121]

The internal pain from compassion that the mystics described was often unbearably intense. Some thought that their bodies would fail or that they would die because of the extreme sensations.[122] Christ and his passion could also be seen in the surroundings of medieval mystics. Margery Kempe would see the Christ Child in local boys and the adult Christ in handsome men that she came across on her travels, both of which could inspire her episodes of weeping and roaring.[123] Angela of Foligno sought to help the poor through charity because she thought that she may find Christ among them.[124]

Christ was not the only object of the mystics’ compassion. The Virgin Mary was also the focus of some of the empathetic feeling experienced by mystics, in particular her grief at the sight of her son’s Passion. Some assumed the role of Christ’s mother to more fully experience the pain of her grief and the Virgin’s own compassion for her son.[125]

The intense compassion experienced by many mystics is comparable to the experiences of some groups within the neurodivergent community. Autism has traditionally been defined in medical literature by a lack of empathy for others due to an inability to see things from another’s perspective.[126] However, in recent years this had been challenged by autistic individual who state that the opposite is true for them. They instead experience ‘hyper-empathy’. This involves experiencing the emotions of others so intensely that it can easily become overwhelming. This is not limited to people that they care about but can also include strangers and even television characters.[127] This is often misunderstood by neurotypical observers due to the fact that autistic people may not express their feelings in their facial expressions and body like neurotypical individuals.[128]

The perception of autistic people as lacking empathy has led to some of the most dehumanising descriptions of autism. Peter Hobson described autistic people as – ‘…outside the moral community, biologically human, but not a person in the moral sense.’ A leading researcher in the field of autism, Professor Simon Baron-Cohen once wrote that ‘[a] theory of mind remains one of the quintessential abilities that makes us human’ before going on to describe a study which he thought showed that autistic people did not have a theory of mind.[129] This has since been termed ‘mind-blindness’. However, again autistic people have also challenged the research that purports to show that autistic people have issues with cognitive empathy and theory of mind.

Medieval societies, however, could be more suspicious of too much compassion, rather than too little. Juanita Feros Ruys argues that contrary to the conception of the Middle Ages as a time where charity was valued above all else, medieval theology actually required Christians to love themselves first and foremost after their love for God.[130] Influenced by the earlier stoics, scholastics believed that sensible, or emotional compassion could be seen as a negative emption because it was irrational and was a compulsive reaction to seeing suffering.[131] This type of compassion was associated with femininity and youth because these groups were considered more physical and less rational.[132] Rational compassion and mercy, on the other hand, were praised by the scholastics because they stemmed from a reasoned response to suffering and were a choice of will rather than a compulsive, emotional reaction.[133] It was also relevant that since God could not suffer, he could not co-suffer, which meant that God could not experience sensible compassion.[134] This also meant that sensible compassion could not be a virtue or a virtuous reason behind alms giving as God contained and produced all virtues. What God could instead engage in was mercy, which was a rational choice.[135] It is therefore clear that the compassion felt by the mystics in this period would not have been seen as a virtue by some.

Many mystics experienced ostracism and abuse from both family members and strangers. Catherine of Siena after cutting off her hair to avoid marriage, was forced by her family members into the role of a servant.[136] Margery Kempe frequently experienced public abuse including calls for her execution as a Lollard and was removed from the diocese of York at the order of the archbishop.[137] Beatrice of Nazareth was mocked by her classmates at school due to her dedication to her studies and serious manner. She was also neglected during her frequent periods of illness during adolescence at her nunnery, so she was forced to crawl to the kitchens to obtain food or resign herself to fasting.[138]

Neurodivergent individuals are also the victims of abuse and ostracism. As mentioned in chapter 2, many neurodivergent children experience peer-to-peer abuse in school. There is also the phenomenon of disability hate crimes in which people are attacked, discriminated against, or taken advantage of because of their disability.[139] This ostracisation leads many neurodivergent people with a longing for community and a sense of belonging.[140] The development of online neurodivergent communities, particularly on social media, is a direct result of this. Jamie Logan wrote of online queer and neurodivergent communities –

The comfort, acceptance, and ability to be yourself, when censorship and code-switching for the sake of your own safety and comfort is constant and stifling, is a balm to these deeply embedded wounds. Along with learning about others’ experiences and gaining a deeper empathy of others and myself, residing within these virtual spaces have been able to validate my various identities that have been erased by the “passing” paradigm that exists for marginalized communities.[141]

Of course, the model for an undeserving person receiving excessive abuse was Jesus Christ. In addition to meditating on the suffering of Christ and provoking compassion in themselves, mystics saw their own suffering in light of Christ’s, and this made it easier to bear. Margery Kempe was addressed by Christ in a vision regarding the abuse she received from others and Christ told her –‘[d]aughter, this very much pleases me, for the more shame and more spitefulness that you have endured for my love, the more joy you shall have with me in heaven, and it is appropriate that it should be so.’[142]

When Catherine of Siena was accused of losing her virginity amongst other untruths by an old woman she was caring for and her mother threatened to disown her if she went to see the woman again Catherine replied –

Dearest mother, do you expect God to stop showing his daily mercies to sinners, because of human ingratitude? Did the Saviour refuse to accomplish the salvation of the world when He was on the Cross, because of the insults hurled at him?[143]

This shows that some mystics used Jesus’ life and suffering to compare to their own when faced with abuse. In this way, they were connecting across time with Jesus not only through physical trials that they experienced, but also through the ostracism, mockery, and abuse that they received. Not only this, Christ in the visions of some mystics was shown to have compassion for humanity, despite the theological position that God could not feel compassion.

For those who participated in the #WasNotNeurotypical hashtag on Twitter, social isolation and abuse were noted by several people as one of the reasons that they suspected that a historical figure was neurodivergent. For example, @smarumpetroll wrote –

            Shirley Jackson #wasNotNeurotypical

In her writing she represents so perfectly the feeling of being an alien outsider in your own community, a detached observer of others’ lives. In her own life, she struggled with many of the problems NDs frequently face. (@smarumpetroll, 2020)

Of James Joyce, @mykola wrote –

James Joyce #wasNotNeurotypical, in fact I’m increasingly sure he was Autistic and had ADHD.

If you read Portrait, especially the early chapters, he is so baffled socially, so fixated on “nice” and “not nice” sensations, he’s bullied, plays word games, asks “stupid” q’s… (@mykola, 2022)

Clearly, the impulse to connect through time with someone who had experienced similar things is common amongst neurodivergent people and medieval mystics. This also connects back to medieval ideas about compassion as compassion was seen as fellow feeling for another. With this type of empathy, the object of compassion was treated as an equal.[144] This is how neurodivergent people approach historical figures they connect with and how some mystics approached earlier saints and ascetics. Fellow feeling can also apply to the process of peer identification within neurodivergent communities in which neurodivergent people can identify one another even if they do not know of another’s diagnosis or even, sometimes, when the other person has not yet received one. Angela Heeley has described this as – ‘’Autdar’ – the innate ability of autistic people to spot other autistic people, even when those people do not realise that they are autistic.’ (@aheeleyRIBA, 10 December 2019)

The fact that mystics identified with and connected with Christ through time raises the possibility that Christ could have been viewed as soul-divergent, similar to the mystics themselves as discussed in chapter 1. The double empathy problem mentioned above is reflected in medieval literature concerning the life of Christ. In Ælred of Rievaulx’s ‘On Jesus at the Age of Twelve’, Christ’s mother Mary is frantic at the discovery that Jesus is missing in Jerusalem. Three days later, upon finding him in the temple speaking with and listening to a group of doctors, Mary asks him ‘son, why have you behaved so to us? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you in sorrow.’

To this Jesus replies ‘[h]ow is it… that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be concerned with my Father’s business?’[145]

This shows a disconnect in two modes of thinking reminiscent of the difficulties experienced by neurotypical and autistic people when trying to communicate with one another.[146] Mary cannot understand why Jesus has been gone for three days causing her to worry about his safety, and Jesus in his divine knowledge clearly believes that it should have been obvious that he was engaged in higher matters. The highlighting of this interaction by Ælred suggests that Christ may have been viewed in the later medieval consciousness as soul-divergent. There is other evidence that supports this conclusion. The Christ Child was described as a puer-senex, not only in On Jesus at the Age of Twelve but also in Psuedo-Bonaventure’s Meditationes Vitae Christi where it is said that – ‘[h]e would pass and repass amidst the busy world about him, with an air of as little attention to their affairs, as if he did not see mankind.’[147] The Christ Child also appeared as a puer-senex in the visions of some mystics and other religious women, showing wisdom beyond his apparent chronical age in the visions.[148]

In addition to this, the theological position regarding Christ’s mind and soul also supports a neurodivergent reading of him. As Christ was known to be both human and divine combined in one hypostatic union, this posed the questions about his humanity, intellect, will, and passions. Thomas Aquinas argued that in Christ the divine and human natures were united due to the divine person choosing to take on a human nature. Christ had a human nature with a human soul, he could think and reason with human intellect and he could acquire knowledge.[149] Christ also, due to his divine nature, was omniscient, but since this was habitual it did not happen constantly.[150] While Christ was able to experience temptation due to his human nature, he did not due to his perfect divine nature.[151] Bonaventure also wrote on this topic and stated that because Christ was closer to the light and because he did not sin, he therefore had perfect human knowledge.[152] Since Christ was the only perfect human being and his perfection affected his knowledge, he could be considered part of a divergent minority.

Conclusion

This dissertation has explored the experiences of women mystics in the Later Medieval Period. The discussion of these experiences through a neurodivergent lens gives support to the idea of soul-divergence in medieval consciousness. The neurodiversity paradigm is more compatible in some ways than the pathology paradigm to medieval ideas about physiology as there was not one specific make up of humours which was seen as right and the others wrong. Women mystics were portrayed as different from birth and described as having precociously pious childhoods. This is comparable with the portrayal as neurodivergent children as ‘old souls’ or little professors. Both mystics and neurodivergent people share the dissatisfaction with these tropes and often did not apply them to themselves. This shows that neurodivergent people and women mystics may have inhabited a similar space within medieval society in how they were considered by others. Sensory overload and sensory euphoria appear to be relevant to the study of asceticism and ecstasy in mystics and the sharing of sensory experiences provide a tangible way for different communities to touch through time. Also relevant to touching through time is the mystical experience of empathising with Christ, the medieval philosophical ideas about whom support the idea of his soul-divergence. Christ, because of his divinity and perfection, had a different bodymind to all human beings whilst still having a human nature. Mystics in a somewhat similar fashion were considered different because of their innate piety. The compassion between mystics and Christ led to a connection through time between them. Taken together, the evidence clearly demonstrates a recognition of an implicit soul-divergence comparable to the idea of modern neurodivergence.

The area of the compassionate relationship between a mystics and others and the queering of time would be an area of future investigation which may prove fruitful. In addition, further research may apply a neurodivergent lens to topics in medieval mad studies, which was not covered in this dissertation due to lack of space. Exploring ideas about madness and mysticism from a neurodivergent perspective may lead to new revelations about how medieval and modern people thought and think about illness.

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[1] The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, trans. and intro. By Roger De Ganck (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1991) p.27.

[2] Hannah E. Morton and others, ‘Development and Validation of the Assessment of Bullying Experiences Questionnaire for Neurodivergent Youth’, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders (2021) <https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-021-05330-z&gt; [accessed 25 July 202].

[3] Royce Flippin, ‘Hyperfocus: The ADHD Phenomenon of Intense Fixation’, ADDitude Magazine (11 July 2022) <https://www.additudemag.com/understanding-adhd-hyperfocus/&gt; [accessed 25 July 2022]; autismbug0, ‘How the Memory Helps us to Understand the Neurodiversity of Autism’, Autismbug (25 Jan 2021) <https://www.autismbug.net/post/how-the-memory-helps-us-to-understand-the-neurodiversity-of-autism&gt; [accessed 25 July 2022].

[4] Natalia Challis and Horace W. Dewey, ‘The Blessed Fools of Old Russia’, Jahrbūcher fūr Geschichte Osteuropas, 22 (1974) 4; Cornelia H. Dayton, ‘”The Oddest Man that I Ever Saw”: Assessing Cognitive Disability on Eighteenth-Century Cape-Cod’, Journal of Social History, 49 (2015) 84-5; Rab Houston and Uta Frith, Autism in History: The Case of Hugh Blair of Borgue (Oxford: Blackwell, 2000) pp.115-121; Patricia Ranft, ‘Ruminations on Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) and autism’, Journal of Medical Biography, 22 (2014) 108-11, Christine Trevett, ‘Asperger’s Syndrome and the Holy Fool: The Case of Brother Juniper’, Journal of Religion, Disability & Health, 13 (2009) 130, 138-9.

[5] Houston and Frith, Autism in History, pp.1-3.

[6] Dayton, ‘The Oddest Man’, 87.

[7]Alfonso Cuarón, Billy Mann, I Am Autism, online video recording, YouTube, (20 April 2016) < https://youtu.be/9UgLnWJFGHQ&gt; [accessed 9 September 2022].

[8] Houston and Frith, Autism in History, pp.28-9.

[9] Michel Bader, Rosemary Tannock, and Nouchine Hadjkhani, ‘The Zappel-Philipp a historical example of ADHD Clinics’, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, 10 (2018) 119-22; Russell A. Barkley and Helmut Peters, ‘The Earliest Reference to ADHD in the Medical Literature? Melchior Adam Weikard’s Description in 1775 of “Attention Deficit” (Mangel der Aufmerksamkeit, Attentio Volubilis)’, Journal of Attention Disorders, 16 (2012) 628.

[10] Donna Williams, Autism: An Inside-Out Approach (London: Jessica Kingsley, 1996) p.14.

[11]Nick Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes on the Neurodiversity Paradigm, Autistic Empowerment, and Postnormal Possibilities (Fort Worth, Texas: Autonomous, 2021) pp.18-20

[12] Carolyn Dinshaw, Getting Medieval: Sexualities and Communities Pre and Postmodern (Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1999) pp.11-4.

[13] Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies, 69-71.

[14] Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies, pp.19.

[15] Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies, pp.18-20.

[16] Melanie Yergeau, Authoring Autism:/ on rhetoric and neurological queerness (Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2018) p.6, 9.

[17] Monique Botha, ‘Academic, activist, or advocate? Angry, Entangled, and Emerging: A Critical reflection on Autism Knowledge Production’, Frontiers in Psychology, 12 (2021) 1-10.

[18] Kristen Gillespie-Lynch, and others, ‘Whose Expertise Is It? Evidence for Autistic Adults as Critical Autism Experts’, Frontiers in Psychology, 8 (2017) 10.

[19] Janika Lindstrōm and Teemu Rantanen, ‘Experts of the streets: The thoughts of experts by experience with a history of crime and substance abuse on working as a team with professionals’, European Journal of Probation, 13 (2021) 226-9; Samson Tse and others, ‘Combining technical and expert-by-experience knowledge in the quest for personal recovery from bipolar disorder: a qualitative study’, BMC Psychiatry, 19 (2019) 10.

[20] James I. Charlton, Nothing About Us Without Us: Disability Oppression and Empowerment (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998) pp.3-4.

[21] Botha, ‘Academic, activist, or advocate’, 9.

[22] Terje Falck-Ytter and Sofia Lodén, ‘The perils of suggesting famous historical figures had autism’, Spectrum (22 September 2020) <http://www.spectrumnews.org/opinion/viewpoint/the-perils-of-suggesting-famous-historical-figures-had-autism/&gt; [accessed 29 July 2022].

[23] Alan Bray, Homosexuality in Renaissance England (London: Gay Men’s Press, 1982) p.16; Sarah Mullan, ‘Queer Anachronisms: Reimagining Lesbian History in Performance’, in Queer Dramaturgies: International Perspectives on Where Performance Leads Queer ed. by Alyson Campbell and Stephen Farrier (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016) p.247.

[24] Solvegi Shmulsky and others, ‘Do Neurodivergent College Students Forge a Disability Identity? A Snapshot and Implications’, in Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 34 (2021) 60.

[25] Yergeau, Authoring Autism, pp.160-8.

[26] Dinshaw, Getting Medieval, p.1.

[27] Dinshaw, Getting Medieval, p.22.

[28] Blake Gutt, ‘Medieval Trans Lives in Anamorphosis: Looking Back and Seeing Differently (Pregnant Men and Backward Birth)’, Medieval Feminist Forum, 55 (2019) 188.

[29] Alicia Spencer-Hall and Blake Gut, ‘Introduction’, in Trans and Genderqueer Subjects in Medieval Hagiography ed. by Alicia Spencer-Hall and Blake Gutt (Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2021) p.11.

[30] Dinshaw, Getting Medieval, p.37.

[31] Meaning focusing on the neurotypical over the neurodivergent.

[32] Cristina Mazzoni, ‘How to Candy Oranges and Reprimand the Pope: Catherine of Siena’s Letter 346 to Urban VI’, Spiritus, 16 (2016) 41-4.

[33] Caroline Walker Bynum, Holy Feast and Holy Fast: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Religious Women (Berkley: University of California Press, 1987) pp.161-5; Christina Van Dyke, ‘Mysticism’, in The Cambridge History of Medieval Philosophy ed. by Robert Pasnau (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009) p.726.

[34] The Book of Margery Kempe trans. by Anthony Bale (Oxford: Oxford University Press) pp.71-2, p.88, pp.111-23.

[35] Margaret Price, Mad at School (Ann Arbour: University of Michigan Press, 2011) p.240.

[36] Margaret Price, ‘The Bodymind Problem and the Possibilities of Pain’, Hypatia, 30 (2015) 270-3.

[37] Price, ‘The Bodymind Problem, 269.

[38] German E. Berrios, ‘Historical epistemology of the body-mind interaction in psychiatry’, in Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 20 (2018) 5-7.

[39] Anthony Kenny, Aquinas on Mind (London and New York: Routledge, 1993) pp.25-6.

[40] Julia Rocca, ‘Galen and Greek Neuroscience (Notes Towards a Preliminary Survey)’, in Early Science and Medicine, 3 (1998) 218-21.

[41] Luke DeMaitre, Medieval Medicine: The Art of Healing, From Head to Toe (Santa Barbara: Praeger, 2013) pp.16-8.

[42] Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies, p.36.

[43] DeMaitre, Medieval Medicine, p.17.

[44] Eric M. Johnston, ‘The Biology of Women in Thomas Aquinas’, The Thomist: A Speculative Quarterly Review, 77 (2013) 582-3.

[45] Johnston, ‘The Biology of Women’, 582-4

[46] Sarah MacMillan, ‘Imitation, Interpretation, and Ascetic Impulse in Medieval English Devotional Culture’, Medium Ævum, 86 (2017) 44-5

[47] Theresa C. Carp, ‘”Puer Senex” in Roman and Medieval Thought’, in Latomus, 39 (1980) 737.

[48] Ernst Curtius, European Literature and the Latin Middle Ages, trans. by Willard R. Trask (New York: Bollingen Foundation, 1953) pp.98-101.

[49]J. A. Burrow, The Ages of Man: A Study in Medieval Writing and Thought (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988) pp.96-7.

[50] Mary Dzon, The Quest for the Christ Child in the Later Middle Ages (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2017) pp.23, 53, 108; Burrow, The Ages of Man, pp.137-8.

[51] Bynum, Holy Feast, p.7.

[52] Jacques De Vitry, ‘The Life of Mary of Oignies’, in Mary of Oignies: Mother of Salvation trans. by Margot H. King, ed. by Anneke B. Mulder-Bakker (Turnhout: Brepols, 2006) p.52.

[53] Raymond of Capua, The Life of St. Catherine of Siena, trans. by Harvill Press and J. Kenedy & Sons (Charlotte, North Carolina: TAN Books, 2011) 7-8.

[54] The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, pp.21-7.

[55] Jill Boucher and Sophia Anns, ‘Memory, learning and language in autism spectrum disorder’, Autism & Developmental Language Impairments, 3 (2018) 6; Clem Bastow, ‘If I wasn’t autistic, would my encyclopaedic knowledge of dinosaurs be a problem?’, The Guardian (6 July 2021) <https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jul/07/if-i-didnt-have-autism-would-my-encyclopedic-knowledge-of-dinosaurs-be-a-problem&gt; [accessed 10 September 2022].

[56] Asperger should not be mentioned in academic literature without the acknowledgement of his actions within the Nazi regime. As has been discussed above, Asperger was responsible for sending some of his patients to the Am Spiegelgrund facility which then murdered them as part of the Aktion T4 child euthanasia program. In total, 789 patients were murdered at Am Spiegelgrund. Herwig Czech’s article ‘Hans Asperger, National Socialism, and “race hygiene” in Nazi-era Vienna’ Molecular Autism 9 (2018) has been crucial to understanding Asperger’s part in the Nazi regime and the Holocaust.

[57] Steve Silberman, Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and How to Think Smarter About People Who Think Differently (London: Allen & Unwin, 2015) pp.418-9.

[58] Hans Asperger, ‘’Autistic Psychopathy’ in childhood’ trans. by Uta Frith, in Autism and Asperger Syndrome ed. by Uta Frith (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991) p.74.

[59] Asperger, ‘’Autistic Psychopathy’’, pp.68-82.

[60] Asperger, ‘’Autistic Psychopathy’’, p.75.

[61] Asperger, ‘’Autistic Psychopathy’’, p.71.

[62] Lorna Wing, ‘Asperger’s Syndrome: A Clinical Account’, Psychol Med, 11 (1981) 115-29.

[63] Lawrence Osborne, ‘The Little Professor Syndrome’, The New York Times Magazine (18 June 2000) <https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000618mag-asperger.html&gt; [accessed 10 September 2022].

[64] Christopher Gillberg, ‘Clinical and Neurobiological Aspects of Asperger Syndrome in Six Family Studies’, in Autism and Asperger Syndrome ed. by Uta Frith (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991) p.137.

[65] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.8.

[66] Reginald Maxwell Woolley, The Officium and Miracula of Richard Rolle of Hampole (New York: Macmillan, 1919) pp.5-6.

[67] Bonaventure, The Life of S. Francis of Assisi: From the “Legenda Santi Francisci” of S. Bonaventure, ed. by Henry Edward (London: R. Washbourne, 1868) pp.8-10

[68]Rosalynn Voadden and Stephanie Volf, ‘Visions of My Youth: Representations of the Childhoods of Medieval Visionaries’, Gender and History, 12 (2000) 666.

[69] Voaden and Volf, ‘Visions’, 666, 679.

[70]The Book of Margery Kempe, pp.11-13.

[71] Cristina Mazzoni ‘Introduction’ in Angela Foligno’s Memorial ed. by Christina Mazzoni trans. by John Cirignano (Cambridge: D.S Brewer, 1999) pp. 1-2.

[72] Mechthilde of Hackeborn, The Love of the Sacred Heart (London: Burns, Oates & Washbourne, 1922) p.5.

[73] u/Exhaustedbunny, ‘Does anyone ever get told you have an “old soul” or that you seem like you have an old mind in a young body?’, r/Autism (2021) <https://www.reddit.com/r/autism/comments/obu7zg/does_anyone_ever_get_told_you_have_an_old_soul_or/&gt; [accessed 4 April 2022].

[74] Aiden Tsen, ‘On maturity and being an ‘old soul’’, Aiden Tsen: Autistic advocate, speaker, writer and artist (7 June 2021) <https://aidentsen.com/on-maturity-and-being-an-old-soul/&gt; [accessed 4 April 2022].

[75] Burrow, The Ages of Man, p.145.

[76] J. A. Burrow, ‘’Young Saint, Old Devil’: Reflections on a Medieval Proverb’, The Review of English Studies, 30 (1979) 387-90.

[77] Bynum, Holy Feast, p.169.

[78] Kenneth Baxter Wolf, The Life & Afterlife of St. Elizabeth of Hungary: Testimony from Her Canonization Hearings (Oxford: Oxford University Press) p.x.

[79] Andri Vauchez, Sainthood in the Later Middle Ages (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005) p.376.

[80] Tatja Hirvikoski and others, ‘Premature Mortality in Autism Spectrum Disorder’, The British Journal of Psychiatry, 208 (2016) 235.

[81] Søren Dalsgaard and others, ‘Mortality in children, adolescents, and adults with attention

deficit hyperactivity disorder: a nationwide cohort study’, The Lancet, 385 (2015) 2192.

[82] Esther Cohen, The Modulated Scream: Pain in Late Medieval Culture (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2009) p.28.

[83] Daniel Krokosz, ‘Changes of Mood and Cognitive Performance before and after a 100 km Nighttime Ultramarathon Run’, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17 (2020) 1-3

[84] Walker, Neuroueer Heresies, pp.69-71.

[85] Miriam Díaz-Gilbert, ‘The Ascetic Life of the Ultrarunner’, Spiritus: A Journal of Christian Spirituality, 18 (2018) 202.

[86] Díaz-Gilbert, ‘The Ascetic Life’, 204-5.

[87] Díaz-Gilbert, ‘The Ascetic Life’, 211.

[88] Thomas de Cantimpré, The Life of St. Christina the Astonishing trans. by Mark Reynolds (2015) p.5.

[89] The Book of Margery Kempe, pp.11-3, pp.118-23

[90] Van Dyke, ‘Mysticism’, p.726.

[91] C.L. Lynch, ‘Sixteen-year-old Killed by Restraint: It’s Time for Connection Over Control’, NeuroClastic: The Autism Spectrum Accding to Autistic People (7 May 2020) < https://neuroclastic.com/sixteen-year-old-killed-by-restraint-its-time-for-comfort-over-control/ > [accessed 11 September 2022]; Michael A. Nunno and others, ‘A 26‑Year Study of Restraint Fatalities Among Children and Adolescents in the United States: A Failure of Organizational Structures and Processes’, Child & Youth Care Forum, 51 (2022) 664-7.

[92] I am using the term ‘inedia’, as Caroline Bynum has, because it carries the least stigma.

[93] Saint Catherine of Siena, ‘To a Religious Man in Florence who was Shocked at her Ascetic Practices’, in Saint Catherine of Siena as Seen in Her Letters ed. and trans. by Vida D. Scudder (2005) <https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/7403/pg7403.html&gt; [accessed 11 August 2022].

[94] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.133.

[95] Bynum, Holy Feast, p.125.

[96] Cassandra Crosman, ‘I’m not a “Picky Eater,” I’m a Sensory Eater’, In the Loop About Neurodiversity: Putting Identity First (20 April 2019) <https://intheloopaboutneurodiversity.wordpress.com/2019/04/20/im-not-a-picky-eater-im-a-sensory-eater/&gt; [accessed 11 September 2022].

[97] Quincy Hansen, ‘Sensory Eating Is Not Picky Eating’, Speaking of Autism…: An Autistic Speaks about Living with Autism (10 June 2019) <https://speakingofautismcom.wordpress.com/2019/06/10/sensory-eating-is-not-picky-eating/comment-page-1/&gt; [accessed 18 August 2022].

[98] Crossman, ‘I’m a Sensory Eater’.

[99] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.132.

[100] Toshia R Myers and others, ‘Potential Effects of Prolonged Water-Only Fasting Followed by a Whole-Plant-Food Diet on Salty and Sweet Taste Sensitivity and Perceived Intensity, Food Liking, and Dietary Intake’, Cureus, 14 (2022) <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9161620/&gt; [accessed 11 September 2022].

[101] Caroline Walker Bynum, Fragmentation and Redemption: Essays on Gender and the Human Body in Medieval Religion (New York: Zone Books, 1992) p.123.

[102] Bynum, Holy Feast, p.172.

[103] Bynum, Fragmentation, p.125-30.

[104] The Book of Margery Kempe, p.127, p.167.

[105] Authentically Emily, ‘Sensory Overload and Over-Stimulation’, Authentically Emily (16 October 2021) <https://www.authenticallyemily.uk/blog/sensory-overload-and-over-stimulation&gt; [accessed 21 August 2022]; Terry Matlen, ‘“I’m a Sensitive Woman”: ADHD Sensory Overload in Adults’, Attitude (23 June 2022) <https://www.additudemag.com/women-with-sensory-processing-disorder/&gt; [accessed 21 August 2022]; Janice Rodden, ‘Signs of Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) in Adults’, Attitude (11 July 2022) <https://www.additudemag.com/sensory-processing-disorder-in-adults/&gt; [accessed 21 August 2022].

[106] Authentically Emily, ‘Sensory Overload’.

[107]Lyric Holmans, ‘#AskingAutistics – What Sensations Give You Sensory Euphoria?’, Spectrum Life Magazine (30 April 2022) <https://www.spectrumlife.org/blog/askingautistics-what-sensations-give-you-sensory-euphoria&gt; [accessed 21 August 2022].

[108] Stephen K. Kapp and others, ‘‘People Should Be Allowed to do What They Like’: Autistic Adults’ Views and Experiences of Stimming’, Autism, 23 (2019) 1785-8.

[109] Kapp, ‘Experiences of Stimming’, 1785.

[110] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.8.

[111] Oolong, ‘Fidgeting, Spinning, and Normalising Stimming’, Medium (1 Jun 2017) <https://oolong.medium.com/fidgeting-spinning-and-normalising-stimming-1ec569392ed2&gt; [accessed 11 September 2022].

[112] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.44; The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, pp.45-7.

[113] Nicolas Bouscaren, Guillaume Y. Millet, and Sebastien Racinais, ‘Heat Stress Challenges in Marathon vs. Ultra-Endurance Running’, Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 1 (2019) 1-2; Scott Murray Graham and others, ‘The examination of mental toughness, sleep, mood and injury rates in an Arctic ultra-marathon’, European Journal of Sport Science, 21 (2021) 100-1;

[114] Richard J.S. Costa and others, ‘Heat acclimation responses of an ultra-endurance running group preparing for hot desert-based competition’, European Journal of Sport Science, 14 (2014) 132, 138-40.

[115] Lisa Fiene and Charlotte Brownlow, ‘Investigating interoception and body awareness in adults with and without autism spectrum disorder’, Autism Research, 8 (2015) 710.

[116] Authentically Emily, ‘Hypo and Hyper Sensitivity in Autistic People’, Authentically Emily (10 Apr 2021) <https://www.authenticallyemily.uk/blog/hypo-and-hyper-sensitivity-in-autistic-people&gt; [accessed 11 September 2022].

[117] MacMillan, ‘Imitation, Interpretation’, 38-9.

[118] Maximillian von Habsburg, Catholic and Protestant Translations of the Imitatio Christi, 1425–1650:

From Late Medieval Classic to Early Modern Bestseller (Farnham: Ashgate, 2013) p.13.

[119] Juanita Feros Ruys, ‘An Alternative History of Medieval Empathy: The Scholastics and compassio’, Emotions: History, Culture, Society, 2 (2018) 194-5.

[120] Julian of Norwich, The Writings of Julian of Norwich ed. by Nicholas Watson and Jaqueline Jenkins (University Park, Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005) p.83.

[121] The Book of Margery Kempe, p.101.

[122]Angela of Foligno’s Memorial ed. by Christina Mazzoni trans. by John Cirignano(Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1999) p.59; Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.95, p.131; The Book of Margery Kempe, p.127.

[123] The Book of Margery Kempe, p.80, p.179.

[124]Angela of Foligno’s Memorial, p.53.

[125] The Book of Margery Kempe, p.32, p.188

[126] Damian Milton, ‘On the Ontological Status of Autism: the ‘Double Empathy Problem’’, Disability and Society, 27 (2012) 885.

[127] Authentically Emily, ‘Autistic People Don’t Have Empathy’: A Look at Autism and Empathy’, Authentically Emily (6 September 2021) <https://www.authenticallyemily.uk/blog/autistic-people-dont-have-empathy-a-look-at-autism-and-empathy&gt; [accessed 3 September 2022].

[128] Authentically Emily, ‘Autistic People’.

[129] Simon Baron-Cohen, ‘Theory of Mind in Normal Development and Autism’, P risme, 34 (2001) 174.

[130] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, 198.

[131] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, 193, 210-1.

[132] Sarah McNamer, Affective Meditation and the Invention of Medieval Compassion (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010) pp.142-4.

[133] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, 207.

[134] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, 208-9.

[135] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, 209.

[136] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.26-7.

[137] The Book of Margery Kempe, pp.118-23

[138] The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, pp.43-5.

[139] Michelle McCarthy, ‘‘What kind of abuse is him spitting in my food?’: reflections on the similarities between disability hate crime, so-called ‘mate’ crime and domestic violence against women with intellectual disabilities’, Disability & Society, 32 (2017) 596-7.

[140] Bryan Glick, ‘A neurodivergent search for belonging’, Computer Weekly (16 March 2021) <https://www.computerweekly.com/blog/WITsend/A-neurodivergent-search-for-belonging&gt; [accessed 3 September 2022].

[141] Jamie Logan, ‘Queer and Neurodivergent Identity Production within the Social Media Panopticon’, The Macksey Journal, 1 (2020) <https://mackseyjournal.scholasticahq.com/article/21928-queer-and-neurodivergent-identity-production-within-the-social-media-panopticon&gt; [accessed 3 September 2022] 15.

[142] Margery Kempe, p.166

[143] Raymond of Capua, The Life, p.123-5.

[144] Ruys, ‘An Alternative History’, p.194-5

[145] Ælred of Rievaulx, Ælred of Rievaulx: Treatises & Pastoral Prayer ed. by David Knowles (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1971) p.12.

[146] Damien Milton, ‘the ‘Double Empathy Problem’’, 886.

[147] Psuedo-Bonaventure, The Life of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ In a Series of Devout Meditations; Written in Latin Above Five Hundred Years Since trans. by Edward Yates. (London: R. Snagg, 1774) p.111.

[148] Richard Kieckhefer, ‘Iesus is unser!: The Christ Child in the German Sister Books’, in The Christ Child in Medieval Culture: Alpha es et O! ed. by Mary Dzon and Theresa M. Kenney (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012) pp.185-88.

[149] Timothy Pawl, ‘The Incarnation’, in The New Cambridge Companion to Aquinas ed. by Eleonore Stump and Thomas White (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022) p.329.

[150] Pawl, ‘The Incarnation’, p.330.

[151] Pawl, ‘The Incarnation’, 331-2.

[152] Therese Scarpelli, ‘Bonaventure’s Christocentric Epistemology: Christ’s Human Knowledge as the Epitome of Illumination in “De scientia Christi”’, Franciscan Studies, 65 (2007) 73.

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Author: Emma Paley

A godless, autistic, flautist who has an interest in genealogy!

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