Medieval womens mysticism was a succession of insights and revelations about god that gradually transformed the recipient according to historian elizabeth petroff of oxford university in her 1994 book body and soul the word mysticism has its origin in ancient greece where individuals called the mystae participated in mystery religions the life of a medieval woman mystic was spent seeking unity with god in a series of stages the mystical life of a medieval woman began with a purge of the. Women mystics in medieval europe revives the exquisite mystical literature of five powerful mystics of the middle ages a benedictine abbess a cistercian prioress and three beguines the lost story of feminine christianity is here enriched for the first time by the historical context of each womans life and her fresh literary expression of spiritual reality. Women mystics in medieval europe revives the exquisite mystical literature of five powerful mystics of the middle ages a benedictine abbess a cistercian prioress and three beguines the lost story of feminine christianity is here enriched for the first time by the historical context of each womans life and her fresh literary expression of spiritual reality. Medieval women mystics came from different classes lived in different parts of europe and experienced spiritual awakenings at different ages many did not become great teachers until they reached middle age as children many were marked by precocious piety and their rebellion often took the form of asceticism