Meister Eckhart

Lore & Background

Eckhart was likely born around 1260 in the village of Tambach, near Gotha, in Thuringia. Little is known about his family; his Christian name was Eckhart, his surname von Hochheim. Around age 18, he joined the Dominican convent at Erfurt. The first solid evidence of his life is from 1294, when he preached the Easter Sermon at the Dominican convent of St. Jacques in Paris. He later served as Prior at Erfurt and Dominican Provincial of Thuringia, and in 1302 was sent to Paris to take up the external Dominican chair of theology. He returned to Erfurt in 1303 as Provincial superior for Saxony, responsible for 47 convents. In 1311, he was appointed teacher at Paris for a second stint, a rare privilege previously granted only to Thomas Aquinas. After 1313, he spent part of his time at Strasbourg, chiefly concerned with spiritual direction and preaching.

Reader's Guide

Eckhart's significance lies in his mystical theology and his influence on later spiritual movements. He was well known for his work with pious lay groups such as the Friends of God and was succeeded by his more circumspect disciples Johannes Tauler and Henry Suso. Accused of heresy, he was tried by Pope John XXII, who issued the bull In Agro Dominico in 1329, characterizing some of Eckhart's statements as heretical and others as suspected of heresy. The bull stated that Eckhart recanted before his death. Modern scholarship has debated his orthodoxy; the Dominican Order pressed for his rehabilitation in the late 20th century, and Pope John Paul II voiced favorable opinion. Since the 19th century, Eckhart has acquired a status as a great mystic within contemporary new age spirituality, as well as considerable interest from scholars situating him within the medieval scholastic and philosophical tradition.

Did You Know?

• Eckhart's Christian name was Eckhart, not Johannes; his surname was von Hochheim.
• He was invited back to Paris for a second stint as magister, a rare privilege previously granted only to Thomas Aquinas.
• The papal bull In Agro Dominico was issued on March 27, 1329, after Eckhart had already died.
• Eckhart's earliest vernacular work, Reden der Unterweisung, dates from around 1295–1298.