O Ecclesia

O Ecclesia,
oculi tui similes saphiro sunt,
et aures tue monti Bethel,
et nasus tuus est sicut mons mirre et thuris,
et os tuum quasi sonus aquarum multarum.

In multo desiderio desideravi ad te
venire et in celestibus nuptiis tecum sedere,
per alienam viam ad te currens
velut nubes que in purissimo aere
currit similis saphiro.

—Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)

O Beloved*,
your eyes appear as sapphires,
your ears as the mount of Bethel,
your nose as mountains of myrrh and incense,
and from your mouth issues sound,
as a multitude of waters.

With the greatest desire
I have longed to come unto you
and cleave to you in heavenly marriage,
hastening to you on this unknown path,
like clouds that in the purest air
appear to fly in sapphire.

*or, literally, “church”