Cvetka's Slovenian Theory Thread

[cvetkakocj@rogers.com]

Okay, but there is a question about the purpose of the VMS. Why didn't they translate a more well-known book, like the Bible?

What would be a point in translating the Bible, if nobody knew how to read it? When the Slovenian protestant writers in the mid-16th century started to write a book, they started with the alphabet and basic religious teaching. 
As far as I am able to determine, there might be several reasons why the VM was written and remained unbounded for some time. 
My theory is based on the assumption that the author(s) was a Carthusian prior Nicholas Kampf from Strasbourg who spent over 20 years in Slovenia (1447-1451) in Geirach (Jurklošter), Pleterje (1461-1467) and again at Jurklošter from 1467-1479).  In 1479, he retired at Gaming Abbey where he died on Nov.20,1497. At the time, there was strong connection between Strasbourg and Slovenia. Slovenian language was spoken in much larger area as today and was considered one of the main languages spoken in Germanic word.

Kemp attained masters degree at Vienna University and taught for several years before he entered into Carthusian order in the Abbey of Gaming at the age of 40, because he was disappointment over the corruption in the Society. Not much is known about him, except that he was one of the greatest 15th century Carthusian reformer, an educator, theologian, mystic and mystical poet. His poems were lost and most of his other work. Only five books are preserved at the Jesuite archive in Graz, but they were never translated, or studied, until 1970s, when a book about his work was written.
Why do I suspect he was the author? It is documented that he was a poet, yet his poems were never found. An educated Catholic, disappointed over corruption in the Church and State, more likely turns to poetry, particularly after the death of a loved one. And the genuine Christian poets on the mystical journey were more likely to seek refuge in a monastery, because there was no psychiatrists and psychologist to treat their depression and anxiety.
There would be no problem for him to obtain old parchment in the monastic environment, just like there would be no problem for him to get additional scribes for his project.
The circular pictures look like they deal with astrology and Zodiac, but there are no calendar pages, or calculus to calculate  the calendars. Other illustrations differ greatly from the German Hausbuchs, although the names of the month later added show a lot of similarity. I believe they represent two layers of writing: a simple for simple people - individual words used in phrases and sentences (without punctuation), and the secret layer representing author's own meditations. The individual words (labels) have no translation into any other language, which makes me believe they were used by the author as a teaching tool, or as mnemonic device for consistent writing of the words he was already familiar with.
The role of prior was to teach monks and lay brothers to read and write. At the time when it was expected that vernacular language might be used in liturgy and in secular life, this might be one of the motives why he would develop Slovenian alphabet and write in Slovenian. He would also have to teach them about the Biblical stories, although he did not use Church iconography. 
Being a mystic, he would use esoteric language to speak about mystical things normal people would not understand and could be confused about. He used floral and animal analogies.
It is also possible that his writing was considered heretical, because by the mid-15th century the Roman Church suppressed descending ideas and did no longer tolerate critics. Hussite and Valdensians were persecuted. Kemp was accused of 'immorality' in his old age, which most likely means, that he was critical of the Church, which he was.

If I am correct, it would make sense that he was carrying this manuscript with him as he moved from monastery to monastery. Even in Gaming, he it would be useful to him, since he was training  leaders for eastern European Carthusian monasteries.