how do I persist a String into a database field, type MYSQL Text (JPA)

Error :

Caused by: java.lang.StackOverflowError

Solution:

Lob Annotation

A Lob annotation specifies that a persistent property or field should be persisted as a large object to a database-supported large object type. Portable applications should use the Lob annotation when mapping to a database Lob type. The Lob annotation may be used in conjunction with the Basic annotation. A Lob may be either a binary or character type. The Lob type is inferred from the type of the persistent field or property, and except for string and character-based types defaults to Blob.

Since you’re using JPA, use the Lob annotation (and optionally the Column annotation). Here is what the JPA specification says about it:

9.1.19 Lob Annotation

A Lob annotation specifies that a persistent property or field should be persisted as a large object to a database-supported large object type. Portable applications should use the Lob annotation when mapping to a database Lob type. The Lob annotation may be used in conjunction with the Basic annotation. A Lob may be either a binary or character type. The Lob type is inferred from the type of the persistent field or property, and except for string and character-based types defaults to Blob.

So declare something like this (set the length to the max) :

@Lob 
@Column(name="CONTENT", length=512)
private String content;