Discernment  | |
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Lectio Divina
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What is it?
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A holistic, experiential way of reading scripture that
uses mind, emotion, imagination, the senses, and prayer.
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Letting scripture soak deeply into us as we interact
with a particular passage or story (lectio divina is Latin for divine or
sacred reading).
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Listening prayerfully for what God wants to say to us
through scripture.
Why is it important?
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Scripture is a record of human experience with God. It
is the faith story in which our spirituality is rooted.
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Praying the scriptures opens us to hearing the scripture
as it applies to our life experience.
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When we pray the scriptures, the story comes alive and
we encounter God and Christ through the recorded word.
Scripture Reflections
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Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit,
joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of
the heart. —Hebrews 4:12 NRSV
The Practice
Note for Leaders
Two options are provided for praying with scripture. The
first is the traditional
lectio divina
format developed in the early Christian church and promoted by St.
Benedict. The second is a model adapted from the teachings of St. Ignatius
of Loyola. You may wish to try both approaches.
Lectio divina
and other ways of praying and
meditating with scripture are core spiritual practices for Christian
disciples. Return to this page on a regular basis and use it to reflect on
a variety of scriptural texts. Also see “Group
Lectio Divina”
in the following section.
Lectio Divina
1. Invite the group to sit quietly and enter a time of
prayerful reflection. Breathe calmly, relax your body, offer a pray for
guidance as you interact with the selected scriptural text.
2. Briefly describe the four ways in which the scripture
will be read and reflected on.
3. Read the scripture four different times, allowing time
for meditation and prayer between each reading. Before each reading remind
the group of instructions for praying with the scripture through
lectio, meditatio, oratio,
or contemplatio, as you
proceed.
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Lectio—read
the passage to get a sense
of the story. Who are the
characters, what is the setting? Imagine the scene, the sights, sounds,
odors, emotions, and tensions involved in the story. Enter the scene and
allow it to become real to you.
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Meditatio—read
the scripture again but this time for
meaning and understanding.
Ask questions. Why was this
story recorded? What are the surface and underlying meanings? What does
this story tell me about God? If I were in the story, who would I be?
Whom do I most relate to in the story?
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Oratio—read
the passage again, and this time pay attention to your
emotional responses.
What feelings surface as I read this
scripture? Do I feel joy, sorrow, fear, anger, or guilt? Share your
feelings with God in prayer. Ask for help in listening deeply to these
emotions and meanings.
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Contemplatio—enter a time
of receptive prayer.
Let go of the images from the
scripture and all other thoughts, interpretations, and worries. Breathe
deeply and calmly, entering a profound silent state of listening. Wait
for whatever God may bring to you in the quietness. If any insights or
impressions come, note them with gratitude and then return to receptive
listening. If no particular awarenesses come, let your mind return to
the scripture passage. When you feel your prayer/meditation has ended,
offer a word of thanks to God, open your eyes, and return to the room
around you.
Praying as St. Ignatius
1. Sit quietly for a few minutes, relax and breathe
deeply.
2. Spend a brief time in prayer. Offer thanks, and ask for
guidance as you open yourself to the scripture and to God’s presence.
3. Choose a scriptural passage that speaks to your needs
or turn to a passage you have previously selected. Stories from the life
of Jesus work particularly well for this exercise.
4. Read the scripture slowly and prayerfully, perhaps as
if for the first time. Pay attention to details of the story that make it
come alive. Note descriptions of people, setting, situation, and emotions.
Pay attention to images or words that grab your attention.
5. Close your eyes as the group leader reads the passage
again. As you listen, use your imagination to recreate the story. With
your senses, be aware of the time of day, the landscape or buildings,
weather conditions, colors, odors, sounds, voices, moods, and emotions.
Try to get a sense of the setting, even if you cannot clearly see actual
images.
6. After the second scripture reading, remain quiet with
eyes closed as you continue meditating on what you have heard. Imagine
that you enter the scene as one of the characters or an observer of the
events. Who are you? Where are you standing or sitting? How do you feel as
you become this person in the story? What are your reactions as the story
continues to unfold?
7. If the story includes an interaction of one of the
characters with Jesus, are you that person? What happens as you encounter
Jesus? If you are an other character in the story, how do you feel as you
observe Jesus interacting with the other person? What does this
interaction tell you about your relationship with Christ?
8. Now leave the scene in your mind, but remain in prayer.
What did you learn and how did you feel about your experience? Share your
responses and questions with God. Be still in God’s presence and listen
for additional insights.
9. Close your meditation time with a brief prayer of
thanks. Move around, open your eyes, and return to the present. You may
want to write about your experience in your journal, or share it with a
spiritual friend or support group.
Additional Resources
M. Robert Mulholland Jr.,
Shaped by the Word: The
Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation,
revised edition (Nashville: Upper Room
Books, 2000).
Marjorie J. Thompson,
Soul Feast: An Invitation to the Christian Spiritual Life
(Louisville:Westminster John
Knox Press, 1995).
Corinne Ware, Discover Your
Spiritual Type: A Guide to Individual and Congregational Growth
(Bethesda: Alban Institute, 1995).
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