Lectio Divina

Edward Kendall on the transformative practice of sacred reading

We find happiness in having a sense of meaning and purpose in our lives, which for me is rooted in a personal heart-to-heart relationship with Jesus Christ. However, to know Jesus and to spread that joy to others it is imperative that we encounter Him not only in the Sacraments, but also in the Scriptures. I have encountered the risen Lord in a particular way through the practice of reading the Gospels slowly and meditatively, paying attention to what words, images or actions strike me when reading. For example, it may be the case that an attraction to a certain action or virtue of Jesus in the Gospels is God speaking to me to emulate that in my own life.

This type of Bible-reading is commonly known as Lectio Divina. Lectio Divina is a Latin phrase which comes from St Benedict’s Rule for monks (it is a crucial pillar of monastic life) and is often translated as ‘sacred reading.’ Pope Francis defines it as “reading God’s Word in a moment of prayer and allowing it to enlighten and renew us” (Evangelii Gaudium, 2014). This practice is transformative and cultivates within us the attitude of the boy Samuel, who had been instructed to respond to God’s call to him with the words: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:10).

This type of Bible-reading is often done as a solitary practice, but it can also be done communally. For instance, I am part of what is called a Lectio group, which means that every week I gather with a group of friends and one of us reads the following Sunday’s Gospel aloud. Reading the Gospel aloud means that everyone is involved in a shared, live experience. Group members are encouraged by the leader to respond personally, sharing feelings and thoughts provoked by the reading. There is no need for group members to speak – it is fine to just listen. Communal Lectio Divina helps us to understand our individual and collective inner lives, round the same table, at the same time. It opens our Lectio Divina is a Latin phrase which comes from St Benedict’s Rule for monks hearts to what the risen Christ wants to say to us in His Word so that we can “put it into practice” (Luke 8:21).

Lectio Divina is also an excellent way for Mass-goers to better prepare for the reception of Our Lord in both Word and Eucharist; especially if you are praying with the liturgical readings (or at the very least the Gospel) for the following Sunday or holy day of obligation. How much more meaningful will the sermon be when we have already prayed over the texts upon which it is based beforehand. Lectio Divina with the liturgical readings is a wonderful way to better attain that “active participation” in the Mass that the Second Vatican Council called for, regardless of whether you attend the Ordinary Form or the Traditional Latin Mass. Lectio Divina tied to the liturgical cycle of readings is a good way of tying our personal prayer lives to the weekly Sunday Eucharist which is the “source and summit of the Christian life” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1344).

Dr Peter Kwasniewski, who will be known to many readers, is also a keen advocate of Lectio Divina and told me, “The untiring and ceaseless love of God, His justice and mercy, His invitations to me to renounce or to embrace, these keep coming through the divine words, and make all other human words relative, as they are and should be.”

He added, “Lectio has taught me in a practical, experiential way how the Bible is different from any other book, and I know that it has thereby joined me to all the saints of the Church who used to practice it and who acquired so much of their wisdom from it.”

In case anyone should think Lectio Divina is a practice reserved for monks or the especially pious, I will draw your attention to these words of St John Chrysostom: “‘I am not,’ you will say, ‘one of the monks, but I have a wife and children, and the care of a household.’ This is what has ruined everything, your thinking that the reading of Scripture is for monks only, when you need it more than they do. Those who are placed in the world, and who receive wounds every day have the most need of medicine” (Second Homily on Matthew).

With these words ringing in your ears, I would encourage you to take time to listen to what Our Lord may be saying to you personally in the Scriptures and then, if you are so inclined, joining a Lectio group or starting your own in order to introduce others to the joy of encountering the risen Lord in this way.

Lectio Divina is a Latin phrase which comes from St Benedict’s Rule for monks