Post by dianaholberg on Oct 9, 2005 8:28:56 GMT -5
From Contemplative Bible Reading by Richard Peace:
lectio divina is a Latin phrase (pronounced lex-ee-oh di-vee-nuh) that can be translated "divine reading," "spiritual reading," or "sacred reading."I know several of you study the Scriptures here... do you use this approach at all? If anyone's interested in learning about it, I can post the primary four steps.
lectio divina has been used for over 1,500 years. The early monks approached the Bible by means of lectio divina. It worked for them like this: During the time set aside for personal reading, prayer, and reflection, a monk would go to a private place and begin to repeat aloud a passage from Scripture. Often this was taken from the Psalms or Gospels. The monk spoke the passage out loud until he was struck by a particular word or phrase. Then he would stop and ponder this word or phrase, understanding it to be a word from God for him.
This meditation (which is what he was doing) led naturally into prayer as the monk offered back to God what he heard. As he moved deeper and deeper into prayer he would come to the place where he rested in the presence of God. Such a state of contemplation was actively sought.
One of the first leaders to commend lectio divina as a spiritual exercise was Benedict, an Italian monk who lived in the fifth and sixth centuries (about 480-550). He wrote his Rule for Monks in 525 AD, outlining what life in a monastery should be like. His Rule quickly became the standard text guiding the functioning of monasteries.