Lectio divina october 2017 the website of the carmelite. Click here to view and download a full pdf listing of our pamphlets. Aug 05, 2015 second, lectio divina associates the practitioner with centuriesold heresy. At that time there were very few bibles and few people. Felicia smith explains the process behind this popular form of bible study. The spiritual practice of lectio divina worship script. Praying with scripture and lectio divina pathways to god. Doing it together is a liturgy of lectio, because you are deliberately structuring the. Lectio divina and centering prayer lectio divina and centering prayer are two distinct prayer forms. We leave our thinking aside and simply let our hearts speak to god. Lectio divina is a reading, reflecting, responding and resting in the word of god that helps one grow in relationship with god. As you hear it read again, ponder the word or phrase that your chose for a few minutes. Lectio divina was invented by the heretic origen in the third century and was adopted as a roman catholic practice in the dark ages.
The jesuit institute praying with lectio divina listen for the word or. At times, the scriptural prayer method of lectio divina will be applied in the extended prayer period. Gods word, and discover that god speaks to our hearts as a person speaks to a friend. It is a very natural way of prayer and was developed and practised by the early monks and thus came to the first carmelite hermits. Praying leader preparation the word liturgy office. Sara lectio divina part 2 meditatioreflecting in phase two we are invited into deeper reflection with the text. Cardinal martini incorporated three values centralto jesuit spirituality. Lectio divina, the personal drawing close to the scriptures is a right of every baptised person and must be made accessible to them. Lectio divina is an ancient form of prayer it was crystallised during the middle ages in the monasteries. Lectio divina correlates with the evangelizing mission of catechesis, which is no less than the mission of the gospel, the mission of jesus. Integration of lectio divina, ignatius imagination and.
Centering prayer and lectio divina part 1 thomas keating lectio divina is a private devotion and while its useful to do it in common it was originally designed to be a private experience or encounter with the scriptures. It dates back to the early centuries of the christian church and was established as a monastic practice by benedict in the 6th century. Lectio divina and gospel contemplation are 2 ways to pray with scripture. Lectio divina, or divine reading, is a fourstep approach to reading and praying scripture with its roots in western medieval monasticism. Read the words slowly and reflectively, not being in haste to rush on.
Lectio divina lectio divina divine, or sacred, reading is the name given to a spiritual tradition among christians over the last two thousand years, in which they attentively and prayerfully read the word of god. Oct 01, 2017 as carmelites we live our life of allegiance to jesus christ and to serve him faithfully with a pure heart and a clear conscience through a commitment to seek the face of the living god the contemplative dimension of life, through prayer, through fraternity, and through service diakonia. Pdf using lectio divina as an inclass contemplative tool. Lectio reading, meditatio meditation, oratio prayer, and. Lectio divina is a contemplative way of reading the bible. In praying this way you hear a scripture passage or other sacred text and you let god guide your heart. Listen for what the word or phrase is saying to you at this moment in. It is a way of praying the scriptures that leads us deeper into gods word. Centering prayer is a method of prayer in which we consent to rest in gods presence. With a renewed emphasis on productive silence, individual cells, and time dedicated to meditation, the time was ripe for a return to lectio divina. At this point, read the text again, slowly, with the word or image that you found in the text in your mind.