Lectio Divina Workshop

Saturday June 17, 2006
Christ Church Cathedral,
Vancouver BC.

On June 17, 2006, approximately 30 of us gathered at Christ Church Cathedral for a workshop on Lectio Divina. The day was hosted by Christ Church Cathedral Meditation Ministry, and presented in cooperation with Contemplative Outreach of Greater Vancouver.

Our presenter, Tom Kinzie of Contemplative Outreach Oregon, shared teachings on the method of Lectio Divina with a depth of insight and knowledge, seasoned with humor. He also left us with an excellent bibliography of resources which we would be pleased to send you. A copy of this comprehensive list of books and articles will be emailed to you on request (see below).

Above all, Tom emphasized that our attitude of heart and mind stands primary over everything else. Lectio Divina is scripture prayer, intended to facilitate our communication and communion with God. As we slowly and prayerfully read scripture, this can become a Prayer of the Heart, facilitating our entry into Centering Prayer. We learn, as we read and pray that we are not in control of God’s response to us. God is in control. Our part in the relationship is simply to be as present as we can be while offering ourselves and all that is on our hearts and minds to God. We enter our sacred communion in faith, trusting that God will respond in God’s way, God’s time, and God’s knowing of what we are able to receive of the Divine Love.

Reading Scripture is an exercise of holy listening, of choosing to make ourselves available to God. Tom quoted Joan Chittister, well known Benedictine nun and author, who states that in reality, no one “has” time for prayer; one must “make” time. We are encouraged to establish a regular time and commit to it. Five to ten minutes of Lectio spent at a different time to our period of Centering Prayer can be helpful in maintaining both practices.

Many resources are available for daily scripture reading, such as:

Holy Scripture - read through a particular book of the Bible, such as a Gospel, choosing a short passage of verses each day.

Bible or Psalter - pray and/or chant the psalms daily, using your own Bible or a Psalter intended for chanting.

Forward Day by Day, published by the Episcopal Church in the USA.

Living with Christ, monthly periodical of daily liturgy for the Roman Catholic Mass; as well as seasonal daily reflection booklets (Sacred Journey for Lent and Word Made Flesh for Advent) Novalis Press, Ottawa, Canada.

The Revised Common Lectionary (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1992), upon which the above items are based. The RCL can also be found online at http://divinity.lib.vanderbilt.edu/lectionary/

The Book of Alternative Services of the Anglican Church of Canada, Toronto: Anglican Book Centre, 1985 contains a section on yearly cycle of readings, related to the Revised Common Lectionary.

We were encouraged to consider praying with alternate texts such as writings by the Desert Fathers and Mothers, the Saints, poetry etc.

Lectio Divina is not “Bible Study,” but it may be greatly enriched by studying the Bible. It is helpful to participate in some kind of study, and/or to use some commentaries to build our understanding of scripture, which in turn can help us develop self-understanding. We can expect changes in our attitudes, behavior, actions, and beliefs. Lectio Divina is a living prayer and as such acts within our lives.

We do not pray alone. The Communion of Saints is a reality. We participate in a communal prayer with everyone who has ever prayed. Contemplative prayer sees the world as a place where God is, and God is everywhere.

The Four Movements of Lectio Divina

LECTIO (Reading)

Read slowly. Every word counts. Read out loud. Embodied speech helps bring the word inside and interrupts the domestication of scripture. Delight in the language. Pause often. Listen always. Listen deeply with the ear of the heart. Our reading is formational not informational. Engage physically with the text: you may choose to read while standing; use simple rituals such as lighting a candle or using a gong. Read with reverence and expectation to receive.

MEDITATIO (Reflection)

Reflection – Repeating – Ruminating - Remembering

As we “chew” on a word or words or a phrase we let the word(s) or phrase penetrate us, its nourishment entering deeply within us; not so much reading the text as listening to the word; to taste (sapere) is the root word of wisdom. Psalm 34.8 – “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”

ORATIO (Prayer)

Movement into Prayer: the Word becomes truth in our inmost beings. It is no longer “I” who interprets, but the passage interprets me. I know that God is near or I know that I want God to be near. Ask for a word of life. Scriptures gradually penetrate and become our own internal concordance, surfacing in memory.

CONTEMPLATIO (Contemplation)

We enter a silent awareness of God's presence, encountering the Word beyond words. We rest in the gaze of loving awareness with a heightened sense that God simply “is.” This is not an unusual ecstasy that comes over us, but rather the free choice to say yes to love. We are not thinking or speaking; but loving God, knowing God, rather than thinking about God. We may be surprised by the unexpected.

The four movements of Lectio Divina do not necessarily follow sequentially. It does not automatically follow that the fourth movement will follow the first three. It may follow the second; it may not happen every time we pray. We invoke and open ourselves to the Spirit when we engage in Divine Reading as we do in all prayer.

To receive a comprehensive bibliography of books and articles on Lectio Divina, compiled by Tom Kinzie, please email Anne Larochelle at marlan2@telus.net.

COGV is grateful to Deborah Foster for preparing this summary of the workshop. Deborah is a MATS (Spirituality) student at the Vancouver School of Theology, a member of St. John’s Anglican Church in North Vancouver, and a trained presenter of Centering Prayer Introductory Workshop.

“We wait patiently; in silence, openness, and quiet expectancy, motionless within and without. We surrender to the attraction to be still, to be loved, just to be.”

- Thomas Keating, Open Mind Open Heart

“Silence is God’s first language; everything else is a poor translation. In order to hear that language, we must learn to be still and to rest in God.”

- Thomas Keating, Invitation to Love

“Total response to Christ is only possible when we hear his word on every level of our being, including the deepest level, which is that of interior silence.”

- Thomas Keating, Heart of the World