I looked up Lectio Divina and the definition of it is Latin for divine reading, spiritual reading, or "holy reading," and represents a traditional Christian practice of prayer and scriptural reading intended to produce communion with God and to increase in the knowledge of God's Word. It is a way of praying with scripture that calls one to study, ponder, listen and pray or even sing and rejoice from God's Word, within the soul.
The process is to begin by Lectio, simply listening to and “be aware” of the reading, to write down the words or phrase that stands out to you, followed by a moment of silence. Secondly is, Meditatio, where the reader reflects on the word by being “aware of a thought or reflection that stands out to you.” Third is Oratio, responding to the word. This is where the reader “is aware of any prayer that rises up in your heart.” And finally is Contemplatio, where the reader “rests in the word” or in the Spirit.
As the class did this exercise in class for, Sonney’s Blues, I found myself looking at the text in a new way. Different things stood out more and I was able to reflect deeper upon the story. I am excited to try reading the Word of God in this way because I believe that I will meditate on it more so. I looked up some pictures for Lectio Divina and thought the image portrayed this method of reading well. It is a scene of meditation and relaxation.
I like this: "Different things stood out more and I was able to reflect deeper upon the story."
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you got a lot out of this way of reading!
I have to say that my first encounter to Lectio made me suspicious. It seemed to be mystical to the extent that it had no practical validation. However, the more we have done it, the more I realize that it is in many ways very similar to my own approach to bible study. I generally am not content to read a passage only once. I find that I understand it better after multiple readings, and when I return to it later, I see even more in it than before. This is part of how one does hermeneutics. Also, scripture does inspire me to pray and to meditate and to write and to live differently. It is just that I do not follow the exact structure of Lectio. I don't try to make my bible study time fit Lectio's schedule, and I don't look specifically for what Lectio looks for - a "prayer that rises up in [my] heart" for instance. Instead, I am much more focused upon understanding its meaning, then, as I think about it, it does to me what it will.
ReplyDeleteLectio Divina has also proved useful for me in better understanding the texts we have read in class.
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