Lectio Divina

As I mentioned in my May book report, I have been reading some about Lectio Divina (thanks entirely to the Holy Spirit's promptings) and wow.  What a blessing.  Good, good stuff.  Why am I just discovering this now instead of 10-15 years ago??  But alas, here I am.  I am currently reading Conversing with God in Scripture by Stephen J. Binz and wanted to takes the opportunity to share some of the treasures from this book on my blog.

We should always keep in mind that lectio is not just ordinary reading.  It might best be described as listening deeply - what Benedict (sixth century) described in his community rule as hearing "with the ear of our hearts."  In lectio, God speaks and I listen.

On our part, this listening requires that we do our best to receive God's word with as little prejudgment as possible, as if we were hearing it for the first time.  Though we may find it difficult to step out of our "comfort zone," we cannot listen fully to God if we think we already know what the text is going to tell us.  We don't want to reduce divine communication to the narrow confines of our own ideas and expectations.  Rather, lectio requires that we create a space within us for for the new wisdom and understanding God wants to give us through the sacred page.

I thought that second paragraph was so great.  I can't tell you how many times I am reading the daily readings or some other Scripture-containing item, and see that it is a verse/passage with which I am very familiar so I just gloss over it because "heaven knows I've heard this before."  So that part really hit home.  Continuing...

This kind of hearing requires fully attentive reading.  However, one of the consequences of this information age is that our culture is drowned in written words.  We tend to read in a hurry, curious to learn more and more. But lectio cannot be hasty.  We must read for understanding and assimilation.  Ambrose (fourth century) reached out to our modern era when he wrote, "We should read not in agitation, but in calm; not hurriedly, but slowly, a few words at a time, pausing in attentive reflection....Then the reader will experience their ability to enkindle the ardor of prayer."

This was really great for me as well.  Again, I can totally identify with the whole "read with haste" bit as often, when it comes to articles, blogs etc., I am of the mindset that I need to consume as much as I can in as little time possible.  It's almost like some kind of race or contest or something.  And of course, this has inevitably carried over into my Spiritual reading.  This was a nice reminder to just. slow. down.  Across the board.  Moving on... 

In order to instill in ourselves the sense that reading Scripture is a deep listening, we might consider returning to the practice of reading it aloud.  In the ancient world, where books were precious and rare, people listened to their sacred texts by hearing them read aloud.  This type of hearing required full attention and careful listening.  But even when reading was done in private, reading aloud was the usual practice.  The words were always pronounced vocally; thus, the text was seen with the eyes and heard with the ear.  Both the sight and the sound of the words allowed for easier comprehension and memorization.  This traditional practice is continued in synagogues today, as Jewish believers not only read their Scriptures but pronounce them aloud and often move their bodies rhythmically as they take them to heart.

I loved the idea of reading Scripture aloud.  So simple, yet very profound.  I think I read that previous paragraph 2-3 times to really let it sink in.  There is something about the senses...the more of them we engage the easier it is to internalize, to assimilate. 

For us as well as for our ancestors in the faith, the eyes and ears and even the mind are not the word's final destination.  We listen to the sacred text so that the words of Scripture might finally reside in our hearts.  There we are capable of reflecting on their insights, messages, and inspirations in a way that can radically transform our lives.

I'll end there.  I'm probably bordering on plagiarizing, but I just had to share.  I linked the book on Amazon, but I picked it up at our local Catholic bookstore (I like to support them when I can).  It has been a real insight and a huge blessing to me.  I always wanted to read the Bible, but never really knew how or where to start.  So I just didn't.  Lame, I know.  I used the excuse that I read the daily readings and the canticles and Psalms and such in Christian Prayer, so that was enough.  And while that is certainly good, don't get me wrong, there is so much more out there and I am just now slowly discovering that.  Faith is such a journey, that's for sure, and I have found Conversing with God in Scripture to be incredibly helpful for me on this leg of my journey.  I pray that the profound beauty of God's Word in the Scriptures may radically transform all our lives as we journey towards our one Eternal Goal.

Lessons from the High Places

I recently finished Hinds' Feet on High Places, and also read the "Lessons" and autobiography at the end. When I was younger I never read prologues, epilogues, autobiographies, anything like that. As I've gotten older, I've begun reading these and have found that often these "added" sections can contain rare gems and interesting insights that would otherwise be overlooked by the reader. This definitely held true with Hinds' Feet. While the book itself was totally amazing, don't get me wrong, the section at the end - "Lessons Learned on the Slopes of the High Places" - was intriguing and awe-inspiring. In this section the author spoke of her experiences during a two-week period spent on the Swiss Alps that led to her "call" to write in the first place. It connected a lot of dots, was very fascinating, and true to its name contained some beautiful lessons. I thought I'd share a few of my favorites here on the blog.

In this lesson, she is speaking of the fickle mountain whether. One moment it is sunny, the next an all-encompassing mist covers everything. The rains come, the thunder can shake you to your foundation. But even so...

"How suddenly the change had come. One moment I was gazing almost breathlessly at the beauty of the Haustock as the clouds lifted from it for the first time. Then just half an hour later all the snow mountains were blotted out as completely as if they did not exist...Then my Lord said, 'These changes come in life, too. For one hour the vision on the Mount, and then perhaps almost directly, the descent into the depths of the valley where the vision may seem to be completely blotted out by changed circumstances. But believe steadfastly in what I showed you in the hours of vision and clear sky. The reality is there still, even though a curtain seems to blot it out. You have seen the Haustock, and though there is no trace of it now, and it has disappeared like a dream, nevertheless it is there. It is a reality. But the mist and cloud are transient and will pass away, and the true reality appear again!'" (page 260)

And then she goes on several pages later, speaking still of the heavy mist...

"If a person had never been here before, that one would not even dimly guess at what lies beyond the curtain of mist. All that I have looked upon and loved and rejoiced over has disappeared completely. 'But it is all there,' says the loving Lord, 'though you cannot see any of it, for it has been completely blotted out and apparently vanished into nothingness. But remember, nothing is missing. It is invisible now but is is waiting to become visible again. And its last message to you is this: Believe steadfastly in the invisible things. For the things which are seen are temporal: but the things which are not seen are eternal' (cf 2 Cor. 4:18)." (page 269)

I guess this was just a really powerful reflection for me on life in general. I get so caught up in the day-to-day that sometimes it is just darn hard to focus on the eternal. On our only real goal in life. The only true "reality" in our journey as children of God. In the story, the five main "bad guys" are Fear, Bitterness, Resentment, Pride and Self-Pity. With this I can totally identify and relate on a pathetically real level. It is so easy to let these stumbling blocks consume me. Frequently. Daily. Hourly. To not see the forest for the trees. To wallow, as it were, grudgingly through the day-to-day without keeping my eyes on the prize, my perspective on the eternal. Oh how I struggle.

In speaking of our journey through life she says,

"In heaven everyone and everything is lovable, but as the Lord Jesus said, 'If ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?" (Matt. 5:46) In heaven everyone loves everyone else, and in hell no one loves anyone. But on earth we are in a perfect environment (emphasis mine, I just love this) for learning to love as God loves: to abandon ourselves to loving the apparently unlovely people who remind us that in many ways we are still very unlovely ourselves! (wow) ... Here on earth we have the opportunity to do what the God of love does all the time, and to learn to abandon ourselves to loving, to giving, to seeking, and to saving others. Not a lovely feeling of affection, or physical pleasure and satisfaction, but the extreme eternal ecstasy of creating happiness and good and blessed things for others to enjoy. To cast ourselves down...in happy giving, asking for nothing in return except the joy of so doing. When we really begin to learn and practice that lesson we shall begin to feel 'at home' in the eternal world of selfless love." (page 277)

And a bit later, as she is viewing the Alps one last time from the airplane...

"In that hour, in the airplane above the Alps, my little narrow, cold, self-centered human heart caught a tiny but staggering glimpse of what it means to be the sons and daughters of the eternal God of love. We are called to love with the fullest capacity of which we are capable. To love as He loves, and so to be an echo - faint and feeble, but a true one - of that eternal self, giving us drops of the water of life, poured out in the cataract of the divine self-giving." (page 284)

This is a book I can see coming back to again and again...and taking away something different and unique yet completely applicable each time. I hope you have enjoyed these reflections. They sure struck a vibrant chord with me.