Praying with the Scriptures

II. Praying With The Scriptures (Lectio Divina)

The method of prayer used during the Missionary Cenacle Spiritual Exercises is  “lectio divina.” This ancient prayer practice has proven to be of great value in deepening the spiritual life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes “lectio divina” as happening where “the Word of God is so read and meditated that it becomes prayer.”

There are several excellent resources on “lectio divina.” Below are some excerpts from a book entitled Lectio Divina by M. Basil Pennington: 

“One of the most amazing statements in the Bible – and there are lots of amazing statements – are those words of Jesus to us: 'I no longer call you servants, but friends.'  . . Friend! One with whom we can share anything and everything, one with whom there is full communion and communication. Our communication with our Divine Friend needs to be a two-way street. And if we are smart, we let God get the first word in. For he surely has a lot more that is worth saying. This is precisely what lectio or more properly, lectio divina is: letting our Divine Friend speak to us through his inspired and inspiring Word. And yes, of course, it includes our response to that Word, to his communication to us through that Word. Lectio is meeting with a friend, a very special Friend who is God; listening to him, really listening; and responding, in intimate prayer and in the way we take that Word with us and let it shape our lives.”

“The Bible bespeaks a Real Presence, a place where we can encounter the living God whenever we will. When it comes time for our lectio, we pick up our book with reverence. For just a moment we reflect on the wonder of the Divine Reality, present here in his Word in this book in our hands. And we turn to Holy Spirit. This Word is so special because the Holy Spirit in a very special way inspired these writers to write all and only what God wanted to use to communicate with us. As our Lord told us at the Last Supper, the Holy Spirit abides with us to teach us all things, bringing to mind all that he has taught us. So we ask the Holy Spirit, who inspired these texts and who abides within us as teacher, to make them now a living communication with the Lord, to help us to understand all that the Lord now wants to communicate to us. . . . We listen. We don’t just read. The Lord is present, speaking to us. We listen to him. And we respond. In lectio we have the wisdom not only to give God a chance to say something to us, but to let him speak first and give direction to our conversation.”