Lectio Divina: Holy Reading During Christmastide

The seasons of Advent and Christmas - yes, dear friend, Christmas is an entire season lasting beyond Boxing Day and New Year's Eve - are seasons of the Word Incarnate. Each year, the Church provides us with a lavish feast of readings in the Mass that immerse us in the mystery and revelation of the Incarnation.

For those of us who attend the Ordinariate Liturgy - Divine Worship - or the Latin Mass (1962 Missal), we are blessed with hearing most days the Last Gospel. Divine Worship contains and proclaims a particularly beautiful translation of the Gospel of Saint John, Chapter 1 verses 1 to 14.

We who are created in the image and likeness of God - we are little words of God spoken by the Word of God - would do well to acquaint ourselves with God's holy word, for the word of God is a pool of living water in which we may be refreshed.

This Christmas, take a vacation with the word of God. Dine on some scripture - the readings of the Mass, perhaps? - even a minute or two, every day of Christmastide.

Divine Reading - What is Lectio Divina?

The four movements of lectio divina (from Verbum Domini):

1. Reading the text leads to understanding its true content.
2. Meditation allows the text to speak to us individually and as a community.
3. Prayer is our response to God's word.
4. Contemplation (which is a gift of God given by God as He sees fit) enables us to see reality as God sees it.

Traditionally, lectio divina was a communal liturgy performed by monks in monasteries. Although it can be done independently, the communal aspect should not be disregarded.

Resource

• https://www.archtoronto.org/lectio

Lectio Divina has been compared to "feasting on the Word" (from the Catholic Archdiocese of Saint John's)

1. first, taking a mouthful (lectio, the reading of the text), then
2. chewing on it (meditatio, reflecting on the meaning of the passage),
3. savouring its essence (oratio, prayer in response to the text), and finally
4. "digesting" it and assimilating it (contemplatio, a gift from God).

Lectio divina is a practice of reading and meditating on Scripture. It involves a prayerful and contemplative approach to the biblical text, aiming to bridge the gap between spirituality and daily life, faith and life. The practice of lectio divina can be done individually or in a communal setting, and it is seen as a means to cultivate a deep love for sacred Scripture, promote a better understanding of the liturgy, and discern God's will [1,2,3,4,5].

According to the Pontifical Biblical Commission, lectio divina is a reading of Scripture, either individually or communally, that leads to meditation, prayer, and contemplation. It has its roots in early church custom and was practiced in the monastic life. The goal of lectio divina is to foster a love for sacred Scripture, nourish the interior life, and promote apostolic fruitfulness. The document also emphasizes the importance of regular and assiduous reading of Scripture for priests, religious, and all the faithful [1].

Pope Francis in his document Vultum Dei quaerere highlights lectio divina as an art that helps us connect the biblical text to our daily lives. It is described as an existential interpretation of Scripture that guides us from hearing to knowledge, and from knowledge to love. Through prayerful and assiduous reading of the Bible, dialogue with God becomes a daily reality. Lectio divina is seen as a means to cultivate a docile, wise, and discerning heart, enabling us to discern God's will and avoid conforming to the mentality of the world [2].

The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in the Homiletic Directory recommends lectio divina as a method for preachers to have a profound dialogue with the word of God. It consists of reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation. This fourfold approach is rooted in the patristic exegesis of the spiritual senses of Scripture and has been developed by monks and nuns throughout history. Lectio divina should lead to action, moving believers to make their lives a gift for others in charity [3].

In Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis describes lectio divina as a way of listening to what the Lord wishes to tell us in his word and allowing ourselves to be transformed by the Spirit. It involves prayerful reading of the Bible, which should be integrated with the study undertaken by preachers to ascertain the central message of the text. The spiritual reading of a text should start with its literal sense to avoid using the text for personal benefit. Lectio divina is seen as a means to enlighten and renew us, and it should lead to a deeper encounter with Christ [4].

Pope Benedict XVI in Verbum Domini also emphasizes the importance of lectio divina. He describes the basic steps of this practice, which include reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation. Reading the text leads to understanding its true content, meditation allows the text to speak to us individually and as a community, prayer is our response to God's word, and contemplation (which God provides as He so wills) enables us to see reality as God sees it. Lectio divina is seen as a means of transformation and discernment, leading to a life that is conformed to the will of God [5].

Pope Benedict XVI, Apostolic Exhortation Verbum Domini

(Lectio Divina) opens with the reading (lectio) of a text, which leads to a desire to understand its true content: what does the biblical text say in itself? Without this, there is always a risk that the text will become a pretext for never moving beyond our own ideas. Next comes meditation (meditatio), which asks: what does the biblical text say to us? Here, each person, individually but also as a member of the community, must let himself or herself be moved and challenged. Following this comes prayer (oratio), which asks the question: what do we say to the Lord in response to his word? Prayer, as petition, intercession, thanksgiving and praise, is the primary way by which the word transforms us. Finally, lectio divina concludes with contemplation (contemplatio), during which we take up, as a gift from God, his own way of seeing and judging reality, and ask ourselves what conversion of mind, heart and life is the Lord asking of us? In the Letter to the Romans, Saint Paul tells us: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect" (Rom 12:2). Contemplation aims at creating within us a truly wise and discerning vision of reality, as God sees it, and at forming within us "the mind of Christ" (1 Cor 2:16). The word of God appears here as a criterion for discernment: it is "living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Heb 4:12). We do well also to remember that the process of lectio divina is not concluded until it arrives at action (actio), which moves the believer to make his or her life a gift for others in charity (87).

Homiletic Directory

36. Pope Benedict XVI added a coda to the traditional fourfold process of lectio divina: "We do well also to remember that the process of lectio divina is not concluded until it arrives at action (actio), which moves the believer to make his or her life a gift for others in charity" (VD 87). Viewed in its liturgical context, this suggests the "missa," the sending out of God’s people who have been instructed by God’s Word and nourished by their participation in the Paschal Mystery through the Eucharist. It is significant that the Exhortation Verbum Domini concludes with a lengthy consideration of the Word of God in the world; preaching, when combined with the nourishment of the sacraments received in faith, opens up the members of the liturgical assembly to practical expressions of charity. Similarly, citing Pope John Paul II’s teaching that "communion and mission are profoundly interconnected" (Christifideles laici 32), Pope Francis exhorts all believers:

In fidelity to the example of the Master, it is vitally important for the Church today to go forth and preach the Gospel to all: to all places, on all occasions, without hesitation, reluctance or fear. The joy of the Gospel is for all people: no one can be excluded (EG 23).

Notes

1. The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/pcb_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19930415_interpretazione_it.html
2. Vultum Dei quaerere 20 https://www.vatican.va/content/dam/francesco/pdf/apost_constitutions/documents/papa-francesco_costituzione-ap_20160629_vultum-dei-quaerere_en.pdf
3. Homiletic Directory (29 June 2014) 27 https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20140629_direttorio-omiletico_en.html
4. Evangelii Gaudium 152 https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20131124_evangelii-gaudium.html
5. Verbum Domini 87 https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_ben-xvi_exh_20100930_verbum-domini.html