Lectio Divina means “Divine Reading” and it is a meditative form of prayer (meditation simply means ‘to think about’). Lectio Divina is a divine reading of a particular passage of the Bible. During this “Divine Reading” of Sacred Scripture, one will find himself thinking about Jesus, talking to Jesus, and listening to Jesus. Pretty awesome huh?!? Lectio Divina is the primary way in which I “write” my homilies. Through Lectio Divina you can, and will, establish a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Below I have included a template/list of step-by-step instructions which will teach you how to “do” Lectio Divina. Enjoy!
Lectio Divina
Silence:
First, quiet the internal and external senses and
invite God to be present in your prayer (2 minutes)
Lectio or Reading:
Prayerfully read slowly the Scripture (Bible) passage. Be attentive to and become acquainted with the Word of God (3 minutes)
Meditatio or Response:
Read the Scripture (Bible) passage again.
Ask and allow the Holy Spirit to direct you through the passage.
Allow Jesus to speak to you through the passage.
Reflect on the passage with your intellect, will and imagination.
What does the Lord want you to experience from the reading? (15 minutes)
Oratio or Prayer:
Re-read the passage again. Let your heart speak to the God who treasures you.
Surrender to the Lord and trust in God’s providence.
Let your prayer be personal and spontaneous (5 minutes)
Contemplatio or Resting in God:
Read the passage again.
Sit quietly and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart in and through the experience of silence (5 minutes)
Some Tips Before You Begin Lectio Divina:
Selecting what passage of the Bible to use:
I often will “do” Lectio Divina with the day’s Gospel passage or the upcoming Sunday Gospel passage. Feel free to shorten the passage if you’d like (you don’t have to use the entire passage). I also recommend selecting any passage of Scripture you find interesting (it can be from the Old or the New Testament). I often find myself doing Lectio Divina with a Gospel passage (I enjoy reading and meditating on Jesus’ words and actions).
Adjust the time spent doing Lectio Divina:
If you noticed, the template instructions is set up for a 30 minute prayer period. Feel free to short the time if you so choose (15 minutes is probably the shortest time you could do).
More Tips:
I often will print off /photo copy the passage that I have chosen for Lectio Divina. I do this so I can underline, or circle, or hi-lite any words or phrases or verses that “jump out at me”. These are often the words/phrases/verses that Jesus is speaking to me through. If you have a copy of the Magnicat or The Word Among Us, feel free to write in those books.
Finally, I want to thank Msgr. Mahwold for this template and for teaching me Lectio Divina back in 2011. It has changed my life!
God Bless You,