I Thirst Follow Up Lectio Divina Fr. Jacob Hsieh Week 25

Evangelization Challenge:

Invite a friend or family member to practice praying through Lectio Divina.  Let the know you are learning too and that it will be a good experience to grow in faith together.  You can also do this with a ministry you are part of.

Notes on Catholic Lectio Divina:

The premise of lectio divina is meditating on the Word of God and immersing yourself in the mysteries of Christ through sacred Scripture. (A sound substitute for sacred Scripture is the Catechism of the Catholic Church by way of meditating on a key doctrine of the faith.)

Catholic Church Catechism

2708 Meditation engages thought, imagination, emotion, and desire. This mobilization of faculties is necessary in order to deepen our convictions of faith, prompt the conversion of our heart, and strengthen our will to follow Christ. Christian prayer tries above all to meditate on the mysteries of Christ, as in lectio divina or the rosary. This form of prayerful reflection is of great value, but Christian prayer should go further: to the knowledge of the love of the Lord Jesus, to union with him.

Guide to Lectio Divina

Evangelization Challenge:

With Lectio Divina you can learn as a family, prayer group, church group, co-workers.  Children included!  Pray to the Holy Spirit to show you a path to Lectio Divina in. your life.  It may be challenging.  Practice Lectio Divina on your own to start if you like then fine at least one person to work with

A Guide to Lectio Divina

“To get the full flavor of an herb, it must be pressed between the fingers. So it is the same with the Scriptures; the more familiar they become, the more they reveal their hidden treasures and yield their indescribable riches.”

—St. John Chrysostom, 347-407 A.D

Lectio divina, an ancient method of praying while reading the Scriptures, is today being used to bring many Catholics back to a more profound understanding of the Scriptures, the Word of God.

Catholics in the past have sometimes tended to be less familiar with the Bible than, for example, evangelical Protestants, who can often cite Scripture verses with great ease because they study the Bible so closely. What can be done to help Catholics become more familiar with the Word of God? The answer lies in two Latin words: lectio divina. Lectio divina is a slow, contemplative praying of the Scriptures so that the Bible — the living Word of God — becomes a means of union with God. This ancient and powerful form of praying with Scripture was practiced by the early Christian monks and was prescribed in the monastic rules of Sts. Pachomius, Augustine, Basil and Benedict.

Centrality of the Bible

God’s Word is, of course, crucial to the life of the Catholic Church. In fact, the last two Popes — the late Pope John Paul II and Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI — urged Catholics to study Sacred Scripture. Now the American Bible Society, in a publishing venture together with the Vatican Press under the vibrant direction of Father Giuseppe Costa, S.D.B., is helping Catholics respond to that call.

Pope Benedict solidly supported lectio divina. In a 2005 speech, he recommended this ancient method of prayer: “The diligent reading of Sacred Scripture accompanied by prayer brings about that intimate dialogue in which the person reading hears God who is speaking, and in praying, responds to him with trusting openness of heart.”

“Our mission is the Word of God,” Mario Paredes, liaison to the Roman Catholic Church at the American Bible Society, said. “We join in partnership with the Catholic Church and are presenting lectio divina as our flagship program serving Catholics everywhere.”

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