Lectio Divina

Join Jory from Methods in this contemplative meditation on the Kingdom of God. In this episode, we introduce the practice of Lectio Divina, or "divine reading" an ancient method of relating to scripture. In this process, we engage the text not buy studying it in an academic way, but instead by relating to it. We begin by Lectio (reading), followed by meditatio (meditating), and then oratorio (prayer). We end in a silent time of contemplation. This way of relating to the Bible, or your holy text of choice can draw you closer to it in a more intimate way, breathing life into the text, and letting the text breathe into you.

Transcript

Hello,

And welcome to Methods,

An online experiment in guided prayer and meditation brought to you by The Restoration Project.

Each episode will focus on a different prayer practice or method,

But we hope to provide you with opportunities to praise,

To wonder,

To give thanks and confess,

And to contemplate the depths of God's goodness and mercy and mystery.

To aid in this process,

We invite you to silence your notifications and find a comfortable place to sit and reflect on God's presence.

Episode 3 We live in a broken and divided world.

As a result,

It can be difficult to enter into a time of prayerful reflection due to the noise from competing voices,

Competing claims,

Competing stories,

And competing ideologies that lobby for space in our minds.

Perhaps we are sidetracked by images and experiences of division.

We may hear the loud arguments of politicians and world leaders vying for power.

We may be overly concerned with the polarizing viewpoints on our social media feeds.

We may hear the negativity and critique of our friends and family.

To begin this episode then,

Let's pause and pray for the areas of division we experience in our nation,

In our churches,

In our workspaces,

In our families.

To guide our thoughts,

Hear these words from the Book of Common Prayer.

O God,

The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Our only Savior,

The Prince of Peace,

Give us grace to lay to heart the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions.

Take away all hatred and prejudice and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord.

That,

As there is but one body and one spirit,

One hope of our calling,

One Lord,

One faith,

One baptism,

One God and Father of us all,

So we may be all of one heart and of one soul,

United in one holy bond of truth and peace,

Of faith and charity.

And we may with one mind and one mouth glorify you through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Take a moment to petition the Lord to take away all of our hatred and prejudice and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord with our brothers and sisters.

Savior,

Father of us,

God of us,

The Messiah,

And carry out your will over us.

And may we also pause to celebrate the unity that is found in Jesus Christ.

In addition to our experience of division and our participation in it,

Our prayers are also impeded by other areas of our sinfulness.

Therefore,

Before we attempt to hear from God through the reading of Scripture,

Let us confess our sins.

Consider these words and use them as a template to make your sins known to our gracious God.

God of grace,

We confess that we have elevated the things of this world above you.

We have elevated the things of this world above you.

We have made idols of possessions and people and used your name for causes that are not consistent with you and your purposes.

We have made idols of possessions and people and used your name for causes that are not consistent with you and your purposes.

We have permitted our schedules to come first and have not taken the time to worship you.

We have permitted our schedules to come first and have not taken the time to worship you.

We have not always honored those who guided us in life.

We have not always honored those who guided us in life.

We have not always honored those who guided us in life.

We have participated in systems that take life instead of give it.

We have participated in systems that take life instead of give it.

We have been unfaithful in our covenant relationships.

We have been unfaithful in our covenant relationships.

We have yearned for and sometimes taken that which is not ours and we have misrepresented others intentions.

We have been unfaithful in our covenant relationships.

Forgive us,

O God,

For the many ways we fall short of your glory.

Help us to learn to live together according to your ways through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Amen.

In spite of our sinfulness we can be assured of our forgiveness.

For the God who challenges us is also the God who encourages us.

The God who confronts us is also the God who accepts us.

We may be assured that God is with us even now accepting,

Guiding,

And forgiving.

Thanks be to God.

Let's give thanks for the graciousness we experience in God's forgiveness.

Amen.

In this episode we will practice a method of prayerful reflection called Lectio Divina.

Because of our situatedness in a critical culture we approach literature with questions.

We seek to understand the author's voice in its proper historical and literary context.

We critique a text's message for its own time and ours.

We busy ourselves with the task of deconstruction and reconstruction.

There is certainly a place for all these interpretive endeavors.

Lectio Divina is different.

It is a holy or sacred reading.

It is a reading of the Bible that engages other faculties of our mind and spirit.

It is a reading that insists we silence our first and natural response,

That is,

Our critical voice.

It is a reading that demands we slow down.

And rather than speaking and questioning and critiquing,

It urges us to listen prayerfully.

In his book,

The Sacred Way,

Tony Jones writes,

Lectio Divina assumes that by entering deeply into the text of God's holy word,

God will be made known to us,

Speak to us,

And shape our lives.

So prayerfully,

Hopefully,

And with much anticipation and expectation,

I invite you to consider the words from the pages of the New Testament and to engage in a holy reading by allowing them to speak to your soul here and now in the stillness of this room.

The method works like this.

I will read the same passage of Scripture three times.

I will ask reflective questions that allow you to voice how the Spirit is leading and guiding you.

Our reading is found in Paul's letter to the Galatians,

Chapter 3,

Verses 26 through 29.

So in Christ Jesus,

You are all children of God through faith.

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

There is neither Jew nor Gentile,

Neither slave nor free,

Nor is there male and female.

For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

If you belong to Christ,

Then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise.

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

So in Christ Jesus,

You are all children of God through faith.

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

There is neither Jew nor Gentile,

Neither slave nor free,

Nor is there male and female.

For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

If you belong to Christ,

Then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise.

How is this word or phrase informing your understanding of God or yourself or the world around you?

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

What word or phrase in this passage is speaking to you?

So in Christ Jesus,

You are all children of God through faith.

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

There is neither Jew nor Gentile,

Neither slave nor free,

Nor is there male and female.

For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

If you belong to Christ,

Then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise.

How is God asking you to move from reflection to application?

How is God asking you to move from reflection to application?

How is God asking you to move from reflection to application?

How is God asking you to move from reflection to application?

How is God asking you to move from reflection to application?

Amen.

And now we will end our time of prayer and meditation and holy reading with a profession of faith known as the Apostles Creed.

May this declaration serve to reorient our lives and empower us with the knowledge that we stand together in the blessed and unified community of the saints.

We believe in God,

The Father Almighty,

Maker of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ,

His only son,

Our Lord,

Who is conceived by the Holy Spirit,

Born of the Virgin Mary,

Suffered under Pontius Pilate,

Was crucified,

Dead and buried.

He descended into hell.

The third day he rose again from the dead.

He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God,

The Father Almighty.

From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

We believe in the Holy Spirit,

The Holy Catholic Church,

The communion of saints,

The forgiveness of sins,

The resurrection of the body,

And the life everlasting.

Amen.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

Thank you for participating in Methods.

Sources used in this episode included the Book of Common Prayer,

The Worship Sourcebook,

And the Sacred Way,

Spiritual Practices for Everyday Life by Tony Jones.

Thanks for listening.

Reviews

Thank you for sharing this uplifting inspirational meditation with us, God bless

Being led in confession is important in our relationship with our Lord God. Thank you for including that in this Lectio Divina.

Magnificent and comforting while inspiring our inward reflection. Namaste

Perfect! Just what I needed this new year, new day!

Another great meditation. I am now a follower of Methods. Thank you for sharing your light!

Thank you Jory. This was an amazing blessing to me this morning. May you have a blessed day.

Stellar. Just what I was looking for.

Beautifully engaging and enlightening. Thank you for reminding me of the power of meditative prayer.

This was wonderful! Thank you ✝️❣️

I practiced Lectio Divina for a short while, and continued occasionally after s group inquiry into the book "The Artist's Rule". As I've drifted into the experience of other practices, I haven't done it for a while and it was good to do it again with your excellent guidance. Thank you for offering this. 🙏🕊

I practiced Lectio Divina for a short while, and continued occasionally after s group inquiry into the book "The Artist's Rule". As I've drifted into the experience of other practices, I haven't done it for a while and it was good to do it again with your excellent guidance. Thank you for offering this. 🙏🕊

I really like this meditation, one of my new favorites! Thank you :-)