Lectio Divina

During our lectio divina study in Luke last week, I think the Christian understanding of scripture became very clear. Even as a Christian myself, I suppose that I never really thought of what the "Christian" understanding of scripture was. I think that especially in lectio divina, it was clear to see that the Bible is intended to have an effect on the individual experiencing it. I think that so often, religious services take that individual experience out of the equation. Scripture becomes less of an experience and that is replaced by a star in the bulletin indicating that it is time to stand and hear the Gospel.

Another Christian element of scripture, is that it speaks for itself. As in the Parable of the Sower, I think many people in our class had very different experiences with lectio divina. For some, it was a new experience which allowed them to experience scripture in their own way and to apply it to their own lives. For others, it may have been difficult to focus on the words because of other things going on in their lives. The thing is, both of these reactions are typical Chrisitian reactions to scripture. As a Christian, I am not always spiritually "there," so to speak. There will be times when scripture will speak to me in a profound way, and others when scripture doesn't make sense to me, or falls on deaf ears.

Finally, leading that lectio study was an deeply spiritual experience for me...even more so than if I had lead that study in a bible study group or in church. I was able to see scripture "effect" people, maybe not in a particularly spiritual way in all cases...but it effected people. Everyone had something to share and it was so nice hearing everyone's own experiences with faith. Thank you to everyone who shared those experiences with the rest of us. I feel like scripture and shared faith experiences can lead to a valuable spiritual dialogue between members of different faiths as well as those who share the same faith. It was encouraging to see that happen in that class.