Oblates of St. Benedict » Lectio Divina

Scripture Should Lead to ‘Personal Encounter With the Lord of Life’

admin — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:25:23 +0000

VATICAN CITY (EWTN News/CNA)—Pope Benedict XVI spoke today about Psalm 119 as a wonderful discourse on the breadth and depth of man’s relationship with God.

The Psalmist’s song “voices the range of sentiments which fill the hearts of those who pray: praise, thanksgiving, trust, supplication and lament, all within the context of a heartfelt openness to the Lord’s word,” the Pope said.

He explained to the pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Nov. 9 general audience that the Psalm is “an acrostic” – an ancient poetic structure in which each stanza contains eight verses and begins with a different letter from the 22-word Hebrew alphabet. These 22 stanzas also make the Psalm the longest in the Bible.

“This is a very challenging and original literary construction, in which the author of the Psalm had to deploy all his skills,” said the Pope, “but what is more important for us is the central theme of this Psalm.”

This theme was the Psalmist’s proclamation of “his love for God’s Law, which brings light, life and salvation,” recounted in his “solemn celebration of the Torah, the Law of the Lord.”

It is a Psalm “pervaded by the certainty of divine grace and the power of the word of God,” such that even the verses most marked by suffering and darkness remain “open to hope and are permeated with faith.”

“The Psalmist’s faithfulness arises from listening to the word, from keeping it in his heart, meditating upon it,” the Pope taught, drawing a parallel with the Virign Mary, who “‘treasured in her heart’ the words addressed to her, the marvelous events in which God revealed himself and asked for her response of faith.”

When Christians pray this Psalm, they see Mary as the model of the same “loving docility to God’s will and in Jesus the fulfillment of the Law,” said the Pope.

This is a dynamic relationship, he explained, where the word of God is “listened to with obedience but not servility, with filial trust and awareness,” which brings about a “personal encounter with the Lord of life.”

As an example of such an encounter, the Pope focused in on the Psalm’s verse 57, which proclaims, “The Lord is my portion; I promise to keep your words.”

He explained how the term “portion” refers to “the partition of the Promised Land among the tribes of Israel, when the Levites were given no part of the territory because their ‘portion’ was the Lord himself.” Among the 12 tribes of Israel, only the tribe of Levi could not own land because it was tasked with specific religious duties.

These verses, said the Pope, have particular resonance today for Catholic priests “who are called to live from the Lord and from his word alone, with no other guarantees, no other wealth, and having him as their one source of true life.”

“It is in this light,” he said, “that we can understand the free choice of celibacy for the Kingdom of heaven, which must be rediscovered in all its beauty and power.”

At the same time, the Psalm speaks to all the Christian faithful, who are “called to experience the radical nature of the Gospel, to be witnesses of the life brought by Christ, the new and definitive ‘High Priest,’” Pope Benedict said.

Saint John’s Bible Completed

admin — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 18:30:05 +0000

The Washington Post acclaimed the completion of the Saint John's Bible with Hallelujah! in a headline. Abbot John Klassen OSB and Father Bob Koopmann OSB happily announced the completion of The Saint John's Bible at a press conference at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) on Thursday, September 15. The Bible is a monumental work: seven volumes that contain all 73 books of the Old and New Testaments; 1,150 pages with 160 illuminations.

The project took fifteen years, required collaboration among theologians, art historians, scripture scholars, calligraphers, and artists, and cost over $8M. The Bible project was inspired by the biblical and liturgical spirituality of Benedictine monastic life. Pre-Gutenberg monks copied manuscripts in order to transmit texts to succeeding generations. The monks of Saint John's Abbey commissioned a Bible for our time, the beginning of the 21st century and a new millennium. Never before had there been a handwritten, illuminated Bible with a view of the planet Earth from outer space, the inclusion of the image of the HIV virus, or the double helices of DNA. "The project was conceived and overseen by Donald Jackson, one of the world's foremost calligraphers and Senior Scribe to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth's Crown Office at the House of Lords" (MPR News).

[Original Post: St. Leo Abbey]

Silence allows people to hear God

admin — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 08:51:36 +0000

Castel Gandolfo, Italy, Aug 10, 2011 / 12:04 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- We need to make time for silence in our lives if we are to pray and listen to God, said Pope Benedict XVI in his weekly general audience, August 10.

“Silence is the environment that best promotes recollection, listening to God, meditation,” he told pilgrims gathered at his summer residence in the hilltop town of Castel Gandolfo, 15 miles south of Rome.

“The very fact that a taste of silence leaves us, so to speak, to ‘fill’ the silence predisposes us to prayer.”

It is for this reason, noted the Pope, that monks and nuns have traditionally established their communities “in particularly beautiful places, in the countryside, in hills, in mountainous valleys, along lakes or seas, or even on small islands.”

“These sites combine two very important elements for the contemplative life: the beauty of creation, which refers to that of the Creator, and the silence guaranteed by their remoteness from the cities and highways of communication.”

The Pope charted the history of man’s quest for God – and God’s quest for man – conducted through silence and prayer.

From the Old Testament, he noted that God spoke to the prophet Elijah on Mount Sinai in “the gentle breeze” rather than through wind, earthquake or fire.

He then highlighted the thirteenth-century life of St. Clare of Assisi - whose feast day is tomorrow – observing how she created a community at San Damiano on the outskirts of Assisi, “living on prayer and small jobs.”

“God speaks in silence, but you need to know how to listen,” said the Pope. “For that, monasteries are oases in which God speaks to humanity; in them one finds the cloister, a symbolic place, because it is an enclosed space but open to the sky.”

Hence, when we are “looking at things from a spiritual perspective,” the spirit of monastic places actually provides the “backbone of the world!” he said.

Pope Benedict suggested it was “no coincidence” that so many people, especially during times of rest, choose to stay for a few days in convents or monasteries, since “the soul, thank God, has its own needs!”

The Pope then concluded his address by pointing to the Virgin Mary as the person who can best “teach us to love silence and prayer.” He finished the audience by leading pilgrims in the recitation of the Our Father and imparting his apostolic blessing.

The Purpose of Reading

admin — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 09:29:26 +0000

Reading should serve prayer, should dispose the affections, should neither devour the hours nor gobble up the moments of prayer. When you read you are taught about Christ, but when you pray you join him in familiar colloquy. How much more enchanting is the grace of speaking with him than about him!

Gilbert of Hoyland

Three Keys to Hearing God’s Voice

admin — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 08:28:59 +0000

Pope Benedict XVI tells us that as much as we may like quick answers, we can gain clarity on the enigmas of life only as we take the time to immerse ourselves in the word of God. So in this article, we want to look at how we can meet Jesus, the living Word of God, in the Bible, which is the written word of God. We want to make three practical recommendations that will help us hear God's own voice and sense his presence as we ponder his word in Scripture.

Read Every Day!
May every day of our lives thus be shaped by a renewed encounter with Christ, the Word of the Father made flesh." (Verbum Domini, 124)

The first step sounds obvious, but it's one that we can often overlook: Set aside time to read the Scriptures every day. Schedule it in your day. Do it first thing in the morning. Become familiar with the story of the Bible so that you can see how God has worked throughout the ages. Discover for yourself how patiently God has worked, teaching us his ways and preparing us for the coming of the Lord. And don't be afraid to use reliable commentaries and Bible studies to help you. The more you know about the background, history, and context of the Bible, the better you can piece together its story. . . .

Become Part of the Scriptures
"The word of God draws each of us into a conversation with the Lord: the God who speaks teaches us how to speak to him." (Verbum Domini, 24)

As you read every day, try to imagine yourself in whatever scene you are reading. When he read the Gospels, St. Ignatius of Loyola would often picture himself as one of Jesus' disciples so that he could observe closely every¬thing that was going on. He would imagine himself as an extra witness at the Last Supper, drinking in every¬thing around him as Jesus offered the first Eucharist. He would look closely at Jesus' face as he forgave the woman caught in adultery or as he challenged the Pharisees and Sadducees. He would join Mary Magdalene and the apostle John at Calvary and observe the sights and sounds of the day when Jesus died for him. . . .

Slow Down and Listen
"Only in silence can the word of God find a home in us, as it did in Mary, woman of the word and, inseparably, woman of silence." (Verbum Domini, 66)

Placing yourself in the Bible this way may feel like nothing more than playing make-believe at first. How can you tell if the things you are picturing are coming from your own imagination or from God? The key here is through quiet listening. We live in a very noisy, active world, and all that activity can influence our time with the Scriptures. It can be tempting, as you are placing yourself in a scene from the Bible, to lose sight of your goal and let your imagination run away with you. You may end up spending all your time picturing the scene in detail, imagining the people's reactions, and letting the story continue to unfold. But all this imaginative activity has to be balanced with silence and stillness. How else will you be able to hear God's voice? If a particular word or phrase or image catches your attention, stop and dwell on it. Slow down. Take your time. Don't worry about getting to the end of the story or the end of the psalm. Instead, mull over it. Wait for the Lord to speak to you. It could be as simple as Jesus' words "Have faith in God" at the Last Supper (John 14:1), or it could be as involved as Paul's statement that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13). Whatever it is, take time to let it unfold. Repeat the word or phrase over and over again, asking the Lord what he wants to say to you. Write down any impressions you may have. Quiet your heart, breathe deeply, and receive whatever God wants to give you.

Selections from "Encountering the God Who Speaks"
the Word Among Us, May 31, 2011 (pp. 11-14)