LENT, LITURGY AND LECTIO DIVINA

Bishop Paul S. Coakley

THE SEASON OF LENT is a time of grace and opportunity.   It is a time to respond more generously to Christ’s call to repentance and discipleship as we prepare to celebrate the mystery of the Lord’s suffering, death and resurrection during the Easter Triduum.

By now, most Catholics have adopted their special Lenten practices based on the traditional disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. All three of these disciplines support and strengthen each other to ensure that our Lenten practices are balanced and achieve their authentic objective, which is to come closer to Christ by turning away from sin and growing in love for God and one another.

ONE OF THE MOST beneficial ways of entering into the season of Lent is to participate as fully as possible in the Church’s liturgy.  The prayers and hymns of the Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours draw us into the mystery of God’s love for us.  The scripture readings from the Mass reveal the unfolding of God’s plan for our salvation. 

Even if we cannot attend daily Mass during Lent we can draw great profit from a daily reading and prayerful reflection on the Lenten Mass readings.  These are available in daily missals, through various websites (www.usccb.org/nab/), and in many popular devotional aids.  There is no greater source for our prayer during Lent and throughout the year than a prayerful reading of the Scriptures, especially the Gospels.

Many Catholics may not know where to begin or how to approach the Bible in order to profit from daily Scripture reading.  Reading the Scriptures with the Church by following the daily readings from the Mass provides a daily guide that ensures a thorough exposure to the whole of God’s saving truth and plan for our salvation. 

HOW DOES ONE approach this kind of biblical reading?  It is certainly helpful to have a good Catholic study bible which can provide some background and context for the various biblical texts.  Catholic bible studies can also be valuable in helping us grow in our biblical literacy.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a helpful companion as well.  These are beneficial, but they are not enough.  They are tools; but they only prepare us for the saving encounter with God’s word.

“Faith, then, comes through hearing,” as St. Paul teaches in the Letter to the Romans (10:17).  The liturgical assembly is the primary place where we encounter God’s saving word.  The Liturgy of the Word at Mass, including the homily, has great power to touch and convert our hearts.  But we can prepare ourselves to benefit as fully as possible from that liturgical proclamation through our own personal and prayerful reading of the bible.  The traditional name for this slow prayerful reading of the bible is lectio divina. 

By calling on the Holy Spirit and then slowly and reverently reading, reflecting, and responding to God’s word we allow the Word of God to gently and gradually penetrate our hearts and transform us.  

THIS IS A SPIRITUAL exercise which requires patience and perseverance.  We have to slow ourselves down, wait on the Lord, listen, and then respond to the prompting of his grace when some word or phrase or insight touches us.  Choose a text (from the daily readings or another text), find a quiet place and set aside a few minutes for the Lord.  Daily fidelity to lectio divina is a source of solid spiritual nourishment which will enrich our participation in the Mass and convert our hearts to Christ. 

Published The Register

2/15/08