WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:03.680 It's never not a good time to add some spiritual 2 00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:07.280 practices to our lives, whether it's Lent or the dog days 3 00:00:07.280 --> 00:00:10.720 of summer. And so that's what we're going to attempt to do on this 4 00:00:10.720 --> 00:00:12.000 episode of Compass. 5 00:00:16.560 --> 00:00:20.400 Welcome to Compass, finding spirituality in the everyday. My name is Ryan 6 00:00:20.400 --> 00:00:24.000 Dunn. Let's jump right in and learn about an 7 00:00:24.000 --> 00:00:27.760 ancient contemplative spiritual practice that can help us 8 00:00:27.760 --> 00:00:31.360 reflect a little bit more deeply and open an awareness 9 00:00:31.800 --> 00:00:35.640 to the presence of the divine in our daily lives, which is what we're all 10 00:00:35.640 --> 00:00:39.480 about on Compass. We're going to walk through the practice of Lectio 11 00:00:39.800 --> 00:00:43.280 Divina. Lectio Divina simply means divine 12 00:00:43.280 --> 00:00:47.080 reading. It's a way of interacting with sacred texts that 13 00:00:47.400 --> 00:00:50.520 invite us into deep reflection and prayer. 14 00:00:50.840 --> 00:00:53.960 Gregory of Nyssa, who lived about 330 to 15 00:00:53.960 --> 00:00:57.720 395 CE, adapted the practice to Christian 16 00:00:57.720 --> 00:01:01.400 spiritual groups. And then Benedict of Nursia, who lived about 17 00:01:01.400 --> 00:01:04.580 480 to 547 CE, helped to 18 00:01:04.580 --> 00:01:08.180 popularize the practice through its use in Benedictine 19 00:01:08.340 --> 00:01:12.020 monastic communities. What is Lectio 20 00:01:12.020 --> 00:01:15.540 Divina? Well, simply put, it's a way of developing a 21 00:01:15.540 --> 00:01:19.140 closer relationship with God by reflecting prayerfully 22 00:01:19.140 --> 00:01:22.660 on holy words. In Lectio Divina, the 23 00:01:22.740 --> 00:01:26.180 chosen spiritual text is read several times, 24 00:01:26.500 --> 00:01:30.340 giving an opportunity for us to think deeply about it and 25 00:01:30.340 --> 00:01:34.010 then to respond thoughtfully to what we've heard or 26 00:01:34.010 --> 00:01:37.650 read. When we practice Lectio Divina, we can imagine that we're 27 00:01:37.650 --> 00:01:41.290 actually participating in the text, whether that be 28 00:01:41.290 --> 00:01:45.050 through being a witness of the story— so maybe we have a gospel story, 29 00:01:45.050 --> 00:01:48.650 Jesus in action, and we're there looking at it— or simply by 30 00:01:48.650 --> 00:01:52.090 hearing something that may in this case be just 31 00:01:52.250 --> 00:01:55.810 for us. There are generally 4 movements to 32 00:01:55.810 --> 00:01:59.640 Lectio Divina. The first one is Lectio. 33 00:01:59.720 --> 00:02:03.320 That's reading the Bible passage gently and slowly 34 00:02:03.400 --> 00:02:07.240 several times. The passage itself is not really as important 35 00:02:07.400 --> 00:02:11.000 as savoring of each portion of the reading. 36 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:14.680 We're constantly listening for the word or phrase that 37 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:18.240 somehow speaks to us. Think about reading the 38 00:02:18.240 --> 00:02:22.040 text like running your hand over a piece of wood. 39 00:02:22.200 --> 00:02:25.810 What pricks you? Where is the splinter that 40 00:02:25.810 --> 00:02:29.610 sticks out to you? Or where is it particularly smooth and 41 00:02:29.610 --> 00:02:33.130 your hand goes quickly? Or maybe you want to think about it this way: what 42 00:02:33.130 --> 00:02:36.330 words or phrases shimmer for you, or 43 00:02:36.330 --> 00:02:40.010 glimmer, or glisten in your mind's eye? You 44 00:02:40.010 --> 00:02:43.330 read this with your own life and your own choices 45 00:02:43.570 --> 00:02:47.010 in mind. Then the second movement is called 46 00:02:47.010 --> 00:02:50.610 meditatio. This is reflecting on the passage 47 00:02:50.930 --> 00:02:54.470 and thinking about how it applies to your own life. This is 48 00:02:54.470 --> 00:02:57.750 considered to be a very personal reading of the scripture and 49 00:02:58.070 --> 00:03:01.830 then a very personal application of the scripture. 50 00:03:01.990 --> 00:03:05.670 And the key question to kind of keep in mind in this second movement, in 51 00:03:05.670 --> 00:03:09.350 the meditatio movement, is why do you think that the 52 00:03:09.350 --> 00:03:12.790 word or phrase was sticking out to you today? 53 00:03:13.110 --> 00:03:16.630 Why is this at the forefront of your attention? 54 00:03:17.270 --> 00:03:21.110 The third movement is called oratio. It's responding to the 55 00:03:21.110 --> 00:03:24.890 passage by opening our heart to God. This opening can 56 00:03:24.890 --> 00:03:28.570 take the form of prayer, so you might choose to journal through 57 00:03:28.570 --> 00:03:32.250 this time or simply let yourself move into a prayerful 58 00:03:32.250 --> 00:03:36.050 conversation with God in light of what you've experienced through the 59 00:03:36.050 --> 00:03:39.809 first two movements. I get a sense that this might be the movement that provokes 60 00:03:39.809 --> 00:03:43.490 anxiety because we feel like we need to be active in some 61 00:03:43.490 --> 00:03:46.970 way. Release that, okay? Just let yourself respond 62 00:03:47.450 --> 00:03:51.000 in some way, shape, or form. Finally, there's 63 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:54.440 contemplatio, a time of simply being with 64 00:03:54.440 --> 00:03:58.120 God without prayer or agenda. This is a good time to 65 00:03:58.120 --> 00:04:01.920 listen for any impression or to listen for God's 66 00:04:02.160 --> 00:04:05.920 small, still voice. Most yoga 67 00:04:05.920 --> 00:04:09.760 practices end with a time of corpse pose. 68 00:04:09.920 --> 00:04:13.680 Contemplatio is the corpse pose moment 69 00:04:13.920 --> 00:04:17.620 of this practice. Just rest. Take a 70 00:04:17.620 --> 00:04:21.460 few moments. Don't plan. Don't feel like you need to accomplish 71 00:04:21.540 --> 00:04:25.100 something during this time. Just let yourself be and 72 00:04:25.100 --> 00:04:28.860 maybe just bask in the sense of divine presence. You 73 00:04:28.860 --> 00:04:32.700 are in holy space, and you're free to hold on to that holy space for 74 00:04:32.700 --> 00:04:36.540 a moment. Father Thomas Keating described that these 75 00:04:36.540 --> 00:04:40.180 four stages of Lectio Divina as 76 00:04:40.180 --> 00:04:43.380 compass points around a circle, with the Holy Spirit moving 77 00:04:43.940 --> 00:04:47.440 seamlessly between them. These 4 points, 78 00:04:47.440 --> 00:04:51.240 though, are not hard and fast rules, as 79 00:04:51.240 --> 00:04:54.800 we'll learn through both doing this practice and then through exploring 80 00:04:54.800 --> 00:04:58.560 some alternative forms of the practice. It's often useful to 81 00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:02.320 improvise. In fact, just like in music or in comedy, 82 00:05:02.480 --> 00:05:05.440 improvisation leads towards some deep, 83 00:05:05.840 --> 00:05:09.520 impactful moments. So let yourself go there if you feel 84 00:05:09.520 --> 00:05:12.640 so led. All right, I'm going to lead us through a passage 85 00:05:12.880 --> 00:05:16.640 applying the 4 movements of Lectio Divina, 86 00:05:16.800 --> 00:05:20.140 and One of the recommended readings for this weekend is 87 00:05:20.140 --> 00:05:23.860 Romans 8:6-11. Let me read 88 00:05:23.860 --> 00:05:27.420 it for you, and this time through we're reading it 89 00:05:27.420 --> 00:05:30.540 just to hear. There's no heavy work to do here, 90 00:05:30.940 --> 00:05:34.380 just hear the words of this sacred text. 91 00:05:35.820 --> 00:05:37.772 This is again Romans 8:6-11. 92 00:05:39.820 --> 00:05:43.620 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind 93 00:05:43.620 --> 00:05:47.200 on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason, 94 00:05:47.280 --> 00:05:51.040 the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God. It does 95 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:54.760 not submit to God's law. Indeed, it cannot. And those 96 00:05:54.760 --> 00:05:58.600 who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the 97 00:05:58.600 --> 00:06:02.160 flesh. You are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells 98 00:06:02.160 --> 00:06:05.840 in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does 99 00:06:05.840 --> 00:06:09.480 not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, then the body is 100 00:06:09.480 --> 00:06:12.920 dead because of sin. The Spirit is life because of 101 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:16.720 righteousness. In the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from 102 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:20.310 the dead, dwells in you. He who raised 103 00:06:20.310 --> 00:06:23.950 Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal 104 00:06:23.950 --> 00:06:27.550 bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in 105 00:06:27.550 --> 00:06:31.390 you. Okay, I'm gonna take a moment to read 106 00:06:31.390 --> 00:06:34.510 again, and this time deliberately, very 107 00:06:34.670 --> 00:06:38.350 slowly. As I read it again this time, the invitation for 108 00:06:38.350 --> 00:06:42.190 you is to listen for the word or phrase that is striking 109 00:06:42.350 --> 00:06:46.160 you today. What shimmers? What pricks you? As we 110 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:49.898 read this. Again, this is Romans 8, verses 6 111 00:06:50.038 --> 00:06:53.840 through 11. To set the 112 00:06:53.840 --> 00:06:57.560 mind on the flesh is death, but 113 00:06:57.560 --> 00:07:01.080 to set the mind on the Spirit is life and 114 00:07:01.080 --> 00:07:04.880 peace. For this reason, the mind 115 00:07:04.960 --> 00:07:08.480 that is set on the flesh is hostile to 116 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:11.600 God. It does not submit to God's law, 117 00:07:12.990 --> 00:07:16.670 Indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot 118 00:07:16.670 --> 00:07:20.470 please God. But you are not in 119 00:07:20.470 --> 00:07:24.230 the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the 120 00:07:24.230 --> 00:07:26.830 Spirit of God dwells in you. 121 00:07:28.270 --> 00:07:31.310 Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ 122 00:07:31.870 --> 00:07:35.630 does not belong to him. But if 123 00:07:35.630 --> 00:07:39.360 Christ is in you, then the body is dead because 124 00:07:39.360 --> 00:07:43.080 of sin; the Spirit is life because of 125 00:07:43.080 --> 00:07:46.640 righteousness. If the 126 00:07:46.640 --> 00:07:50.080 Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead 127 00:07:50.080 --> 00:07:53.920 dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus 128 00:07:53.920 --> 00:07:57.640 from the dead will give life to your mortal 129 00:07:57.640 --> 00:08:01.480 bodies also through His Spirit that dwells 130 00:08:01.560 --> 00:08:05.090 in you. It's time to 131 00:08:05.090 --> 00:08:08.130 reflect. This is the meditatio time. 132 00:08:08.690 --> 00:08:11.330 I'm actually going to read this passage again, 133 00:08:12.370 --> 00:08:15.810 offering you another opportunity to reflect 134 00:08:16.850 --> 00:08:20.370 on what has stood out to you, but also to reflect 135 00:08:20.530 --> 00:08:24.050 on why this phrase or why 136 00:08:24.290 --> 00:08:28.090 these words are pricking you or shimmering in 137 00:08:28.090 --> 00:08:29.250 your mind's eye today. 138 00:08:31.750 --> 00:08:35.510 Again, Romans 8:6-11: To set the mind 139 00:08:35.510 --> 00:08:39.350 on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit 140 00:08:39.350 --> 00:08:43.070 is life and peace. For this reason, the 141 00:08:43.070 --> 00:08:46.310 mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God. 142 00:08:46.790 --> 00:08:50.230 It does not submit to God's law. Indeed, it cannot. 143 00:08:50.550 --> 00:08:54.390 And those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you 144 00:08:54.390 --> 00:08:58.210 are not in the flesh. You are in the Spirit since the Spirit of God 145 00:08:58.210 --> 00:09:01.970 dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit 146 00:09:01.970 --> 00:09:05.730 of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ 147 00:09:05.730 --> 00:09:09.570 is in you, then the body is dead because of sin. The 148 00:09:09.570 --> 00:09:13.250 Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the 149 00:09:13.250 --> 00:09:16.490 Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, 150 00:09:16.890 --> 00:09:20.410 he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life 151 00:09:20.490 --> 00:09:24.290 to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that 152 00:09:24.290 --> 00:09:25.410 dwells in you. 153 00:09:27.890 --> 00:09:31.370 As we move into the third movement of Lectio 154 00:09:31.370 --> 00:09:35.050 Divina, the Oratio time, it's time for you to 155 00:09:35.050 --> 00:09:38.769 respond in some way, whether through prayer, journaling, 156 00:09:38.850 --> 00:09:42.530 maybe drawing or singing. Maybe you want to 157 00:09:42.530 --> 00:09:45.970 pause here on this podcast and just do your own thing. 158 00:09:46.050 --> 00:09:49.010 So I'll be back in 10 seconds 159 00:09:49.900 --> 00:09:53.740 But again, you may want to hit pause and just allow yourself 160 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:55.980 some time to contemplate. 161 00:10:09.340 --> 00:10:13.140 Okay, once you've concluded the oratio time, it's 162 00:10:13.140 --> 00:10:16.850 time to rest in contemplatio. Listen 163 00:10:17.090 --> 00:10:20.450 for that voice of the divine. Take time to 164 00:10:20.450 --> 00:10:23.970 breathe without agenda. Right now, rest 165 00:10:24.210 --> 00:10:27.850 is the thing. I'm going to get out of the way again, and 166 00:10:27.850 --> 00:10:31.490 I'll come back in about 10 seconds. Again, you may want to hit 167 00:10:31.490 --> 00:10:34.970 pause and take the time that you need, but I'll come back again in about 168 00:10:34.970 --> 00:10:38.130 10 seconds to talk about other forms of 169 00:10:38.130 --> 00:10:41.430 Lectio. 170 00:10:49.820 --> 00:10:53.500 Let's talk about a few alternative forms of Lectio. 171 00:10:53.660 --> 00:10:57.379 Lectio is merely an invitation to listen for the divine through 172 00:10:57.379 --> 00:11:01.020 the ears of your heart, and there are so many ways 173 00:11:01.260 --> 00:11:04.860 to engage in that. As a Christian, I do believe that 174 00:11:04.860 --> 00:11:08.460 scripture is often the most direct way to encounter God's story, 175 00:11:09.230 --> 00:11:12.870 and to get a look or glimpse or get a feel for God's 176 00:11:12.870 --> 00:11:16.510 action in the world. But it's not exclusive. I often get a sense of 177 00:11:16.510 --> 00:11:19.470 God's leading through music as it's a powerful 178 00:11:19.790 --> 00:11:23.270 communal activity. It's sometimes 179 00:11:23.270 --> 00:11:26.910 sacred songs or hymns are useful. Sometimes singing 180 00:11:26.910 --> 00:11:30.550 together is useful. But I'll also admit that the 181 00:11:30.550 --> 00:11:34.030 mundane music that we encounter daily can also offer 182 00:11:34.510 --> 00:11:38.220 an opening to holy moments. I remember going on a 183 00:11:38.220 --> 00:11:41.860 long run several years ago with a backing track of 184 00:11:41.860 --> 00:11:44.940 classic rock songs, and Jackson 185 00:11:45.020 --> 00:11:48.420 Browne's The Pretender struck me. As I relistened 186 00:11:48.860 --> 00:11:52.260 to the words, I was struck by the struggle that this song 187 00:11:52.260 --> 00:11:55.820 communicated. It was speaking to my own life about 188 00:11:56.140 --> 00:11:59.660 the priorities and where true contentment lies. 189 00:12:00.140 --> 00:12:03.660 And maybe, as Browne puts it, The struggle for the 190 00:12:03.660 --> 00:12:07.300 legal tender was not the thing that led 191 00:12:07.300 --> 00:12:10.500 to contentment. That's what I was struggling with at the time. 192 00:12:11.140 --> 00:12:14.820 This contemplative exercise was a form of 193 00:12:14.820 --> 00:12:18.340 lectio, and you could easily apply the four movements 194 00:12:18.740 --> 00:12:22.500 to a song. You can also apply the four movements to artwork 195 00:12:22.500 --> 00:12:25.780 or to photos. This is sometimes referred to as visio 196 00:12:25.860 --> 00:12:29.180 divina. The use of icons is prevalent in the Eastern 197 00:12:29.180 --> 00:12:32.480 Orthodox Church. Contemplating a holy image 198 00:12:32.560 --> 00:12:36.280 reflects the movements of Lectio. So we can look at an 199 00:12:36.280 --> 00:12:40.000 image and reflect on what stands out to us and 200 00:12:40.080 --> 00:12:43.520 why we might be drawn to that on this particular 201 00:12:43.680 --> 00:12:47.360 day. And poetry works with Lectio as well, even, even 202 00:12:47.360 --> 00:12:51.200 full fiction books. There is a podcast called Harry Potter and 203 00:12:51.200 --> 00:12:55.040 the Sacred Texts where they often apply Lectio Divina to 204 00:12:55.040 --> 00:12:58.890 the Harry Potter books. In fact, they provide a description of Lectio 205 00:12:59.330 --> 00:13:02.930 Divina in their first episode. I'll link that in the 206 00:13:02.930 --> 00:13:06.530 episode notes. And speaking of 207 00:13:06.530 --> 00:13:08.890 episode notes, you can find those and 208 00:13:08.890 --> 00:13:12.690 more at umc.org/compass. 209 00:13:12.930 --> 00:13:16.530 Other episodes that you may want to explore while you're there include 210 00:13:16.770 --> 00:13:19.810 Contemplation is Resistance. That's episode 211 00:13:19.810 --> 00:13:23.490 167. It's about how contemplative exercises 212 00:13:23.570 --> 00:13:27.180 like 'Lexio Divina' help us resist the 213 00:13:27.180 --> 00:13:30.980 sheer overwhelm of the current age. Episode 214 00:13:30.980 --> 00:13:34.700 157, 'Soulful Practices for Healing and Belonging,' 215 00:13:34.700 --> 00:13:38.300 is a good one too. It explores how contemplative spiritual 216 00:13:38.300 --> 00:13:42.020 practices draw us together in community. If you've 217 00:13:42.020 --> 00:13:45.740 never hit the subscribe button or dropped a rating and review 218 00:13:45.740 --> 00:13:49.220 on Compass, now is the time. Hit the like 219 00:13:49.220 --> 00:13:52.790 button, hit subscribe, or use your podcast 220 00:13:52.790 --> 00:13:56.190 listening app to leave a review about what you appreciate about The 221 00:13:56.190 --> 00:13:59.870 Compass Podcast. This has been a production of United 222 00:13:59.950 --> 00:14:03.630 Methodist Communications. We release episodes every 2 223 00:14:03.630 --> 00:14:07.470 weeks. I'm Ryan Dunn, and I'll be back with you then. In the meantime, 224 00:14:07.470 --> 00:14:08.030 peace.