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One day when I was still very new to the religious life, I asked Sr. Ida for an explanation of lectio divina, or "sacred reading" of Scripture. Perhaps because of its Latin name, people often have the impression that this ancient prayer form involves something complicated and scholarly.
Sr. Ida was a very holy woman. She had come to our Benedictine community from her native Germany and had worked in domestic service all her life. I have never forgotten the answer she gave me in her charming German accent: “Vell, I don’t exactly know what dis lectio is. I just read until I get an idea and den I tink about it.” To this day, that remains my best definition of lectio divina: Just read the Scripture passage until you get an idea, and then think about it.
But lectio is not a means to stirring up lofty thoughts. Its great gift is the awareness that Scripture is alive and active—a place where we can encounter God every day for the rest of our lives.
Getting to Work. One of the earliest teachings regarding lectio divina comes…
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