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WEEK TWO: Holy Reading

The Bible has always played an important part in the spiritual formation of God’s people since it is the word of God given to shape and direct our life.

There are many different ways to study the bible, but an ancient method called ‘lectio divina’, which can be translated ‘holy reading’ or ‘sacred reading’ dating back to the fourth century, is being rediscovered today.

In the Enlightenment era, there was a great emphasis upon understanding the text. Thus critical methodologies of studying the Bible were utilized. Today in the post-modern era there is a desire to understand the Bible in a holistic manner. Many are asking the question how does the biblical text speak to me as a person? Holy reading is a contemplative approach which helps us to hear the word of God as we read the text, and through this approach we discover an increasing ability to respond to what God has said to us through the text by offering more of ourselves and our relationships to God. In fact holy reading is a form of prayer. God speaks to us through scripture and then we speak back to God. This involves a shift from a typical approach to prayer where we begin by speaking to God and then conclude by saying ‘amen’. We never remain silent long enough to allow God to speak into our lives, let alone accord him the honour of speaking to us first.