“And after the Lord gave me some brothers, no one showed me what I had to do, but the Most High Himself revealed to me that I should live according to the pattern of the Holy Gospel.”
The Testament Francis of Assisi: The Saint: Vol I, page 125
Secular Franciscans should devote themselves especially to careful reading of the gospel, going from gospel to life and life to the gospel” (OFS Rule, Article 4),
Praying the Scriptures:
· Studying the Bible is not prayer It is a wonderful idea to participate in a Catholic Bible study or to study a passage of Scripture (the history/background) with your fraternity, but…
· Using the Bible to pray is different
· We listen to God with open minds and hearts ´ God speaks to us
· What is He calling us to be or do?
· Lectio Divina or a version of Lectio patterned after Clare’s gazing are good ways to pray the Scriptures
We can pray the Scriptures alone or with our fraternities. A good way to get started with this is to read the daily readings whether we are able to attend daily Mass or not. You can find the readings of the day online at the United States Bishops’ website: https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading. They give you the readings of the day plus a podcast and a reflection. You can also subscribe so that the readings are sent to your email each day. The readings are also available in Spanish.
Lectio Divina:
Lectio (Read slowly and thoughtfully)
Meditatio (Reflect on what Scripture has to say to you in your life.)
Oratio (Respond to the reading—talk to God about your response.)
Contemplatio (Receive quietly what God has to give to you.)
Lectio based on Clare’s gazing:
Gaze (Read the reading—perhaps two or three times)
Consider (Hear from the heart; imagine)
Contemplate (Allow the Sprit to transform you through the reading)
Imitate (Move to action—carry out the message in my own life and dealings with others)
At the following link, you can view two videos by Fr. Casey Cole, OFM, describing how to pray with Scripture. Both are worthwhile to get you started praying with Scripture. https://breakinginthehabit.org/2020/09/22/praying-with-scripture/
For discussion or to comment on in your journal:
1. Why was Scripture so important to St. Francis?
2. In what ways do you apply the gospels to your life?
3. How has Sacred Scripture helped you in your efforts to achieve daily conversion?
4. If you watched the videos, were you able to put the “Incarnational” method into practice?
5. Discuss with your formator or formation team ways in which your Fraternity can work together to become more familiar with scripture.
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