Lectio Divina II — Reading Scripture in Community

Title: Lectio Divina II
Scripture: Psalm 119:129-136
Speaker: Pastor Jason Ho (missionary)

(Summary by Freedom D.)

“If anti-gay passages can become not-anti-gay, can the Bible — God’s Word — be interpreted however we please? Does the Bible still hold a place at BMCC?” Twenty-seven years into BMCC’s existence, this question has been asked perhaps two thousand times. Before we go further with Lectio Divina, let me describe BMCC’s view of the Bible.

BMCC believes the Bible is humanity’s response to encountering God. The biblical authors recorded the great acts of God from their own contexts, and also recorded their own subjective takes. If we accept that the authors may have projected their own thinking onto God, can we then better understand passages within the same book that appear to contradict one another?

Lectio Divina

Lectio Divina is a Benedictine prayer-with-Scripture practice. We covered the basics last week; today we go deeper. There are four stages traditionally — lectio (reading), meditatio (meditation), oratio (prayer), and contemplatio (contemplation). Today I want to highlight that Lectio Divina is not solitary — it is communal. The Rule of St. Benedict has rich practical guidance for monastic life: maintaining holy seasons, caring for the sick, valuing learning and sleep, ordering time (seven daily prayers), maintaining facilities, and providing for training. Spiritual discipline is not just personal scripture-reading; it is communal participation — encouragement, accountability, mutual care.

Coming to know our Scripture, in spiritual discipline, in our faith community — open yourselves, encounter God.