Gathering 8:30 – Prayer from 9:00am to 11:00am
“The fruitfulness of lectio divina presupposes a certain calmness of mind when we come to it….By reading … scripture, … perhaps only a few words, we find ourselves in the presence of God, … our friend – this extraordinary person we are trying to know. We need to listen eagerly to words, applying our whole being to them. This is the reason the ancient custom was to read aloud, or at least to form the words on one’s lips, so that the body, too, entered into the process. The Holy Spirit inspired those who wrote the scriptures and is also in our hearts inspiring us and teaching us how to read and listen. When these two inspirations fuse, we really understand what scripture is saying; or at least we understand what God at this moment is saying to us through it.” (The Heart of the World by Father Thomas Keating pgs. 46-47)
Listen, that you may have life.
“Were not our hearts burning [within us] while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?” Luke 24:32 NAB
Find God in the Silent Love of Self Surrender.
“The language God best hears is silent love.”
Saint John of the Cross
Contemplative Outreach St. Louis invites you to come help create a safe and quiet space where we can rest in the divine presence, bearing witness to our individual and collective need to do so. A time of prayer, scripture, sharing and support for the journey.
The facilitators for this program are Sarah Legett and Mary Laffey Adams
Flow of the Morning:
- Welcome!
- Guided Lectio Divina session
- Optional sharing
- 15 minute break
- A reading of the Centering Prayer guidelines
- 1st Centering Prayer period
- 2nd Centering Prayer period.
Saturday, October 19th, 2024
Doors open and Gathering at 8:30 am, We begin at 9 & end at 11 am
Light refreshments will be available
Silent Saturday is at:
Community of Christ Church, 830 N Kirkwood Road, Kirkwood, MO 63122
Please register: We look forward to seeing you. Walk-ins are welcome.
There is no fee for this event but if you would like to make a donation of any amount to help cover our rent, website maintenance, scholarship fund and other expenses, it will be gratefully accepted. This is purely a suggestion and not meant to be a barrier to attendance. All are welcome.
To support our ministry by making a contribution of any amount via PayPal or credit card, please use the Donate button or contribute at the event. Thank you!
Save these dates – PLEASE NOTE: Silent Saturdays will be held on October 19 (third Saturday) & December 14th, which is even-numbered months!
We are blessed to have videos presented by Father Thomas Keating on Lectio Divina, calling us into a deeper relationship with God. Lectio Divina draws from scriptural and/or other sacred reading, meditation, and prayer to promote communion with God and increase the knowledge of God’s Word.
Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina with Thomas Keating, Part 1: In this talk, Fr. Thomas explains that Lectio Divina is meant to be an experience of scripture in which one listens for God rather than reads for content. The words penetrate one in a dynamic process under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, gradually moving one into deeper union with God. Fr. Thomas describes the traditional four ‘moments’ of Lectio Divina in a circular format; the experience is not linear as all the ‘moments’ are interrelated. This conference was given at the Lectio Divina Institute held on January 17-21, 1997, at the Benedictine Center in Beech Grove, Indiana.
Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina with Thomas Keating, Part 2: In this talk entitled “Principles for the Practice of Lectio,” Fr. Thomas explains that Lectio is the process of assimilating the Gospel and being assimilated by it. He describes five moments in this process: 1) Beginning prayer to the Holy Spirit as your Guide, 2) Noticing how scripture is mirroring your life, 3) Experiencing the Word of God as directed to different levels of consciousness, 4) Reading your experience of grace into the scriptures, and 5) becoming the Word of God in a particular human situation. This conference was given at the Lectio Divina Institute held on January 17-21, 1997, at the Benedictine Center in Beech Grove, Indiana.
Four Steps of Lectio Divina
There is no standard way of doing lectio divina, but the following method has proven helpful to beginners.
- Read (Lectio): Read a passage from Scripture. “Listen” to God’s word. Gather the facts. Does a particular word or phrase speak to you?
- Reflect (Meditatio): Read the passage again. Reflect on the passage as a whole or on a particular phrase. What is God saying to you?
- Respond (Oratio): Read the Scripture once again. Respond to God with your heart. What do you want to say to God?
- Rest (Contemplatio*): Read the selection a final time. Rest in God’s presence for a few minutes.
* Strictly speaking, contemplation is a gift of grace that depends on the movement of the Holy Spirit. It is a real awareness of God, desiring and loving Him, beyond concepts, feelings, and particular acts.
Register
Please register and submit the online form below.