I was given the link for the daily Carmelite Lectio Divina by a friend four years ago and have made it a daily habit to use it. I was delighted when I discovered the weekly Friday Lectio on Zoom, led so wonderfully by Irene and Damien. Since then I have put the sessions in my diary and try not to miss them. I look forward to them very much.
There are five reasons why I value these sessions:
1. Father David Hofman, who usually does the teaching of the sessions, is a God fearing and highly knowledgeable teacher. He always provides great context and insights for the Bible passages.
2. I value the community of the twenty or so people who make up this group. Over the two or three years I have been part of the group there has been a growing sense of belonging and mutual respect for the views and opinions people share.
3. I love the format used – opening prayer, silence, bible passage, teaching, sharing, voluntary group prayer and closing prayer.
4. As a weekly commitment, I find it an inspiring way to start the day and to encourage me in my own continuing journey as a Christian.
5. I like that it’s possible for some of us to meet in person at the monthly coffee morning and annual picnic.
Warm regards and blessings
Thea (August 2024)
The link Thea referred to is https://ocarm.org/en/prayer/lectiodivina
“Lectio divina” is a Latin term which means “divine reading” and describes a way of reading the Scriptures whereby we gradually let go of our own agenda and open ourselves to what God wants to say to us.
You are most welcome to join our virtual community on Friday mornings at 10am for Lectio Divina on zoom. Email us to be added to those who receive the readings and notes each week by email.
The recurring zoom link is here. Meeting ID: 897 9235 2290 Passcode: 811610
Each Friday the plan is to read privately and reflect 9.30am – 10am and then at 10am join the zoom gathering. After an opening prayer, reading the Scripture for the week, (the Gospel for the coming Sunday) and listening to Fr David’s insights into the text, it is a time of sharing reflections. We then move into sharing personal prayers and finish with a closing prayer. Always finishes by 11am but you can leave at any time as needed.
The notes and readings from previous weeks can be found here.