When we Pray we speak to God;
but when we Read, God speaks to us.
In Prayer, God hears our Petitions,
but in Reading, we listen to His Voice.
Spiritual Reading and Prayer are the Arms by which
Hell is conquered and Paradise won.
"Spritual Reading and Prayer are the arms by which Hell is conquered and Paradise won." ~Saint Bernard
"You will not see anyone who is really striving after his advancement who is not given to Spiritual Reading. And as to him who neglects it, the fact will soon be observed by his progress." ~Saint Athanasius
"We cannot always have access to a Spiritual Father for Counsel in our actions, and particularly in our doubts; but Reading will abundantly supply his place by giving us Lights and Directions to escape the Illusions of the Devil and of our own Self-Love, and at the same time to submit to the Divine Will." ~Saint Alphonsus
Recommended reading:
The Importance of Spiritual Reading by Saint Alphonsus Liguori">
Friday, April 23, 2010
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Catholic Converts Blog
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4 comments:
My recommendation would be to go the very source, God's Word, the Bible. Why read about reading spirtually when God has given us all we need within the pages of the Bible?
"God's voice" is best "heard" when we go to the pure unadulterated text of His Word. Scripture alone, is our final authority.
This is a topic that is always misunderstood by Evangelicals and Fundamentalists. Spiritual reading also includes the spiritual reading of the Bible. This form of spiritual reading is called by theologians “Lectio Divina”. This is accomplished through daily prayer and meditation.
The quotes that I posted by the saints certainly has this in mind because all of the saints were devoted to the reading of Sacred Scripture. It is a misnomer to believe that Catholics do not treat the Bible as the primary text for spiritual reading. In fact, reading of the Bible is recommended to the faithful by the Catholic Church:
“The Church "forcefully and specifically exhorts all the Christian faithful. . . to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ, by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures. Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ (citing Saint Jerome). (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 133; Dei Verbum 25; cf. Phil 3:8 and St. Jerome, Commentariorum in Isaiam libri xviii prol.: PL 24, 17B).
The Bishops universally recommend the reading of the Bible as spiritual reading: For example, the Archdiocese of Boston, http://www.bostoncatholic.org/Being-Catholic/Content.aspx?id=11490 and our present Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, also has encouraged the spiritual reading of the Bible: http://www.zenit.org/article-14466?l=English And priests and religious are required to read the Breviary a.k.a., the Liturgy of the Hours every day. The Breviary includes the reading of and meditation upon several Scriptural passages.
Therefore, it is not correct to believe that the Church does not encourage the reading of the Bible as spiritual reading. The Church leads sinners to Jesus by introducing them to the Scriptures. The RCIA program, which incorporates new members into the Faith, through Baptism, First Communion (Eucharist) and Confirmation, features the reading of the Bible as part of its program and at a Catholic Mass the people in attendance will hear two Readings from the Old and/or New Testaments, a Psalm and a Gospel reading and many of the Mass texts contain verses or passages from the Scriptures, e.g., the Consecration and the Lord's Prayer (Our Father).
One of the leading Catholic dictionaries, the Modern Catholic Dictionary by Fr. John Hardon, S.J., defines spiritual reading with the Bible mentioned as the primary reading of spiritual reading in the Catholic Church:
SPIRITUAL READING: As the Lectio Divina prescribed in monasticism from the earliest times, it is all reading that is conducive to prayer and closer union with God. The Sacred Scriptures have always held the primacy of honor in such reading, along with writings of the Church's teachers; notably, the popes and bishops, the writings and lives of the saints, and all other forms of composition whose avowed purpose as writing is to enlighten the mind and inspire the will and affections to the worship and service of God. (MCD)
Protestants themselves have been influenced by spiritual writings other than the Bible. Protestants have been influenced by writings among their very own scholars, e.g., the writings of Luther, Calvin and Zwingli. They continue to be influenced by the writings and sermons and speeches of Protestant scholars and ministers like Dr. Billy Graham. They will cite 1 Timothy 4:13 as their reason for the spiritual reading of texts outside the Bible. Continued....
....Spiritual reading does not contradict the Bible if it leads us to God and to a better understanding of the Scriptures and to a life of holiness. In fact, there are examples within the Bible that some people were influenced by outside sources and, as a result, they came to know, love, serve and worship the one, true God. The story of Phillip and the Ethiopian Eunuch is one such example of how someone came to know God and the Scriptures through the teaching of a another person (Acts 8). The spiritual reading of spiritual classics do lead us to God and to the Bible. They encourage us to pray and to meditate upon the Scriptures so we may have a heart that is full of God and full of a deeper understanding and love of what He teaches and commands. In his book, Introduction to the Devout Life, Saint Francis de Sales emphasizes the importance of daily mediation on the Gospels:
"I especially counsel you to practice mental prayer, the prayer of the heart, and particularly that which centers on the life and passion of our Lord. Be often turning your eyes on Him in meditation, your whole soul will be filled with Him. ... Just as little children learn to speak by listening to their mothers and lisping words with them, so also by keeping close to our Savior in meditation and observing His words, actions, and affections we learn by His grace to speak, act, and will like Him." (Part Two, section 1.1)
What St. Francis de Sales says is important because the spiritual reading of his work leads us not away from Jesus but to love and worship Jesus through prayer and meditation. Many of the saints had their conversion experience through spiritual reading. For example, Saint Ignatius of Loyola was converted after reading the Lives of the Saints when he was recuperating on his bed from battle wounds.
Spiritual reading has its value only in that it must lead us to God and to holiness. It is only bad books that the saints like Saint John Bosco warn us not to read. They say nothing against the reading of spiritual works that are orthodox and in union with the Bible and in union with the immutable teachings of the Faith that have been passed on to us since the time of the Apostles and the Early Church Fathers.
As far as authority of the Bible is concerned, the Bible itself does not say that it is the sole rule of faith and our only Divinely authorized authority. Jesus never said the Bible is all that we need as the sole rule of faith and our one and only authority. The Bible as we know it was not even compiled as a complete set of books until the 4th century. It was the Catholic Church and the authority of her Magisterium that decided which books were inspired and which books were not inspired. Continued....
The authority of the Church was bestowed upon Saint Peter as its visible head on earth (Matthew 16:18) and Jesus cites the authority of the Church as the way we are to resolve disputes (Matthew 18:17).
Saint Paul cites oral tradition as an authoritative source other than the Bible: "What you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy 2:2). And he instructs in one other verse to "Hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter" (2 Thessalonians 2:15). This is the same St. Paul who teaches that the Church is the “pillar and ground (foundation) of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). This is also the teaching of the Early Church Fathers (e.g., Saint Clement, Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Saint Irenaeus, Saint Clement, Saint John Chrystostom and Saint Augustine of Hippo) who each cite the Catholic Church as the one, true authoritative and teaching Church established by Jesus and that there is no unity except within the Catholic Church. http://www.catscans.com/catholicsite/unity.htm
It was the authority of the Church, the visible authority on earth appointed by Jesus, that moved Saint Augustine of Hippo to believe in the Bible. He said, "I would not believe the Gospel unless moved thereto by the Church."
Recommended reading:
On Spiritual Reading by Saint Alphonsus Ligouri: http://www.ourladyswarriors.org/saints/ligoread.htm
Bible quizzes to a Street Preacher: http://www.capd.com.au/Links-CAPD/Bible-Quizzes-To-A-Street-Preacher.htm
The Catholic Church Has The Answer By Paul Whitcomb (former Protestant): http://www.ewtn.com/library/ANSWERS/CHUANSWR.HTM [END]
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