Lectio Divina: Contemplate

The last step of Lecto Divino is contemplate.  This is done after read, meditate, pray. Click here to read the other steps.

Contemplatio ("contemplate")[edit]

Stained glass of the Holy Spirit as a dove, c. 1660.

Contemplation takes place in terms of silent prayer that expresses love for God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines contemplative prayer as "the hearing the Word of God" in an attentive mode. It states:^[33]

Contemplative prayer is silence, the "symbol of the world to come" or "silent love." Words in this kind of prayer are not speeches; they are like kindling that feeds the fire of love. In this silence, unbearable to the "outer" man, the Father speaks to us his incarnate Word, who suffered, died, and rose; in this silence the Spirit of adoption enables us to share in the prayer of Jesus.

The role of the Holy Spirit in contemplative prayer has been emphasized by Christian spiritual writers for centuries. In the 12th century, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux compared the Holy Spirit to a kiss by the Eternal Father which allows the practitioner of contemplative prayer to experience union with God.^[34] In the 14th century, Richard Rolle viewed contemplation as the path that leads the soul to union with God in love, and considered the Holy Spirit as the center of contemplation.^[35]

From a theological perspective, God's grace is considered a principle, or cause, of contemplation, with its benefits delivered through the gifts of the Holy Spirit.^[36]

For more on this method of reading the Bible, Click here and here is a book that Kim Skilling recommends on this practice of reading your Bible

http://www.amazon.com/Love-Your-Bible-Finding-Presence/dp/0986412406/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425165669&sr=8-1&keywords=love+your+bible