Lectio Divina (pronounced “Lec-tsee-oh Di-vee-nah”) means “Divine Reading” and is an ancient method of Scripture reading practiced by monastics since the beginning of the Church.
It was in the 11th c. that the practice of Lectio Divina became formalised. The method was formalised as:
- lectio (reading): “looking on Holy Scripture with all one’s will and wit”
- meditatio (meditation): “a studious insearching with the mind to know what was before concealed through desiring proper skill”
- oratio (prayer): “a devout desiring of the heart to get what is good and avoid what is evil”
- contemplatio (contemplation): “the lifting up of the heart to God tasting somewhat of the heavenly sweetness and savour”
The Martinist Pentacle 