Catholics and the Bible: What you need to know

A Commentary on Dei Verbum:

It is an often misunderstood idea about the Catholic Church that she is not a "Bible" church or that Catholics do not read the Bible. I understand that the stereotype is sometimes deserving, and I know for sure that a lot of Catholics do not read the Bible at home at all. However, the purpose of this post is to show the actual relationship between the Catholic Church and Sacred Scripture. 

Dei Verbum is the Dogmatic Constitution that came out of the Second Vatican Council in 1965. Vatican II was convened to bring Bishops and other Catholic leaders from all over the world together, and to have them discuss some of the main issues the Church was facing in the modern world. I think it is interesting that the Church considered Dei Verbum so important as to make it a principle document in the Council. However, it seems most people, Catholics included do not know much about it. 

"Ignorance of Scripture is Ignorance of Christ."

St. Jerome

St. Jerome's quote is often used to show the importance the Bible plays in the lives of the faithful. It shows the value of Sacred Scriptures have as a means to unlocking the mystery that is Jesus Christ. All prayer and theology finds it's end and roots in the Trinity. The Trinity's self-revelation is the source of the Christian faith. The Word of God speaks the inner-reality of the Trinity. The Word being Jesus.

"...but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the ages." (Heb. 1:2)

"He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation... For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell." (Col. 1:15,19)

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

(John 1:1)

Dei Verbum is Latin for "Word of God" and the title comes from the first sentence of the document. The purpose of Dei Verbum, as stated in the document, is "to set forth authentic doctrine on divine revelation and how it is handed on, so that by hearing the message of salvation the whole world may believe, by believing it may hope, and by hoping it may love." (DV 1)

The document begins by showing the development of revelation in the Old Testament, first to one man Adam, then to a family in Abraham, to a nation in Israel with Moses and finally through the Prophets. Public revelation is finally spoken through Jesus Christ as the "Word of God". 

"To see Jesus is to see His Father (John 14:9). For this reason Jesus perfected revelation by fulfilling it through his whole work of making Himself present and manifesting Himself: through His words and deeds, His signs and wonders, but especially through His death and glorious resurrection from the dead and final sending of the Spirit of truth."

(Dei Verbum 4)

It is only in deep study and contemplation, with the assistance and cooperation with Divine Grace, of Jesus Christ that we can see the Father. The union of which, with the Spirit of truth, is the divine mystery, the Trinity.

The next part of the document shows how Jesus revealed Himself in the Gospel, and "commissioned the Apostles to preach to all men that Gospel which is the source of all saving truth and moral teaching" (DV 7). 

This Gospel was preached both in Oral and Written tradition under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. (2 Thess. 2:15) In order that the Gospel was kept whole, and protected from error the Apostles appointed successors (2 Tim 2:2). The Sacred Scriptures(Written) and Traditions(Oral) "are like a mirror in which the pilgrim Church on earth looks at God." (DV 7)

What is the relationship between Sacred Scripture and Tradition?

"Hence there exists a close connection and communication between sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture. For both of them, flowing from the same divine wellspring, in a certain way merge into a unity and tend toward the same end. For Sacred Scripture is the word of God inasmuch as it is consigned to writing under the inspiration of the divine Spirit, while sacred tradition takes the word of God entrusted by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit to the Apostles, and hands it on to their successors in its full purity, so that led by the light of the Spirit of truth, they may in proclaiming it preserve this word of God faithfully, explain it, and make it more widely known. Consequently it is not from Sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything which has been revealed. Therefore both sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated with the same sense of loyalty and reverence."

(DV 9)

The interpretation of these two rivers flowing from one source is the Catholic Church, who takes her teaching office from the successors of the Apostles, the Bishops, and the successor of the first Pope St. Peter the Apostle, upon who Christ built His Church (Matt 16:18)

The last part of the document shows the deep relationship of Scripture with the Church in her liturgy. 

"The Church has always venerated the divine Scriptures just as she venerates the body of the Lord, since, especially in the sacred liturgy, she unceasingly receives and offers to the faithful the bread of life from the table both of God's word and of Christ's body."

(DV 21)

This means that during the Mass, we as believers should treat the Liturgy of the Word (the readings from the Bible), with the same reverence and attentiveness we treat the Liturgy of the Eucharist with. We cannot doze off or come in late to Mass as we would be disrespecting the Word of God as revealed to us by His own self-revelation. 

So hopefully this commentary will have shed some light on the Catholic Church's teachings on Sacred Scripture, Tradition and authority. 

It is important to remember that God loves us and revealed His love to us through the Sacred Scriptures to form one unified story of love. We need to enter into this love story in order to fully understand who God is. The Bible is, above all, the call of God to come and know His love. Like a Bride longs be loved, we must respond with our own love and devotion. That is the Christian life, a mutual call and response of love with God. 

AMDG

St. Jerome, Pray for us!

St. Augustine... the Patron Saint of this Blog

"To seek the highest good is to live well."

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Augustine. St. Augustine is revered throughout Christianity, even non-Catholics, because of how well he speaks to the culture of every time. He was one of the greatest contemplatives, in his detailed theology of the person and his detailed analysis of the Trinity. However, St. Augustine never distinguished his theology from its application to everyday people. He was a Bishop and so could not devote himself completely to contemplation, and his guidance to the Christians God entrusted to him can help us as well.

The conversion story of St. Augustine is probably the best known conversion story, expect maybe St. Paul, due his classic "Confessions". To illustrate what St. Augustine can do for our current Christian culture, I think it best to speak of a couple of main features in his conversion.

St. Augustine had a loving mother, St. Monica (view my post on intercessory prayer), who prayed for him everyday to come to love God. St. Augustine was a very successful orator and teacher and became famous in his time. However, he was in touch with the idea that the "world was not enough" and started searching for God. He first tried a gnostic sect called Manichaeism, which rejected the good of the body in favor of the soul. He met a man named St. Ambrose, the Bishop of Milan, who helped give St. Augustine a great example of a Catholic Christian and helped answer his questions (I'm sure there were many!). St. Augustine converted to Catholicism and became one of the greatest Church theologians.



St. Augustine left us some great insights into the human soul, and most importantly it's relationship to the Divine Person, Jesus Christ.

"You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you."

"Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, O Beauty ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace."

St. Augustine realized that God plants in all of our hearts a deep desire for Him. As our creator, we need God to operate effectively. Everyone is searching for God, some need a little more help finding Him. St. Augustine needed the prayers of his saintly mother.

 

Ask yourself this question: is Jesus where you find your rest? Is Jesus who you turn to when you are having a bad day? Is Jesus your greatest love, or do you place something in front of Him? Do you love your boyfriend, girlfriend or spouse more than Jesus? Do you love the pleasure that comes from impurity more than Jesus? St. Augustine shows us the answer to all of life's difficulties is resting and placing all of our trust, and hope in Jesus Christ the Son of God. 

I would like to dedicate this Blog to Jesus with St. Augustine as its Patron. St. Augustine. Pray for us to find God in all things. Pray that we to turn to Him with all of our problems. Pray that we love Him with all of our hearts and souls. 

St. Augustine Pray for us!

AMDG

P.S. Maybe you noticed the title of this blog "O Beauty ever new" was in St. Augustine's quote from Confessions. The reason for me choosing this title is because I believe the Beauty that is God and His perfect Love reach out to us every day. Jesus isn't just a person who lived 2000 years ago in a far away place. He is present in His Grace and Mercy to us every day. I experience His Beauty every day in many ways. Look for Him and see if you can find Him. Turn from the beauty of the world to the far greater Beauty of the Trinity.

Prayer #4: Intecerssory Prayer

"Father, forgive them: for they know not what they do." 

(Luke 23:34)

On the feast of St. Monica I felt it fitting to have a post on intercessory prayer. 

First, what is intercessory prayer?

"Intercession is a prayer of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did." (CCC 2634) What the Church is trying to say here is that intercessory prayer is when we pray for others. As we pray we ask the Father to help those whom we are praying for. In praying as such we are imitating the Son's perfect prayer to His Father as seen throughout Jesus' life. 

Jesus, Himself, is intercessory prayer incarnate. This means His Being was always about petitioning God to forgive us. His life and especially His Crucifixion was a request to His Father to forgive His creation. That is why Jesus gave His prayer from the Cross in Luke 23:34 and He did so hoping we would imitate Him. 

"But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

(Matthew 6:15)

We imitate Jesus by offering intercessory prayer for others. On a practical note, this type of prayer is simple. All you need to do is ask God to forgive yourselves and others. You can ask God to help others to find Him. You can ask God to assist the poor and needy. The hardest part of this prayer is the necessary disposition behind it. We need to want others to have these things. I know it sounds like that is a given, but there are a lot of times I do not really care or want the ones I am praying for to have what I am asking God to give them. Love is the prerequisite for intercessory prayer. Love is necessary for any communication with God, as He, Himself, is Love.

"It's a sweet duty... praying for our friends. I always feel I've had a brief meeting with them when I do. Perhaps it is a meeting, of the best kind! 

--C.S. Lewis

The main reason we honor St. Monica is because of her preserving in intercessory prayer for her son St. Augustine. St. Augustine grew up away from God and carrying more about the things of the world than of God. St. Monica was a holy and great lover of Jesus. She wanted nothing more than the conversion of her son. It took a long time, but finally St. Augustine converted and was baptized. After this, St. Monica said there was no other reason to still be on Earth. She had lived long enough to see the answer to her prayers.

"Watch, O Lord, with those who wake, or watch, or weep tonight, and give your angels charge over those who sleep. Tend your sick ones, O Lord Christ. Rest your weary ones. Bless your dying ones. Soothe your suffering ones. Pity your afflicted ones. Shield your joyous ones. And for all your Love's sake. Amen."

--St. Augustine

We can learn a lot from St. Monica's prayer. Is there someone you love away from the Christ and His Church? Is there someone you know who is struggling who could really use God's grace? Do you really want that person(s) to receive God's help? If so, imitate Jesus, imitate St. Monica in praying for them. Pray without ceasing. God answers those who ask with a sincere heart and who have confidence in Him. Never give up praying!

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."

(Matthew 7:7)

AMDG

St. Monica pray for us!

Small Groups and why you need to join one

I am taking a break from my Prayer Series today to discuss Small Groups (the next post will be on Prayer)

"Is any pleasure on earth as great as a circle of Christian friends by a fire?" 

-- C.S.Lewis.

As summer ends, and school begins the age old question is asked... "What should I do this year?" At the University of Florida, there is no shortage of answers! Today I am specifically going to advocate for one way of "getting involved". I feel confident in suggesting joining a Church small group or Bible Study due to my experience with them.


However, before I begin I need to include that there are many ministries and apostolates you can join that will bring you closer to God. The reason I am suggesting Small Groups is because that is how I came to deepen my relationship with Christ. You are not me, and you might not like what I like. That is why you need to take what I say with some discernment. Always ask God to show you where He wants you to follow Him and get involved. 



I was not involved in Church when I was in High School, and when I came to UF I knew I wanted to start seriously considering my Faith. The problem with starting at a new school and wanting to try something new is that you have no idea how to begin. Luckily enough, I met someone who did know what to do. He got me involved in Catholic Gator Small Groups and I met other people like me who wanted to know more about God.

There is something really awesome about being a part of a group of guys who want to explore their Faith and come to know Jesus Christ in a deep way. My St. Joseph small group was perfect for someone like me who did not want to separate deep discussion from deep friendships. Some of the people I met in that small group are some of my best friends and we still discuss how great that group was even though we all have moved on to other ministries or have taken leadership positions.

Another reason I love small groups is having a leader in the group. As a growing Christian it is nice to have someone in the group who is in love with Christ. My small group leader was able to instruct me in a lot of things about my Faith and at the same time give me a great example of what it means to be actively living a devout life in college. His witness to Jesus still resides with me and helps to shape how I live now.

"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."

(Proverbs 27:17)

Exploring Sacred Scripture with a small group of guys is a great way to come to know Jesus in His word better. Before college I rarely read the Bible, and after being involved with a small group I was filled with a desire to read and pray with it (see my "praying with the scriptures" post). I came to see how other guys applied Scriptures and Faith to their lives and that helped me to be inspired as well.

The most important thing I gained from Small Groups was a lifelong discipleship with Jesus. I learned how to follow Him. The most important thing we can do with our life is to follow Jesus Christ and learn from Him how to live.

"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayer."

(Acts 2:42)

At the end of most of our Small Group meetings we had a challenge. So my challenge to you will be to ask God how He wants you to give your time to Him this year. It is easy to forget that God is the one Who gives us our time and He deserves all of it back. Offer some of your time each week in a participating in a ministry like Small Groups.

Contact me if you would like more information about Catholic Gator Small Groups or about any other ministry at St. Augustine's Catholic Student Center.

List of Apostolates at St. A's:

Catholic Gator Small Groups
CSF (Catholic Student Fellowship): Large group fellowship and discussion on the Faith
Newman: Free food and fellowship
Nueva Alianza: Faith group for our Spanish brothers and sisters (all are welcome)
Liturgical Ministers: Don't forget it is important and spiritually fruitful to participate and aid in the Liturgy of the Mass.



AMDG



PS: All of this information applies to women as well! haha

Prayer #3: The Rosary. What Is It and Where Did It Come From?

"Why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?"

(Luke 1:44)

Everyone has seen a Rosary before, even non-Catholics. They seem to be one of the most popular Catholic symbols. However, not that many people know where it is from or why we pray with it?

A Rosary is a string of prayer bead used to aid a Christian in contemplative prayer. There are 15 traditional mysteries and five additional "Luminous" mysteries. These mysteries account different scenes in the life of Jesus. The one praying will meditate on these mysteries or a small group of them throughout the prayer. This way the prayer works to reveal the life of Christ. The Rosary is meant as an expression of "Lectio Divina" (Sacred Reading) in that you should be contemplating Christ in Scriptural scenes.

The mysteries are as follows:

Glorious:

1. the Resurrection
2. the Ascension
3. the Descent of the Holy Spirit (Pentecost)
4. the Assumption of Mary (see earlier post)
5. The Coronation of the Virgin

Joyful:

1. the Annunciation (when the Angel Gabriel visits Mary announcing the birth of our Savior)
2. the Visitation (when Mary visits Elizabeth and St. John the Baptist jumps for joy: Luke 1)
3. the Nativity (the birth of Jesus Christ in the manger)
4. the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
5. the Finding of Jesus at the Temple

Sorrowful:

1. the Agony in the Garden
2. the Scourging at the Pillar
3. the Crowning with Thorns
4. the Carrying of the Cross
5. the Crucifixion

Luminous: added by Pope John Paul II in 2002

1. the Baptism of Jesus
2. the Wedding Feast at Cana
3. the Proclamation of the Kingdom
4. The Transfiguration
5. the Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper

 It is a Marian devotion because as you are meditating on the mysteries, you are supposed to say ten "Hail Mary's" for each of the mysteries. However, before I explain why we pray they "Hail Mary's" or why Catholics pray to Mary, I want to show the origins of the Rosary.

The Rosary finds its origins in the 1200's with St. Dominic, the founder of the Dominicans (a religious order). Mary appeared to St. Dominic and told him that the Rosary  would be a great weapon against evil. He was to use it in prayer and preaching. It was used early on in preaching by having a sermon be given on one of the mysteries and then the public would pray ten "Hail Mary's" and then they wold proceed to the next mystery.

The Rosary has always had an attachment to the Laity. Throughout the 1200-1500's, towns and communities formed around Monasteries. During that time, Monks would pray all 150 Psalms every day and the Monastery would ring bells at the beginning of every Psalm. Soon the Laity started praying a "Hail Mary" for every Psalm the Monks would pray.This is why the "traditional" Rosary has 150 Psalms. This Rosary would include all three of the traditional mysteries.

As of 1475, the Rosary took the shape of what we pray today. In 1569, the Rosary became an official prayer of the Catholic Church by Apostolic Constitution. However, it wasn't until 1917 was the Fatima prayer added to the Rosary.







So what does the Rosary look like today:

The official (minimum) prayer is one "Our Father", ten "Hail Mary's", and one "Glory Be". These are said five times

Start with the first mystery (lets just say the Resurrection in the Glorious Mysteries) and meditate on it


saying the "Our Father", or "Lord's Prayer"
(which can be found in Matthew 6)
"Our Father, Who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name;
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen."


then ten times say
(The Hail Mary can be found partially in Luke 1:28)
"Hail Mary,
Full of Grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary,
Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of death."

end with

"Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning,
is now,
and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen."

Optional: "the Fatima Prayer" given by Mary in an apparition
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy."


This is one "decade" of the Rosary. There are five decades to go with the five mysteries. So you'd repeat what was above five times, each time meditating on one the mysteries.

So why the Marian devotion? Why does it seem that this prayer is all about Mary?

First off, the Rosary is not all about Mary. Every prayer to Mary is "to Christ through Mary". It seems in Scripture that Mary has a special connection to Jesus as His Mother. As Mother of God, she can intercede, or ask requests of Jesus, for us faithful on Earth. Take a look at John 2:3:

"When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, 'they have no wine.' and Jesus said to her, 'O woman, what have you do with me? My hour has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you.'"

We see in this Scriptural scene, also one of the Luminous mysteries, that Mary intercedes for the married couple and asks Jesus to help them. In our prayer lives we do not always know what we need to ask for. I know it seems like we always know what we want, but often times in my life I have wanted things that aren't what I really needed. Mary asks Jesus to supply us with all of our needs. She is our constant intercessor. She never stops asking for Jesus to supply us for what we need. She asks even before we know we need anything.

I would encourage you to try praying a Rosary, or a decade if a whole Rosary is too much, or even just one "Hail Mary". Ask Mary to pray for you. Trust that Jesus will answer His mother. Marian devotions are a great way to deepen your prayer life and help you to have confidence in your prayer to God. It was Pope John Paul the Second's favorite prayer.





It always helps to have friends pray for you here on Earth, just imagine how nice it is to have Jesus' mother, and all the other saints in Heaven praying for you. They are the ones who are literally always in the presence of the Blessed Trinity.


Mother of Jesus, pray for us on your feast of your Queenship!
AMDG

Prayer #2: Praying with the Psalms

The Psalms in the Bible are songs or prayer addressed to God. The Psalms were prayed by pious Jews before Jesus' time. Jesus, Himself, prayed the Psalms. He prayed them very memorably when He was on the Cross.

 In Jesus' most desperate time, the hour when He knew we would all look at Him, 

He prayed Psalm 22: 

"My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?"

Sacrosanctum Concillium (the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy) calls the Psalms prayed in the Divine Office (I will explain what this is later) is "the voice of the bride addressed to her bridegroom; It is the very prayer which Christ Himself, together with His body, addresses to the Father."

When we pray the Psalms we unite ourselves to Jesus Christ as He prays to God, our common Father. We enter into the communion of Love that is the Trinity. We become part of the divine life that Christ wants us to enter into. Our sanctification is directly proportionate to the amount of time we spend sharing in the life of the Trinity. When we pray the Psalms, especially in community with others, we unite our prayer to the Universal Prayer that is prayed by The Son to The Father, from the Bride (the Church) to Her Husband (God), and from all creation to The Creator.

On a more practical note, whenever you are struggling to pray, or just cannot express what you are feeling, then the Psalms give you a great way to pray. I know from my prayer life, that sometimes it is hard to talk to God. Why not just pray the words Jesus prayed, the words God wants us to offer to Him?

The Divine Office, or Liturgy of the Hours, is the prayer of the Church as a whole. It allows all the faithful to pray in unison and without ceasing to our common Savior Jesus Christ. The Liturgy of the Hours extends the Liturgy of the Mass throughout the day and allows for us to life our entire lives in the Liturgy.

The word "liturgy" comes from the Greek word "leitourgia" which means "public service, or duty". The Liturgy is the public Worship of the Church. We offer it as a service to God. The origin of Liturgy in the Christian world is in the Institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper (Luke 22). When Jesus gave the Church His Body and Blood He ordained the Liturgy we celebrate today.

So in a way, whenever we pray the Liturgy of the Hours we participate in the Eucharist. We participate in the worship that Jesus gave to us.

The Liturgy of the Hours is a prayer that brings together every other form of prayer. It includes singing hymns (praise and worship), it includes praying the Psalms, it includes readings from the Sacred Scriptures (Lectio Divina), it includes readings from Saints and Fathers of the Church, it includes the "Our Father", and it includes Marian prayers and devotions.

It is prayed throughout the day at different times and so works to sanctify the day. The times they are prayed are:

• Office of Readings (when you wake up)
• Morning (9AM)
• Midday (Noon)
• Evening (~6PM)
• Night (~10PM)

For actual instruction into how to pray at each hour, I am going to provide links to other sites which will be more helpful than me trying to explain. 

http://divineoffice.org/ (for the prayers themselves)

http://divineoffice.org/liturgy-of-the-hours/how-to-pray-the-liturgy-of-the-hours/ (a good introduction on what to do)

marymotherchurch.me is also a very good ministry that has the Divine Office as part of their pillars of spirituality

I am still a novice in the Divine Office, and can tell you it was not an easy prayer for me to get into. I can tell you though that if you pray the Hours with faithfulness you start to experience life in a different way. I can feel myself participating in the life of Christ. I know that my discipline in prayer had definitely increased and that is a great fruit of having times to pray (remember my post before on prayer and schedules).

I encourage you to try praying through the Psalms and try taking up the Liturgy of the Hours! It is an adventure in Love and Life.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thess 5:16-18)

AMDG

Prayer #1: Praying with the Scriptures

Prayer is how we enter into a dialogue of love with God, who is Himself a dialogue of love. The inner most being of God is love, and this Love calls out to us in a profoundly beautiful way. It beckons us into a communion with It, and prayer is our response to this Beauty.

“Mental prayer is nothing else than an intimate friendship, a frequent heart-to-heart conversation with Him by whom we know ourselves to be loved.” 

-Saint Teresa of Avila

Praying with Scripture is my favorite form of prayer, and I use Lectio Divina (Divine Reading) every day. It uses God's inerrant word to help us converse with Him. It is sometimes difficult in prayer to sense God's presence or to see what He is communicating to us. Using the Bible we are able to immediately place ourselves in dialogue with God and hear His voice. 

Praying with the Scriptures is easy, but takes a little time to get used to. The method of prayer I will be describing here is called Ignatian Prayer, and is named after the founder of the Jesuits, St. Ignatius of Loyola, who helped spread its use. 

The first step is to enter into the presence of God by offering a short prayer for God to help you pray and to be present to you.

Next you need to read the Scripture verses you want to pray with. For example (Luke 19:1-10)

He entered Jericho and was passing through. And there was a man named Zacchae'us; he was a chief tax collector, and rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not, on account of the crowd, because he was small of stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchae'us, make haste and come down; for I must stay at your house today."  So he made haste and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it they all murmured, "He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner." And Zacchae'us stood and said to the Lord, "Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have defrauded any one of anything, I restore it fourfold." And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost."

The importance of reading the Scripture first before meditating with it is so you can become familiar with the passage.

After you have read it once, now go slowly through the passage. The key technique used in Ignatian Prayer is to engage your senses and your imagination to enter into the Biblical scene. Some senses will mean more to you during different meditations. Start by "casting" yourself in the role of one of the characters in the passage. For example, lets imagine the scene through the eyes of Zacchaeus.

So begin by imagining the scene using your sight. In this example passage, What time of day is it? What does the crowd surrounding Jesus look like? What is it like not being able to see Jesus? What does the sycamore tree look like? How tall is it? What do you imagine when Jesus is looking at you? What does "your" house look like? Who all is with you in "your" house? What is Jesus' reaction when you offer to give to the poor, and turn your life around?

Next use your sense of touch to imagine what the scene is like. How hot is it? Is the crowd pushing you around? What does the tree feel like? How hard was it to climb the tree? 

Use your sense of hearing, and imagine the murmuring in the crowd? Is everyone yelling? Are they shouts of joy or cries of pain? Is Jesus saying anything? What is dinner like? What is Jesus telling you, or His disciples? What are the disciples saying to you?

Apply your sense of taste. This one is a little harder, but imagine what you are eating with Jesus? Is it a big dinner, or is it simple? Is it a dinner, lunch, or breakfast? 

Finally, what are you smelling? What does your food smell like? What does the tree your sitting in smell like?

The most important part of this prayer is not the imagination portion. The most important thing is to allow God to speak to you through this scene. Enter into this conversation with God I was speaking of earlier. Imagine Jesus isn't talking to Zacchaeus, but to you. What is He telling you? What is it that Jesus wants you to do in your life? Maybe He wants you to spend more time in prayer with Him, or maybe He wants you to be more generous with your charity.

 Ask God for the desires of your heart. Allow Him to fill you with His love. Make sure to focus on how Jesus acts in the Scriptures. How do His actions differ from how you would have handled the situation? Use this comparison to help God instruct you in how He wants you to make your change in your life. 

The key questions to ask here are: What are you feeling as Zacchaeus? What is Jesus telling you? How do you want to amend your life for God?

End with a prayer of thanksgiving to God. Thank Him for your time in communion with Him. Ask Him for help changing your life for Him. If prayer did not go well, ask for Him to aid you in your prayer in the future. Make sure to preserve in prayer no matter how it goes. 

This method of prayer takes some working through. I know when I first began praying this way I did not like it at all. I thought it was boring and unfulfilled. The key to making the prayer fruitful is to enter into the conversation with God. Do not stop at the imagining of the scene. It is easy to, but it won't fulfill you. 

I absolutely love this prayer style now! It allows you to converse with God in a profound way and as an added benefit it allows you to know the Scriptures better. Prayer allows you to know the Sacred Heart of Jesus and this prayer is all about entering into the Heart of Jesus. It allows you to see His Heart and to see yours as well. In doing this it is plainly clear what you need to do to grow in Faith and Love. 

In honor of the founder of the Jesuits and the one who spread this prayer method.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, Ora Pro Nobis!

AMDG (Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam: For the Greater Glory of God)