Spiritual exercise: Prayer
Radiance
“They shall come and sing aloud
on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant
over the goodness of the Lord,
over the grain, the wine, the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall be like a watered garden,
and they shall languish no more.”
Jeremiah 31:12
Visio Divina (meaning divine vision, seeing with the eyes of your heart)
The movement of this prayer uses a visual to help guide and set our minds on prayer thus allowing God to speak into our hearts through the image. Enlarge the image photo image to use for this exercise, or choose one of your own.
Invitation. Find a quiet and comfortable place to be still with God. This can be practiced any time in your day where rest and refreshment may be desired. This may also be practiced with a friend.
Follow each of the four parts. Take as long as you can to sit with each portion of the prayer exercise. You may wish to journal as you pause, notice, and wonder.
When you’re ready to begin: Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and clear your mind of distractions.
(read/see with the eyes): Open your eyes and scan the image. Note what draws your interest while continuing to scale the whole image. Close your eyes and rest.
(meditate) Open your eyes and allow your eyes to be led. Focus on one part of the image and silently give it a name. Close your eyes again, holding that piece of the image in your mind’s eye.
(pray): Open your eyes and look again at the part of the image that caught your eye. Allow it to bring forth a word, image or emotion. What might God be speaking to you today through this image? Close your eyes and rest.
(contemplation): Open your eyes and gaze at the image. How would you like to respond to God today?
History: Visio Divina came from the Lectio Divina (divine reading, a slow reading of Scripture practice) which was an early 6th century monastic prayer practice begun by Benedict of Nursia.
The four part rhythm of the prayer was formalized in the 12th century by a Carthusian monk named Guigo II.
