Reading Stage
We read the text with reverence conscious that it is a gift from the father and has the power to touch our lives in a deep and beautiful way.
Lectio is the name of the first stage of the journey and also the name given to the entire journey. We read the passage in the spirit of a saunter – a holy walk. It is not a sprint to the finishing line but a leisurely stroll where we take in the all that is going on around us – listening, observing, attending to what is given to us.
We observe where it happened? – the geographical place. When did it happen? – actual time of day if there is any evidence. Also the context within the gospel. Also in the wider cultural context. Who was there? – the people involved, our understanding of the character or social or religious identity. What happened? We become familiar with the unfolding event, interaction dialogue etc. We become attentive to the movements of grace and the movements of sin. At this reading stage we become familiar with the words, phrases, imagery – the vocabulary in which the story is narrated. These are God’s chosen words to communicate with us his children: there is not one word left out that he wanted in or one word included that he wanted left out. Every word is important and is there for a purpose. There may be some words we are not familiar with and this is a chance to check out the meaning. There may be some biblical words with strong connotations that need some explanation.
All of the above, we might say, is in keeping with the historical critical method as applied to Scripture. (Michel was often at pains to stress that while academic knowledge of the background was important, it was not essential for entering the text in a faithful and meaningful and life-giving way.)
It might also be helpful to divide up the passage into sections, particularly the longer ones, for the purposes of meditation. It is also good practice to read the passage aloud – more of our bodily senses and functions are involved, not just our eyes but our ears, mouth, tongue and lips. Reading aloud is in some way an anticipation of how we want to end up embodying this text in our daily lives.