Lectio Divina





Dear Theophilus,

Inspired by Archbishop Cardinal Collins, lately I have come into the practice of Lectio Divina as a part of my daily prayer life. This has grown out of a desire to read and meditate on the daily readings set out by the Church. 

An ancient tradition, dating back to Origen in the Third Century Lectio Devina can be simply translated as either Holy or Sacred Reading, referring to one reads and meditates on Sacred Scripture. This understanding of Lectio Devina is reiterated by Cardinal Collins in the introduction to his book Pathway to our Hearts, where he is quick to point out that Lectio Devina should not be approached as a course in Bible study (exegis). Although Cardinal Collins recognizes that Scripture study is important, he reminds us that Lectio Divina is meant to be a prayerful encounter with our living God through the inspired word of Sacred Scripture. 

There is no official format for Lectio Divina, however, there are certain elements that will help one get the most out of this spiritual practice. Reading, prayer, meditation and contemplation are all a part of Lectio Divina, however, the order you do these in depends on the amount of time you have to dedicate to Lectio Divina and finding a formula that works best for you. Since I can only dedicate 15 minutes to my daily Scripture reading (unlike the 45 minute Lectio Divina sessions Cardinal Collins offers monthly at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Toronto), I follow the simple formula of prayer, reading, and then combine my meditation and contemplation. 

I start with prayer to focus my mind and settle my heart. I find that this helps me ready myself to receive the Word of God and to meditate on how He is speaking to me. The prayer is usually quite simple, I either allow the Holy Spirit to guide my prayer: Lord, please allow me to hear your will for me today in your word; or I will recite the words of the prophet Samuel: Speak Lord, your servant is listening. If I am feeling particularly agitated, I may even recite a decade of the Rosary. 

My heart and mind ready to listen to the Lord, I turn to the passage I have chosen to read that day. I usually read the Bible readings for the day, but there are other times when I feel I need to return to Sunday’s Gospel throughout the rest of the week; and still other times there is a particular passage that I feel is pertinent to my life right now. Since Lectio Divina is meant to be a prayerful encounter with God through Scripture I read the passage slowly and out loud, imagining that I am proclaiming the Word at Mass. I let the Word linger on my lips, savouring what God is saying. Searching for what God is trying to tell me. 

This is where meditation and contemplation on the Word comes in. I will often read, re-read and read the passage again. There will be key phrases and words that jump off the page for me. There are times when I have returned to a reading and God has prompted my attention in a new direction, peeling back the layers of his will for me. Usually I am surprised by how there is something in the reading that speaks directly to something going on in my life. I have even laughed out loud when the Lord has offered me a solution to a problem that I had not thought of, but with His help seems so obvious. 

I will then finish my meditation with an Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be.

My Lectio Divina complete, I find renewed strength to take on the day. I take courage in knowing that God has a plan for me, and that I am setting out to do His will.

Every Mass is like High Mass

Dear Theophilus,

As a family we like to start school breaks (Christmas and summer) with a little get-a-way. We find our holidays to be more relaxing because there is a distinct break between work and down time with the forced relaxation that a hotel stay brings. It’s nothing extravagant, just a couple of nights in a hotel with a pool in downtown Toronto, with someone to make the beds, cook meals and do the dishes for few days.

Each year one of the highlights is attending High Mass at St. Michael’s Cathedral.

One of the reason’s my son likes going to the cathedral because his name is also Michael, so he feels a certain link with the church, like it’s his very own. He also likes looking for the Archbishop’s tasselled hat hanging above the altar. And the look of awe in his eye when he saw Thomas Cardinal Collins processing in was only matched by his excitement when he realized we would received communion from his Eminence.

Personally, I find a certain enchantment with the sacred beauty that Mass at the cathedral entails. There is all of the sacred art – murals, stained glass, the gold gilded tabernacle; which all focus the mind towards God (unfortunately all hidden behind restorers’ scaffolding on our December visit). When the 100-voice strong choir from the acclaimed St. Michael’s Boys’ Choir School sang the Gloria, I closed my eyes and imagined that this must be as close as earthly possible to the Angels’ refrain on the night of the Nativity. Added to this was the sweet scent of incense, and I felt that I was participating in something sacred.

I was so moved and excited by the whole experience, shortly after Mass I sent a text message to a friend: High Mass at the Cathedral with the Cardinal. AWESOME!!!!!!

To which he replied: Very cool … our Mass parish priest … no power … still awesome …

I was dumbfounded. He was so very right! Yes, all the sacred beauty and enchantment of the cathedral Mass are wonderful, but what is truly awesome, the source and summit of our faith, is the Eucharist. Whether it is celebrated on the altar of the humblest of chapels or under the Dome of St. Peter’s in Rome, the core of the Mass is the same. We are called to partake in Christ’s sacrifice in the Eucharist. AWESOME!!!!!

Benedict XVI - Thank You, Danke, Grazie, Merci



Dear Theophilus,

This morning, Pope Benedict XVI announced his abdication from the Papacy. I'm sure that this will be a happy day for many liberal Catholics, as well as many who like to attack the Catholic Church and what they think it represents. On the other hand, it is a sad day for many Catholic's of a more conservative nature, like myself, because of the uncertainty of the direction the conclave will take.

I don't think there were any surprises with Benedict XVI's pontificate. As Cardinal Ratzinger and Prefect for the Congregation of the Faith, Benedict XVI was already quite well known for his traditional views of Churhc doctrine - views that many seem to have forgotten that were also held by the grandfatherly Blessed John Paul II. When I think of those who criticized Benedict XVI for his teachings on Life, Marriage and the Ordination of women, I think of something Toronto Archbishop Cardinal Collins once said: "Perhaps the majority of Catholics have some difficulty accepting the teaching of Church on some issues - that doesn't make them right."

From the time of Christ, the Catholic Church has always been, and probably always will be, counter-cultural. We need to give a prayer of thanksgiving for men such as Benedict XVI who are strong enough and wise enough to continually point towards the Truth of divine revelation.

Please join me, dear Theophilus, in praying that the conclave to choose the next successor to St. Peter will allow itself to be guided by the Holy Spirit to do God's will here on earth.

Re-understanding Vatican II



Dear Theophilus,

Recently I sat with a small group of colleagues trying to figure out how to best serve the needs of the rest of the staff at our catholic high school for our upcoming Faith Awareness Day. My other colleagues kept talking about how there is an undercurrent of aggravation with the Catholic Church amongst the staff; and although I tend to keep a low profile, I had heard the rumblings and wasn’t surprised. At one point, a colleague at the table said, “I thought Vatican II was supposed to open a window from the Church to the world. Now it seems as if the window is being shut.” With hindsight, I wish I had has the courage and wisdom to ask who he thought might be shutting the window.

I add wisdom to the courage needed to answer such questions, because up until a couple of weeks ago, like most Catholics of my generation, I knew basically nothing about Vatican II. Sure, I could tell you that it was in the early 60’s (but not the exact date), and that it had been called by John XXIII, who died during the council and that it had been seen to its fulfillment by his successor, Paul VI. After the vernacular becoming the language of the liturgy, I would have been hard pressed to name any of the documents issued by Vatican II (I would have guessed at Gaudiem et Spes and Lumen Gentium – and I would have counted myself lucky).

As a part of my Year of Faith Resolutions, I’ve decided to take on getting to know the Vatican II documents better. Even if I just manage to read through them once, I would hope that it would leave me with a better understanding of them than if I had not read them at all. To this end, I picked up Vatican II – The Essential Texts with introductions from His Holiness Benedict XVI and James Carroll. I’ve only just gotten out of the introductions to begin Sacrosanctum Concilium, and I based on the introductions alone, the book has already paid for itself.



Where James Carroll gives the reader a historical look at the Second Vatican Council, Benedict XVI delves more philosophically into the council documents. The Holy Father’s introduction comes first, however, I would have preferred to have read Carroll’s historical treatment first to give me a context of Vatican II so that I could better understand Benedict XVI’s interpretation of the council texts. Not only does Carroll put the notion of Vatican II into its historical context with the backdrop of the Holocaust and Hiroshima, he also sheds historical light onto where the documents got their catalysts.

As I noted, Benedict XVI’s introduction to the Vatican II texts is much more philosophical, a way to make the documents of half a century ago relevant today. Time and again, throughout his introduction, the Holy Father alludes to, or outright tells us, that Vatican II had no intentions of changing Church doctrine, but rather the way in which Church doctrine is taught in order to make it more comprehensible to the modern world: “… the Council wishes ‘to transmit the doctrine, pure and integral, without any attenuation or distortion.’” Unfortunately, it seems that many people, especially Catholics trying to reconcile their faith to the pressures of the modern world, have understood Vatican II to mean quite the opposite – that doctrine must be changed so we can comfortably remain within the visible traditions of the Church.



Keeping this misunderstanding that Vatican II was designed to change doctrine and not the modicum of teaching, it was very refreshing, from an orthodox point of view, to listen to the homily given on October 26, 2012 by Cardinal Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, to about 1,000 catholic educators. I imagine that his Eminence ruffled a few feathers when he stated: “I’ve been told that up to 85% of Catholics today do not agree with many of the Church’s social teachings. Pause. And I tell them, yes, that is true. But it doesn’t make it right or wise. It is easy to go along with the flow as it is presented in the mainstream media. However, sometimes we need to go against the flow. It might not be easy, but it is right and wise.”

This is our challenge as Catholics in a very anti-catholic world. We are challenged to go against the flow because it is right and wise – but not necessarily easy. And when our opponents throw the window of Vatican II in our faces, we need to have the courage and wisdom to ask them who is closing the window before opening the door to light and truth and inviting them to enter.