Scripture Meditation: Lectio Divina: The Ladder of Monks

Guigo II, a 12th-century Carthusian prior, described four steps of engaging Scripture in "The Ladder of Monks" (Scala Claustralium): "Reading seeks, meditation finds, prayer asks, and contemplation tastes. Reading puts food whole into the mouth; meditation chews it and breaks it up; prayer extracts its flavor; contemplation is the sweetness itself which gladdens and refreshes." The four steps are: Lectio (reading) -- read a short passage slowly and attentively.…