Although the heading for a recent ZENIT article was titled, “Scripture Is Central to Ecumenism, Says Pope,” it would have been more accurate to give it this title: "Lectio Divina is Central to Ecumenism, Says Pope." The article, published on January 26, 2006 from Vatican City's very own news service, Zenit.org, said this:
Listening to the word of God is a priority for ecumenism, said Benedict XVI at the close of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
Two paragraphs later, Zenit News Service explains in the Pope’s own words what he means by “listening to the word of God.”
The Holy Father suggested that to proceed on the path to Christian unity it is necessary to "listen together to the word of God; to practice ‘lectio divina’ of the Bible," and to "allow oneself to be surprised by the novelty, which never grows old and is never exhausted, of the word of God.
The article is a very short one and you can read it for yourself by
CLICKING HERE or going to http://www.zenit.org/english/visualizza.phmtl?sid=101878So? What's the big deal?
Well, to answer that we have to define two things. First we have to define ecumenism. Second, we have to define lectio divina.
Wikipedia
defines ecumenism in this way:
In a narrower and more common sense, ecumenism refers to the movement towards co-operating among Christians. For some people, ecumenism is based on the idea that there should be a single Christian Church, but normally it refers to Christians of different denominations working together.
Further reading in Wikipedia, under “Contemporary developments,” you will read this in the last paragraph of that subheading:
Organizations such as the World Council ofChurches, the National Council of Churches USA, Churches Uniting in Christ, and Christian Churches Together continue to encourage ecumenical cooperation among Protestants, Eastern Orthodox, and, at times, Roman Catholics.
With regard to Christian Churches Together (CCT), check out this link to Christian Research Net to read what Bishop Blaire has to say about the ultimate goal of the Roman Catholic Church and the role of CCT as an “interim process” to reach that goal. You can also read all about it on the CCT website by CLICKING HERE
. The quote from the CCT news article said:
Bishop Blaire emphasized that for the Catholic Church the ultimate goal of ecumenism is the full, visible unity of all Christian churches in the one apostolic faith.
In an article entitled,
"The Alignment of New Evangelicals with Apostasy", Richard Bennet, president and founder of Berean Beacon, and a former Catholic Priest himself, provides excellent insights into this ecumenical apostasy that has invaded the church in these last days.Now, how is lectio divina used to perpetuate this ecumenism?
Once again, Wikipedia
is informative enough to tell us all about lectio divina:
Lectio Divina is Latin for divine reading, spiritual reading, or “holy reading,” and represents a method of prayer and scriptural reading intended to promote communion with God and to provide special spritual insights. It is a way of praying with Scripture that calls one to study, ponder, listen and, finally pray from God's Word.
Although Wikipedia goes on to explain the method of lectio divina, allow me to give you a sample of the method that comes right from the website of the very Protestant denomination I am presently serving in, the
Evangelical Covenant Church of America (ECC). What is most shocking about this is that the ECC is promoting this form of prayer as “spiritual discipline” within their “Spiritual Formation” Department.READING: lectio (read)Gently read the Scriptures aloud to yourself slowly savoring and repeating the part of the text that speaks to the depths of your heart. Listen to the Word ‘with the ear of your heart,’ and be willing to linger on portions of the text that seem to speak to you in a special way.
Through repetition, gently allow the text to percolate into your memory. Be willing to set the printed text aside to listen quietly to the Word which you have taken into your heart.
MEDITATION: meditatio (reflect)Lovingly and slowly repeat the text you have internalized....
I can go on but that gives you the general idea. You can read the entire text in PDF by CLICKING HERE or going to http://www.covchurch.org/uploads/VM/Iv?VMIveIavWPyo6EXMz9QC8A/Habits-of-the-Heart.pdf
One can easily see that this method of prayer makes no bones about repeating text, directly violating the Lord's will as Jesus condemns this sort of tom foolery as pagan:
“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking" (Matthew 6:7).
That our Lord tells us that vain repetition is particularly pagan should be good enough for us to shun this method. Nevertheless, if you would like further insights regarding how contemplative prayer, such as lectio divina, is used in New Age mysticsm, check out this article ny Brian Flynn, author of Running Against the Wind and director and founder of One Truth Ministries. CLICK HERE to read Brian's article entitled, “Christians Should Dump Contemplative Prayer” or go to http://www.onetruthministries.com/cp_article.html
Lectio Divina is heavily promoted by the movers and shakers within the Emergent Church Movement, and endorsed by Rick Warren, founder and pastor of the Purpose Driven Movement.
What's the danger in lectio divina and how could it possibly tie us into a movement that unites us with the Romish church under the pope in Vatican City?
First of all, when we practice such methods of prayer, vainly repeating Scripture, lighting votif candles, wearing prayer shawls, or taking certain prayerful steps in order to get into the “presence” of God, we have actually denied the grace of God...
...and blasphemed the Cross of Jesus Christ.
For further reading, check out these articles:
"The Ecumenical Church of Deceit" by Ken Silva
"Contemporary Christian Divination" by Bob DeWaay
"The Apostasy" by Jon Cardwell
