Holy Reading and Process
In Bruce G. Epperly’s The God of the Growing Edge: Whitehead and Thurman on Theology, Spirituality, and Social Change, readers are invited into a unique dialogue between Alfred North Whitehead’s robust intellectual framework and Howard Thurman’s prophetic urgency and practical wisdom. For those engaged in process theology, this book offers not just a theoretical synthesis but also practical pathways for spiritual exploration and deeper insight.
The following extract, drawn from the book’s dedicated spiritual practices, illustrates how the author himself utilizes Lectio Divina, or “holy reading,” as a method to discern the deeper meaning of the text he is writing, specifically to understand the role of Jesus in Whitehead and Thurman’s thought. Through this contemplative practice, profound insights emerged, such as perceiving Whitehead’s understanding of God as “creative-responsive love” as a reflection of Jesus’ relational ministry.
This approach exemplifies how integrating ancient spiritual disciplines can deeply enrich and advance Whitehead’s metaphysical vision alongside Thurman’s spiritual wisdom, fostering a holistic vision that unites head, heart, and hands in the ongoing holy adventure of God’s “growing edge” in the world.
St. Benedict of Nursia taught a practice of encountering scripture and other holy texts that today we identify as Lectio Divina or holy reading. The point of holy reading is to personalize the scripture moving from the words to the Living Word of mystical encounter available to each one of us. The steps of a contemporary version of Lectio Divina are as follows:
- A time of stillness.
- Prayer of openness and gratitude
- Reading the scripture twice with a time of stillness between readings.
- Silent openness to the message of the scripture, the word or phrase, hymn or image, that is addressed to you.
- In a time of silence, you may choose to sit in a comfortable chair or you might go for a walk and simply let your mind wander until an inspiration emerges.
- Reflect on the meaning of the word for you at this point in your life.
- Jot down some notes as a way of grounding and preserving your experience.
The practice of holy reading initially had its primary use in discerning the deeper personal meaning of scripture. You can, however, use this practice for any media – a poem, quote, or even a painting or piece of music.
Bruce Epperly, The God of the Growing Edge, pp. 81-82
