Song of
Songs 8: 1-7
Sunday August 9, 2015
First Congregational United
Church of Christ – Sermon by Rev. Caela Simmons Wood
I’d like to begin this morning by sharing with you a
long-ish except from Stephanie Paulsell’s commentary on the Song of Songs. It’s
so darn good, the way she says it, I want you to hear it in her words:
Last year I met a woman
who told me a story about the Song of Songs that I will never forget. Her
husband had served on a submarine in the U.S. Navy during the 1970s. Family
members were able to send messages to the sailors, but the messages could be no
more than eight words long. A Bible verse, though, counted as only one word, so
the loved ones on shore filled their messages with them.
“All the wives and
girlfriends,” she old me, “loved the Song of Songs.” They would send messages
like this: SoS 1:2 - and the beloved,
deep below the surface of the ocean, would look up Song 1:2 in the Bible. “Let
him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth,” he would read. Or SoS 4:7 – “you are
altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you.” Or SoS 8:7, a message
to a beloved submerged beneath miles of water – “many waters cannot quench
love, neither can the floods drown it.”
Those women flung the
words of the Song into the sea like a life-line, where they entered the
submarine like a secret code. Coiled within these SOSs were so many prayers: “I
miss you. God be with you. Please come home to me.” Bent over his Bible like a
scholar, a sailor would search the Song for his beloved’s voice. Together, they
crossed the miles of water between them on the bridge of the Song.
The lovers in the Song invite us into a different way of
living. God may not be mentioned by name, but the Spirit of the One we call “Love”
is woven into the very fabric of the Song. When we allow ourselves to drink
deeply from the richness of this text, we find ourselves invited to slow down,
open our senses, and spend time enjoying the beauty around us. We are invited
to make ourselves vulnerable…to those we love, to ourselves, and to God.
I confess to you that I have never been one of those
people who has vast (well, or even tiny) bits of scripture memorized. But I
have always envied people who do. I want to take the Bible into me and knit it
into my very soul, so that the wisdom in our Holy Book can be available to me
in my times of need.
I trust some of you saw the video of social activist Bree
Newsome scaling the flag pole in front of the capitol building in South
Carolina in June to remove the Confederate Flag. After she descended and was
placed in handcuffs, the police officers walked her away from the scene. As she
walked, you could hear her reciting the words of the 23rd Psalm with
a clear and confident voice.
There are so many ways to come to the Biblical text. For
many of us, we come at it with an analytical lens. We ask all the questions –
Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Some were taught to memorize bits of
scripture at an early age and we either loved or hated this practice. We’ve
learned to use the Bible in our defense – to help explain our opinions to
another person who might not agree with us. We’ve learned to use the Holy Book
as advice – treating is as a field guide for life or a Magic 8 ball.
This morning, I want to teach and practice an ancient way
of engaging the text called lectio divina – in Latin that means “divine
reading.” It is a way of aligning ourselves with a small nugget of scripture
without analyzing or memorizing.
Lectio divina has its roots in the 3rd century
with Origen, who believed Scripture was, itself, a sacrament. Origin believed
that the Word (Christ) was inherently present inside all of our Holy texts. God
actually lives inside these words and any practice of reading them should
primarily be about seeking communion with God.
Over the centuries, a four-fold pattern for lectio divina
has emerged. The four parts are printed
in your bulletin – you might want to jot down a few notes on each of them as I
describe them. I am going to tell you a bit about each step and then we are
going practice together. I should note that there is no one “right” way to do
lectio divina. I’ve personally been taught it at least 10 different ways.
First is Lectio
– reading the text. Before we read, we prepare ourselves. We sit in silence for
a few moments and allow ourselves to focus our energy and attention here. We
let go of other things – put the to-do list on pause. Saying those words from
Psalm 46 – “Be still and know that I am God.” – can be a simple way to focus
our attention. Once we have quieted ourselves, we listen to the text. Since
we’re doing this in community today, we will hear the text twice in two
different voices. I’ll read first and I need a volunteer to read the second
time through. As you listen, try not to analyze. Just listen and be still.
Lectio divina has been likened to “feasting on the Word” and the reading
portion is like taking a little bite.
The second part of the process is Meditatio – meditation. This is where we chew the morsel of text.
Staying still, seek a connection with the Holy, and allow yourself to be open
to the movement of the Spirit. Allow the Spirit to reveal to you a word or
phrase or image from the text that stands out. And if nothing in particular
comes to you, don’t stress. It doesn’t always work that way. We will hear the
text read a third time in another voice. Can I please have a volunteer?
The third step is Oratio
– prayer. This is where we savor the feast that has been prepared for us. There
are several different ways to do this, of course. You might want to look at the text and pray
the words – silently or aloud. You might want to continue to sit with the word,
phrase, or image that the Spirit placed in front of you. You may simply want to
see how the text relates to your own prayers of the moment – the things
happening in your life or the world around you.
Finally, we arrive at the fourth step of Contemplatio – contemplation. This is
where we digest the holy food, making it a part of our body and gathering
strength and nutrients for our daily living. You are invited to simply enjoy
the presence of God in silence and to contemplate any response you feel welling
up inside you. Perhaps you are aware of an action to which you are called as a
result of your practice.
Okay – I invite you to make yourselves comfortable in your
seat. Let’s have our two readers come up to the front so they can use the
microphone when the time is right. I will guide us through the process, so
don’t be worried if you still don’t know what you’re doing. The text is printed
there on your insert – Song of Songs 8: 6-7.
Let’s begin by centering ourselves and being still. “Be
still and know that I am God.” (Silence is kept.)
*********
LECTIO:
Caela reads text one time.
“Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, passion fierce
as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, a raging flame. Many waters
cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If one offered for love
all
the wealth of one’s house, it would be utterly scorned.”
(Silence is kept.)
Reader #2 reads the text a second time.
*********
MEDITATIO:
You are invited to meditate on the text, remaining open and
willing for the Spirit to illuminate a particular word, phrase, or image that
speaks to you this day.
Reader #3 reads the text.
(Silence is kept.)
*********
ORATIO:
This is the time for prayer and savoring the text. You may
want to pray the text, which is written in front of you – either silently or
aloud. If a word, phrase, or image was illuminated for you, you might want to
hold it in prayer. You may also want to connect the text to your other prayers
for this particular day.
(Silence is kept.)
*********
CONTEMPLATIO:
We’ve reached the final stage – contemplation. Simply rest in
God’s presence. Digesting the holy food you’ve received and allowing what
you’ve discovered today to become a part of you. You may find that you begin to
think about specific ways this time with God calls you into new acts or tasks.
(Silence is kept.)
*********
Now that you’ve had a chance to experience lectio divina, I
hope you will find it useful the next time you want to sit with the Bible but
aren’t quite sure what to do.
As I’ve been pondering the life and death of Michael Brown
this week, I can’t help but think of those who went before him and the others
who have died in the past year because of the sins that plague our society –
people who were entire worlds to their parents, children, friends, lovers. We
know that the Holy Scriptures have been used to offer comfort to those who
mourn and to encourage those who struggle for justice to continue the difficult
work of making all things new. At times, the pain of living in a world so
fractured by sin is painful. It is my hope that you might be able to feast on
the Holy Word in your times of personal devotion – to be fed by God and be
changed by our Holy Text.
On your bulletin insert, I’ve included several other passages
to get you started. All you need to do is find a place for quiet and move
through the four stages of lectio divina on your own. Thanks be to God for the
gift of words that illumine, accompany, and sustain us for all our days. Amen.
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