Pressing In On the Word of God

Slow down and learn practical approaches to a sustained conversation with God from Ritual's Daily Lectio Divina leader Kathleen A. Cahalan.

The ancient practice of lectio divina has attracted believers for centuries, but many struggle with getting started or are unsure if they are doing it “wrong.” In Pressing In On the Word of God, Kathleen Cahalan offers engaging stories of her personal lectio experience—rooted in a historical, theological, and practical approach—to draw us closer to the word, to listen, and respond.

Lectio divina is a long conversation with God that can be experienced through a sacred encounter, a biblical text, and creation. In Pressing In On the Word of God, Cahalan suggests accessible guidelines for the reader’s practice. In addition to the popular approach of Guigo II (multiple readings of the text), she explores other forms of lectio divina: following the lectionary, memorization, reciting short arrow prayers, and sustained reading of a text over time. Framing lectio as a practice of discernment, Cahalan invites readers to delve into the encounter of reading, listening, and repeating the word so that it may become our primary consciousness, replacing our self-talk with Christ Consciousness.

Kathleen A. Cahalan is professor emeritus of practical theology at Saint John’s University School of Theology and Seminary where she taught courses on pastoral ministry, pastoral care, and spiritual practice. She is co-author with Laura Kelly Fanucci of Called on the Way: The Daily Practice of Discipleship (Liturgical Press, 2024); author of Stories We Live: Finding God’s Calling All around Us (Eerdmans, 2017), and co-editor with Bonnie Miller-McLemore of Calling All Years Good: Vocation across the Lifespan (Eerdmans, 2017), and other titles. She has led numerous retreats on lectio divina and discernment and leads Daily Lectio on the Ritual app.