Paths to Contemplation - 30

Guigo’s ladder

Sacred reading is often described using four steps.  In actuality, the four steps come from the writings of Guigo, a 12th century Carthusian monk.  The steps are not of the essence of sacred reading, but they may be helpful in identifying where sacred reading might lead the soul and the last of the steps, as we shall see, is contemplation.

The first step in Guigo’s ladder is the reading itself as described earlier in this chapter, holding oneself open to inspiration by a word or passage from the reading chosen.  The second step is meditation, often referred to by meditatio, the latin word for meditation.  At this step, we think about the passage that inspired us and what God might be trying to tell us through it.  The passage may lead us to construct images of an event in the life of Christ or some event in our past.  It may lead us to think of passages from Scripture, or some issue of faith or morals, or a life decision with which we are struggling.  It may even lead us into a different stream of thinking altogether, the passage being merely a springboard from which to dive into another unrelated issue that God wants us to consider.  We should not attempt to force ourselves to go in any particular direction, trying to be as open as we can to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

If, as in the example above using Psalm 23, we are attracted to the word shepherd, we might imagine a field of sheep grazing contentedly with the shepherd standing guard over them, or we might see ourselves as a lost sheep for whom Jesus is searching.  We ought to follow where the Spirit seems to be leading without coercing our thoughts to move in a particular direction.  Meditation here should be unhurried and restful, just as our reading should be.  The more effort we put into it, the less likely it is to bear fruit, just as the more strenuously we attempt to banish distractions in Centering Prayer, the more distracted we will become.

Our meditation on the passage that drew our attention may, in turn, lead to the third step of the ladder, oratio, prayer.  The meditation on “shepherd” may cause a spontaneous burst of thanks to God for his loving care of us, or it may cause us to pray that we may never wander from the flock.  Or, if we have been led toward a particular decision, we may pray that the decision we have made is, in fact, in keeping with the will of God, and that God will correct us if we are wrong.  Our prayer may even be simply repeating the word or phrase that inspired us slowly over and over again, letting into sink into our consciousness.

At some point in our prayer, we may be led to contemplation, contemplatio, that is, a quiet resting in God.  Sacred reading is a method that is intended to prepare the soul for contemplation.  Is this active, or passive, contemplation?  Has the soul actively sought to rest in God using the first three steps of Guigo’s ladder as the inspiration?  Yes, but the contemplation may also be a gift from God; that is, God may give the prepared soul a more direct experience of himself.

No one should feel that Guigo’s ladder is the essence of sacred reading.  It was created after sacred reading was already an integral part of Benedictine spiritual practices.  The ladder may be useful to remind us that sacred reading is not an end in itself – no prayer technique is an end in itself – but it is pointed toward deeper growth into God, and, ultimately, enjoying the vision of God.  Some persons may find themselves jumping directly from reading to contemplation.  Others may not enter a contemplative state at all.  

At times of great spiritual dryness, one may find concentration difficult and no word or phrase inspiring.  In such times of dryness, readings selected to reflect that dryness, such as the anguish of some of the psalms, or readings about Christ’s suffering and death may be useful.