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On Story: With Eugene Peterson
I just finished reading Bono’s autobiographical tome, Surrender, and was delighted to find out that the great lyricist was a friend of the late Eugene Peterson. Peterson pastored for thirty years before becoming professor of spiritual theology at Regent in Vancouver, B.C. In my last post I shared excerpts from a conversation I had with him about rest. What follows is what he told me about “story”—excerpted from a conversation we had while he was still a prof and I was starting out as one. SG: In the academic environment it’s easy to intellectualize everything. How can we keep from developing the kind of mentality that would view the Trinity as…
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Eugene Peterson on Rest: An interview from my files
The late Eugene Peterson, a pastor for thirty years before becoming professor of spiritual theology at Regent in Vancouver, B.C., wrote many books including a “Koine English” translation of the Bible, The Message. He also wrote works on pastoral ministry—and not the celebrity-pastor kind—such as Under the Unpredictable Plant; Working the Angles; Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work; and Subversive Spirituality. Despite his busy schedule, Peterson took a weekly day off. Back in the 1990s, I—then a workaholic—sat down with him and asked him about rest. His words changed me and have retained their relevance: SG: We live in such a busy world. How do we slow down? EP: The first thing is that…
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Lectio Divina – An Ancient Practice Revisited
Last week during a conference a small group of women met to pray for the meetings being held in tandem to our prayer meeting. At the beginning of the meeting I was asked to do “lectio divina” with the group. I explained the practice and proceeded to lead the group in a reading from II Corinthians 4:7-10, 16-18. I followed a standard “lectio divina” order. The group was quiet; the scripture penetrating. At one point I could hardly continue reading because of the impact the passage was having on me the reader. We finished and sat in silence, then one of the women broke the silence by simply saying –…
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The Art of Sacred Reading – Lectio Divina
Resurgent interest in the ancient art of sacred reading as a way to nurture our spiritual lives is compelling. Lectio Divina – a Latin phrase for divine reading, spiritual reading or sacred reading – has been used for over 1,500 years. Lectio Divina comprises four elements: lectio (we read the text), meditatio (we meditate the text), oratio (we pray the text), and contemplatio (we live the text). But naming the four elements must be accompanied by a practiced awareness that their relationship is not sequential. Reading (lectio) is a linear act, but spiritual (divina) reading is not ‑any of the elements may be at the fore at any one time.…
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Eugene Peterson: On the Role of Women
Eugene Peterson, best known for The Message, was a pastor for thirty years before becoming professor of spiritual theology at Regent. He’s also written some excellent ministry books including my favorite, Under the Unpredictable Plant. Some years back I interviewed him, and here’s what he had to say on “the woman question.” SG: Many are still formulating their views about where women fit into the theological world. Would you care to comment? EP: Yes, in fact I would like to comment on that. It comes out of my history, too. I grew up in the Pentecostal church where [women preaching] was not unusual. It was pretty common. But my mother struggled with…
