(Lecture given to Seminarians at Allen Hall Seminary, London, UK, October 2023) (see video)
Summary: Studying Theology can sometimes be dry and abstract. The seminarian doesn’t always see with great clarity the relationship between his studies and his personal spiritual life. Spiritual Formation is often left to personal effort, reading and spirituality. Using the depths of Spiritual Theology, this lecture intends to offer exciting theological bridges between our personal spiritual life and theological studies. It also addresses the vital necessity for a wholesome and more practical Spiritual Formation. Amongst other things this formation can utterly transform the way in which the seminarian will view and pray the Mass.
Introduction
I would like to begin with a very short quote from the Vatican II document Optatam Totius, a text on the formation of priests that many of you are likely familiar with. The quote is from number 16 and discusses the theological formation of priests. Since the first time I read this passage, it has occupied my mind, and today, I hope to shed some light on it.
I’m quoting just one sentence, what I would call the “juicy bit”: “The theological disciplines […] should be so taught that the students will correctly draw out Catholic doctrine from divine revelation, profoundly penetrate it, make it the food of their own spiritual lives, and be enabled to proclaim, explain, and protect it in their priestly ministry.” (Vat II, OT 16)
This text points to a disconnect that we have noticed in the Church, especially since the Second World War. With contributions from figures like Yves Congar OP, Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict), and Hans Urs von Balthasar, there’s been a growing awareness of the gap between our theological studies and our spiritual lives. Sometimes we get to a point where we can’t even relate to what we are studying, and this is a very bad sign. Today, I’d like to briefly offer some different avenues for you to explore in your future years. I know many of you are in your first year here, so you’ll be doing more philosophy than theology, but this is something to look forward to when you understand the issue; you can manage it better. Hopefully, I can help you with that.
I- The Disconnect Between Theology and Spiritual Life
What strikes me about this quote is the invitation to profoundly penetrate theology. Does this mean only intellectually? Or does it also mean to experience these truths? How can you, God willing, one day as a priest, convey Jesus’s teachings—and the Church’s—to your brothers and sisters if you don’t have a personal experience of this teaching? There is a big problem if you are struggling with your studies, waiting for the day you finish to go and evangelise.
I remember when I was studying theology in Rome back in 1989. I was sitting like you, and during a break, one of my fellow students said, “I’m waiting for the day we finish our studies to throw all the books in the fire and go and evangelise.” That was a huge shock to me because I was appreciating our lectures on the Bible, dogma, sacraments, and moral and pastoral theology. Even though they sometimes seemed dry to others, they weren’t for me. So I was shocked to discover that they were utterly dry for him.
The Role and Evolution of Theology
You need to understand what theology is. It is a way to understand our faith, and a way that shapes us. Theology is fundamental because it serves as our eyes in the Church and shapes our way of thinking. Theology changes throughout the centuries, and we will talk more about this later. It’s crucial to understand that theology is not something you want to get rid of, even if it is difficult. Hopefully, I can help you connect your personal spiritual life with what you are studying now and in the future.
This is the starting point for us: the desire of many theologians, expressed in this Vatican II text, to address the gap between our spiritual life and theology today. We have been aware of this issue for a long time. The gap has a historical origin, dating back to the Middle Ages with the birth of universities, where theology took a more academic, university form while spiritual life remained in the monasteries (Pope Benedict: Monastic Theology and Scholastic Theology). Over time, we became overwhelmed by university theology. This is not to say that it’s bad; we need it. But what we have is just a fraction of what we need. It’s like having only the tip of an iceberg when you need the rest. This is what I want to explore with you today.
The Evolution of Theological Thought
Theology, in its global definition, methods, and goals, shapes our minds and lives to an unimaginable extent. I would even dare to say that the real head of the Church is theology, by which I mean the way we understand theology at a given moment in history. This is because it shapes the minds of future priests, bishops, cardinals, and even popes. If you study the history of theology, you will find that before the 1950s, we did theology in a certain way. I invite you, if you ever do research on Vatican II, to look at the initial preparatory documents. They were written in a neo-scholastic or neo-tomistic way. This more “abstract” method, more metaphysical, functioned by searching for truths, with major truths trickling down to less major truths.
On the verge of Vatican II, the documents were prepared in this way, but since the 1950s, we have been led by a different way of practicing theology called Nouvelle Théologie (New Theology) (see also Salvation History). The great theologians you’ve heard of—Jean Daniélou, De Lubac, Balthasar, Pope Ratzinger, Philips—all work with this method. Instead of an abstract understanding of truth, we have entered into time or history. The notion of history is fundamental today. When studying any topic, you will begin with the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Fathers of the Church, and so on, following the development of the truth over time.
Pope Pius XII, who was Pope until the 1950s, said that he had difficulty with this new theology. Both methods are correct, but they have different perspectives and can miss certain things. We want to reach the whole truth and the whole human being. This is why history is so important. As Pope Paul VI said, Cardinal Newman’s thought and teaching is the teaching of Vatican II. He meant that we are in time and that Christian doctrine develops. Newman looks at this development and its potential corruption, which is why Paul VI called him the main figure of Vatican II.
The Transformative Line: A New Dimension
We need to add a new dimension to our theological understanding. Beyond the timeline of history, there is a transformative line—a line of sanctification or divinisation. This isn’t about denying history (Nouvelle Théologie) or “abstract”/metaphysical truth (Neo-thomism), but about introducing a new dimension: the degree of a human being’s transformation. The truth that entered into time (history) must also enter into the human being and transform him, becoming incarnate within him. This isn’t yet a common practice in theology today, but it is crucial because without it, theology will remain outside of us. When “truth” or “truth in history” becomes incarnate in you, you can finally relate to it. It ceases to be something external and becomes a part of you. This process is essential because our ultimate goal is to reach the human being, who is called to be saved. The question is, how does the Word of God become flesh in us? How does it become a food we can truly relate to? This process will be led by a renewed Spiritual Theology. Let us look at a possible way.
Five Key Areas of Theological Study
I will now introduce five main areas of theology that are critical for your journey. These are the greatest and most important sections:
- Bible: You will study both the Old and New Testaments, including the Gospels, letters, and other sections.
- Dogma: Courses on God, the Trinity, Christology, Ecclesiology, and Grace.
- Sacraments and Liturgy: You will explore the theological, pastoral, and canonical aspects of the seven sacraments.
- Moral Theology: This includes the foundations of general moral theology and its specialised applications.
- Pastoral Theology: While a smaller course, it is vital for your mission to connect with people and know how to minister to them.
As you learn these subjects, you are taught how the Church understands its faith, history, and theology. When you are ordained, you will instinctively draw from what you have learned to minister to people. However, your relationship with God often remains a private or personal matter, separate from your theological studies. This is the gap that we must address. The Vatican II text calls us to profoundly penetrate theology, not just intellectually, but with our entire being. We are meant to make it “the food of their own spiritual life,” but a connection between these five areas and the presence of God within our hearts is missing. We often preach from our minds, not from our transformed being. See the following drawing. We have God to the left, who dwells in us. To the far right, we have the “exterior line of formation” which corresponds to Theology as it is taught today. All the rest in the drawing, i.e. the “Inner line of formation” and the “Bridging Topics” do not exist. We only know that God is there in us, dwelling in our heart, we relate to him in our personal prayer, liturgy, personal reading, some talks in the seminary and spiritual direction. But we don’t have a developed academic teaching and formation on how to relate with God. So the gap between the “exterior line of theological formation” and “God who dwells in us”, i.e. our personal prayer life, this gap remains quite wide, left to our personal effort. Instead, I think we need to receive help to create a stronger Spiritual Formation (the inner line) and bridges between each main area and the corresponding topics in Spiritual Theology (see here).
II- Towards a Solution: Bridging the Gap
Solutions for Bridging the Gap
To bridge this gap, I propose a new approach that integrates our spiritual lives with our theological studies. Imagine this as a future model, perhaps 300 years from now where:
– In front of Bible studies, we would have an area of spiritual theology focused on the manducatio, the “eating” of the Word of God. This would include the theology of listening, Lectio Divina, and the spiritual senses of the scriptures. This isn’t just an intellectual exercise; it’s a transformative one, making the Bible real food for the mind and will.
– In front of Dogma, we would have courses on the contemplation of the mysteries. This would help you truly appreciate and absorb what you are learning. Experience of the Trinity. Experience of Christ Experience of the Holy Spirit. Experience of Mary. The spiritual experience of the Church.
– In front of Liturgy and Sacraments, we need to understand the fructuosa participatio (fruitful participation) that Pope Benedict discussed. This means delving into how we can spiritually participate in the liturgy. For instance, in the Mass, there are two forms of contemplation: one related to the Word of God, which leads to Lectio Divina, and another related to the Eucharist, which leads to contemplative prayer or the prayer of the heart. The Eucharist, communion, and its prolongation are meant to be a process of spiritual digestion. St. Teresa of Ávila received most of her graces after Communion, yet we often don’t know what to do with this time. This deep immersion is essential because it is through the listening to the Word of God and immersion in Jesus that we can truly live and celebrate the Mass. Spirituality is not separate from our sacramental life; they are fundamentally connected.
– In front of Moral Theology: Moral theology, as it is often taught, can feel like a set of rules and commandments. For example, when Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, “They have told you, ‘Do not kill,’ but I am telling you, if you get upset with someone, it’s not good,” he’s presenting a standard that is impossible to achieve without the Holy Spirit and the purification of the heart. The Sermon on the Mount is not just a description of what we should do, but a description of what Jesus wants to achieve through us by way of a genuine spiritual life. The push to reconcile moral and spiritual theology has been ongoing for at least 30 years. Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Veritas Splendor is a clear example of this effort. The first chapter, which he largely wrote himself, focuses on the rich young man. This section serves as a powerful illustration of how moral theology and spiritual life must be intertwined. Without this union, the moral life remains a rigid set of external rules rather than a lived reality guided by grace.
– In front of Pastoral Theology: Discernment – Counsel – Government – Spiritual Direction – Spiritual Pastoral – Being fruitful. The relationship between the personal spiritual growth and the fruitfulness of ministry (see here).
As a consequence of strengthening with the help of Spiritual Theology the equivalent of the five main subjects in Theology, we then can bridge the gap by offering a specific teaching: “Bible and Spiritual Life”, “Dogma and Spiritual Life”, “Liturgy/Sacraments and Spiritual Life”, “Commandments and Spiritual Life”, “Ministry and Spiritual Life”.
The Two Lines: Outer and Inner
As mentioned above, we have an “outer line” of theological study and an “inner line” of our spiritual life. The outer line involves our mind looking at the world, learning theology from the past, and giving it back through ministry. The inner line, however, is our direct connection with God, Jesus, in the Holy Spirit. Today, this inner life is often left to our personal work, through private prayer or with a spiritual director. We lack the direct connection between our academic studies and our spiritual formation.
The tragedy is that the Church lacks a clear connection between the five key areas of theology—Bible, Dogma, Sacraments, Moral Theology, and Pastoral Theology—and God and Jesus within our hearts. We proclaim the faith from our minds, not from a place of deep, internal transformation. To address this, we need to develop specific courses and content that exist today but aren’t typically taught in an academic setting. These are the “bridging courses” that can help us interiorise what we learn.
III- Example of the New Model for Theological Study: Bible Studies
Let’s take Bible studies as an example. You are taught exegesis and biblical theology, but what is often missing is biblical spiritual theology. This is a young field, and it’s your right to know that it exists. Exegesis is a science, biblical theology requires faith, but biblical spiritual theology requires an experience of God—listening to the Word of God in silence.
We must understand that there are different levels of engaging with scripture. We have the literal meaning of the text, but also the spiritual senses, which the Church Fathers explained. These spiritual senses are not intellectual findings. As Pope Gregory the Great said, “Holy Scripture walks with you.” The spiritual senses feed you at every stage of your personal journey. If you are reading the Bible and a passage gives you hope for the future, that meaning is for you, right now. It is personal.
The ultimate goal of engaging with scripture is to find the Word of God, the living Jesus, who wants to encounter you every day. This requires an art of listening and a theology of listening, which is intimately linked to spiritual anthropology.
Lectio Divina, for instance, should be taught as more than just a pious exercise. It is a four-step process—read, meditate, pray, contemplate—but even the step of contemplation is often presented with a lack of clarity. There are two types of contemplation: one related to the Word of God and another related to contemplative prayer, which is a deep immersion in Jesus himself. We need to distinguish between these two different “breads,” or forms of nourishment, just as the Liturgy of the Word is distinct from the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
A Problem of Contemplation
The concept of contemplation remains unclear, a problem that hasn’t been resolved despite what some modern historians might claim. While a fierce debate raged between Dominicans and Jesuits in the early 20th century over whether contemplation is “acquired” or “infused,” the issue was never truly settled. Today, we lack a precise definition of contemplation, with explanations often being vague. This ambiguity can lead to a misunderstanding of Lectio Divina, which is often incorrectly presented as a mysterious ascent to God. Instead, true Lectio Divina is a descent of the Word of God through our minds, with the ultimate goal of transforming our will.
The Sacramentality of the Proclamation
Theological understanding of the Word of God has evolved. We now speak of the sacramentality of the proclamation, meaning that when the Word is proclaimed, it is Jesus himself speaking to us. The scripture, therefore, is not just a sign; it is a means through which grace is given. Just as a sacrament has an external sign (like water in baptism) and a grace, scripture has a literal meaning (the sign) and a deeper spiritual reality (the grace). We must engage with the text by respecting its literal meaning while also going beyond it to encounter Jesus himself. Our studies of scripture should open our inner ear to hear God’s voice, which is a process that goes beyond pure exegesis.
The Silent Revolution of Lectio Divina
In December 1969, a silent revolution began with the publication of the new Lectionary. This new daily reading system, which was unheard of before, led the people of God to a discovery, not a rediscovery, of Lectio Divina. Unlike the traditional monastic practice of Lectio Divina, this new approach focused on the daily readings. People began to gather in churches, kneeling in silence with their monthly booklets of daily readings, a phenomenon never before seen in the Church’s history.
This popular movement, however, was misunderstood by some theologians who reverted to a medieval definition of Lectio Divina, which is misleading and insufficient for a layperson’s practice. Today, Lectio Divina belongs to the people of God, not just the monks. It should be a daily descent of the Word of God, not an “ascent.” The prayer should begin with, “What do you want from me, Jesus?” It is a daily practice where Jesus speaks and indicates areas in our lives he wants to change.
IV- The Role of Spiritual Theology
You need to understand both the academic side of theology and its spiritual application. For example, in biblical studies, you will learn exegesis and biblical theology. These are essential, but they are only the “material part of the sacrament.” The grace of the sacrament is the Word of God, which is encountered through biblical spiritual theology. This is a daily practice, and it is a necessary part of your theological journey. Exegesis and biblical theology are not hurdles to faith but aids that should lead you to encounter Jesus. This is just one example; this principle can be applied to other areas of theology, such as Dogma, sacraments, and moral theology, as I’ve developed in other courses.
The Necessary Bridges
We need to build bridges between our theological disciplines and our spiritual lives. You can’t drop one for the other; it’s too dangerous. I’ve developed courses that bridge these areas. They show you how to:
- Bridge Bible and spiritual life: You can’t drop either.
- Bridge Dogma and spiritual life: There is a way to taste, appreciate, and relate to dogma.
- Bridge Sacraments and spiritual life: To truly participate in the liturgy.
- Bridge Commandments and spiritual life: Moral theology is reconciled with spiritual life.
- Bridge Ministry and spiritual life: The fruitfulness of your ministry depends on your spiritual life.
The last point is especially critical. I urge you to read a specific part of the great work by Blessed Father Marie-Eugène of the Child Jesus, I Want to See God. In a genius masterpiece toward the end of the book, he analyses, using the thought of Teresa of Ávila, the relationship between spiritual growth and ministry (see here). He shows how the more advanced you are spiritually, the more fruitful your apostolate will be. This text is available on the School of Mary website under “Integral Theology.”
The Call for Research and Development
I could speak for hours every day for three years on these topics, but I wouldn’t be able to finish describing all that is in red. These are courses that don’t exist in our current academic system, even though the material is available in books. Maybe in 300 years, you will laugh and say this is all obvious, but for now, we need to recognize this need. I’ve already engineered some of these courses, but we need thousands of people working in this field—like a spiritual research and development team—to bring this to life.
Clarifying Lectio Divina and Contemplation
When people ask me which method of Lectio Divina to follow, I tell them to study the one I’ve presented. It’s a method that is not “hazy.” I believe in a God who wants to talk to you, not a moody or random God who may or may not speak. The belief that “it doesn’t matter, you’re still in his presence” is misleading. I believe that if you aren’t hearing God, it’s because you don’t know how to listen and are stuck on the hurdles.
Lectio Divina proper is a supernatural act based on the daily readings. It’s a descent of the Word of God through our minds, transforming our wills. It is not an ascent.
As for contemplation, it’s a word with a lot of confusion. In the general sense, as presented today, people often wait for God to speak. If he does, you understand him consciously. If he doesn’t, you’re told you’re still in his presence. But this implies that God might not want to talk, which is a flaw.
We must distinguish between two types of contemplation, just as we distinguish between the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist:
1- Contemplation of the Word: This is tied to Lectio Divina and the Liturgy of the Word. Its purpose is to understand what God wants to tell you so you can put it into practice, as Jesus said, “Why do you say, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”
2- Contemplation in the Prayer of the Heart: This is the extension of receiving communion. When you receive Jesus, his very nature enters into direct contact with your spirit. This happens beyond consciousness. You don’t have a direct perception of it; you live by faith. This type of contemplation is not about expecting a feeling or a message but about allowing God’s action to work deep within you.
Today, we often mix these two types of contemplation. We talk about only one when there are clearly two distinct forms of spiritual nourishment. Understanding this difference is foundational to Christianity, yet it is a course that is never taught.
Conclusion
I truly wish I had something like this at the beginning of my journey. It would have provided a context that made so much more sense. I feel you’re all very fortunate to have been opened up to these ideas because there’s something truly of the spirit here. That’s why I get so excited when I discuss this.
Thank you all for your time. It has been a great pleasure and a grace for me to be here with you.
If you want to delve deeper, you can find information on the prayer of the heart in my book or online. Feel free to email me, and I can guide you. I also highly recommend the book on Lectio Divina I mentioned. It’s an excellent resource that you should look at sooner or later. The content is available for free online in various articles, and I can guide you to them.
This other book is interesting because it shows the theology I’ve been discussing by following the journey of a disciple, not Jesus or Peter. It tracks their spiritual growth and shows how the traditional teaching on union with God—which we are all called to—can be followed directly in the Gospels.
Thank you so much for having me. I wish you all the best on your journey. Let us entrust all of this to our Lady.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.