Lectio Divina along with liturgical prayer and work, is a practice of profound importance in the monastic life. The term literally means divine reading. As a method of prayer, a more nuanced translation suggests lectio divina means the act of listening to the word which comes from the mouth of God. It is a dynamic of prayer, a loving communion with God through a text that a monk hears or reads. Each monk is encouraged to participate in this exercise daily, even if it be for a short time.
As Charles Cummings explains in Monastic Practices, through this method of prayer the person encounters God. It is an invitation for God to penetrate the heart. This prayer "evoke[s] from that deepest center of my being a response of surrender, wonder, praise,...petition, love. ...Sacred reading has this double articulation of listening to the word and responding to the word." "Sacred reading is a process of assimilating the word of God and letting its meaning spread through my blood into every part of my being, a process of impregnation, interiorization, personalization of the word of God."