Contemplative practice is not meant to replace other prayer practices, but rather to be part of a wholistic prayer life in which various prayer forms enrich and enhance each other. Nowhere is this truer than in the relationship between contemplative practice and partaking in Sacred Scripture. This relationship starts to become clear when we remember that the books of the Bible are, first and foremost, a manifestation of Divine Love toward the people of God, “love letters,” if you will. The thing about a love letter is, its very purpose and existence implies and assumes a deeply intimate relationship between the author and the recipient of the letter, a relationship inside of which the writing exists and that is both strengthened by the love letter, and that sheds light on the truest and deepest meaning of the letter. Imagine trying to grasp the full meaning of a bit of love poetry with no other knowledge of the author! Yet, too often we take that very approach when we see scripture as more of a textbook than an expression of love. There Is of course value in the academic study of Scripture, just as a literature professor can shed light on great writing, but what we learn by giving our minds to great art serves as an invitation to give our hearts to it as well, and so too with Scripture. Inside of contemplative practice, the complexities and tensions of the Bible are held inside of relationship, and ultimately resolved in love.