Scripture Meditation: Jerome: Let Scripture Wash Over You

Jerome (d. 420), translator of the Vulgate Bible, was one of the greatest Scripture scholars of the ancient church. He wrote to the young woman Eustochium: "Read the divine Scriptures constantly; never let the sacred volume be out of your hand. Learn what you must teach. Hold fast to the faithful word as it has been taught, that you may be able to exhort with sound doctrine."

Jerome recommended a method of constant immersion: "Let sleep find you holding your Bible, and when your head nods let it be resting on the sacred page." This was not mere biblicism but a deep conviction that Scripture transforms by repeated contact, the way water shapes stone not by force but by persistence.

Jerome also warned against reading Scripture merely for information: "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ." The goal of meditation was always to encounter the living Christ who speaks through the written word.

Practical application: Keep a Bible or Bible app accessible throughout your day. Read small portions during transition moments -- waiting for appointments, riding transit, before sleep. Let Jerome's principle of constant immersion work gradually. Even two or three verses pondered throughout a day can be more transformative than a lengthy session that is quickly forgotten.