It always amazes me how few people are even aware of the Liturgy of the Hours. After all, one of the goals of the Second Vatican Council was to make the Hours more accessible to the laity. Moreover, as few people are aware of the Hours, there are even fewer that understand their importance in the life of the Church. In this short post I want to dispel three myths and give a summary of each hour.
Myth One. The Liturgy of the Hours is only for clergy.
While clergy have a canonical obligation pray the Divine Office (another name for the Liturgy of the Hours), this public prayer of the Church has always been recommended to any member of the Faithful who is capable of praying it. The Second Vatican Council brought a renewed emphasis on the spiritual benefits that can be bestowed on the laity when they join the Church in her public pray.
Myth Two. The Liturgy of the hours is simply one pray option among many.
It is true that for the laity the Liturgy of the Hours is not required, and thus it often is considered "one option among many." It is listed along side things like the rosary and lectio divina. Taking nothing away from the holy merits of these, the Liturgy of the Hours hold a pride of place among all forms of prayer. The simple reason for this is that the Liturgy of the Hours is Liturgy. Liturgy is the public prayer of the Church, which includes not only the Church Militant (the Church here on earth), but also the Church Suffering (the Church in Purgatory) and the Church Triumphant (The Church in Heaven). The only forms of Liturgy are (1) the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, (2) the prayers that accompany the other Sacraments of the Church, and (3) the Liturgy of the Hours. When a member of God's faithful prayer the Liturgy of the Hours, he or she is united in prayer with the Church as a whole (including the Saints and Angles in heaven and even Christ himself). Moreover, because the Liturgy is one, praying the Divine Office has an inseparable connection with the Mass and the other Sacraments. As laudable and holy as the rosary is (and please don't misunderstand me: saying the rosary is essential in our time), the rosary is not Liturgy but a private devotion. The Divine Office is part of the public pray of the Church.
Myth Three. The publication Magnificat is an appropriate substitute for the Liturgy of the Hours.
The magazine Magnificat is a great publication from the Dominicans. For those who are unaware, the magazine presents an abbreviated form of the Liturgy of the Hours (including Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer). I recommend the publication without reservation. The spiritual commentaries alone make it worth subscribing, not to mention the fact that the magazine contains all of the daily Mass readings and prayers. However, the prayer for morning and evening given in the magazine are not liturgy and thus are quite distinct from the actual Divine Office. Not only are the prayers abbreviated, but the Psalms and readings are often not excerpts from the actual Liturgy of the Hours for that day. Thus, while certainly a laudable and beneficial form of prayer, Magnificat is not the official public prayer of the Church, and therefore not Liturgy.
After dispelling those myths, what then is the Liturgy of the Hours? As stated above, it is the public prayer of the Church that accompanies the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the other Sacraments. More specifically it is the Church's way of sanctifying the entire day. It is an opportunity to pause at various points during the day to give God His just due in prayer and an opportunity to do so in union with the Pope and the entire Church. Indeed, in a certain way, Christ himself is praying the Divine Office along side his bride.
There are five hours of prayer in the Divine Office:
Office of Readings.
This is probably one of the most hidden treasures in the Church. People are constantly looking for (1) a "schedule" of Biblical readings throughout the year and (2) spiritual commentaries. Many Protestant "devotionals" adopt this format in order to satisfy this double desire. The Office of Readings, which ideally is the first hour of the day, though it is the one hour that can migrate to different times, offers the original solution to this natural desire. It begins with a hymn, which can be sung if the hour is being said in groups, or simply recited. After the hymn, there are three Psalms to pray. Following the Psalms, the is a lengthy passage from Scripture, one for each day of the year. The second reading is non-scriptural and contains appropriate commentary from various sources including the Fathers of the Church, the writings of the Saints, and magisterial documents. After the two readings, which provide enough material for at least a day of reflection, there is a closing prayer. (On solemnities on will also include a recitation of the Te Deum hymn.)
Morning Prayer.
Morning prayer, together with Evening Prayer, is one of the two principal hours of the day. In other words, if you only have time to prayer a few of the hours, this should be one of them. Morning prayer consists of a hymn, three Psalms (actually one of them is an Old Testament canticle that is "Psalm-like" is form), a short Scriptural Reading, the recitation of the Canticle of Zechariah (Luke 1:68-79), Intercessions, and a Closing Prayer.
Daytime Prayer.
Daytime prayer is the shortest of all of the hours. In private recitation it can take as little as five or ten minutes. It consists of a short hymn, three Psalms, a very short Scriptural Reading, and a Closing Prayer. It is intended as a short pause during the day to remember to give thanks and praise to God. The Church leaves room for this prayer to be said at three times throughout the day (midmorning, noon, and mid-afternoon).
Evening Prayer.
This is the other principal hour of the day, together with Morning Prayer. It has an identical format as Morning Prayer with the exception that the Old Testament Canticle is replaced with a New Testament Canticle, and the Canticle of Zechariah is replaced with the Magnificat (Canticle of Mary) from Luke 1:46-55.
Night Prayer.
Night prayer is to be the last hour of the day. It is intended to provide the faithful with an opportunity to reflect upon the day and to give God his last due before retiring to sleep. It begins with an examination of conscience and the recitation of the Confiteor ("I confess to almighty God..."). There follows a hymn, one psalm (or two shorter psalms), a brief Scriptural Reading, the Canticle of Simeon (Luke 2:29-32), a Closing Prayer, and a Marian antiphon (e.g., the Salve Regina, Ave Maria, etc.). The Psalmody for the other hours follows a four week cycle, but the cycle for Night Prayer is only one week. For this reason, we have found this hour particularly suited to young children. After a few months of reciting this, many of our children had most if not all of the Psalms memorized.
Jumping in to every hour of the day can be daunting at first, but easing one's way in by adopting the two principal hours (Morning and Evening) is not all too demanding. I see two major benefits to praying the Liturgy of the Hours. The first is the sanctification of the day. By pausing at various points throughout the day (and having a structured form of prayer already set), one is able to better remain in the presence of God more consistently. The main tool of prayer employed, as can be seen in the above descriptions, is the Psalms. The Psalms have always been seen as the "Prayer Book" of the Bible, and by praying the Hours, one is engulfed in the Book of Psalms. With the grace of God, when the time comes to depart from this world, may we die, like our Lord, with the words of the Psalms on our lips. The second benefit of praying the Hours is being united to the rhythm of the Church throughout the year. On days that are celebrations of Saints, solemnities, or other liturgical events, the readings and prayers are tailored to those celebrations. Often the closing prayer (or "Collect") is the same prayer as the Opening Collect heard at Mass for that day. When one becomes familiar with and absorbed in these prayers, one comes to better understand (1) why they are Liturgy and (2) how they are united to the rest of the Church's Liturgy, most especially the Sacrifice of the Mass. For families, this is the one form of Liturgy that can be brought into the home. It is very powerful indeed to know that when my wife and children prayer with me Evening Prayer or Night Prayer, we are participating in the actual Liturgy of Christ and his Church. This has allowed me to understand the concept of "Domestic Church" on a whole new level.
I opened this entry by reminding us that Lent begins tomorrow. For people who are still deciding on what to do for a Lenten prayer activity, I would encourage you to consider taking up one of more of the Hours. If you do not yet own a Breviary (the book(s) that contain(s) the Divine Office), it is available for free online*. While I certainly recommend the two principal hours first and foremost, there is a part of me that can't help but recommending the Office of Readings especially for Lent. People are always asking me for good spiritual material for Lenten Reading. It seems to me that the Church has already provided it for us in the form of the Office of Readings. At the very least, let me offer the following challenges.
(1) If you have never heard of or are not at all familiar with the Liturgy of the Hours, glance at its format and try praying it a couple of times a week for Lent.
(2) If you have become accustomed to praying out of the Magnificat magazine, consider seeing that as an introduction to the form of prayer involved in the Divine Office and make that next step to praying the actual Liturgy of the Hours with the confidence that you will then be united to the public prayer of Christ and his Church.
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