Liturgy of the hours
Encyclopedia
- This article refers to the Liturgy of the Hours as a specific manifestation of the public prayer of the Catholic Church. For its application in other communions, see canonical hoursCanonical hoursCanonical hours are divisions of time which serve as increments between the prescribed prayers of the daily round. A Book of Hours contains such a set of prayers....
.
The Liturgy of the Hours (Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
: Liturgia Horarum) or Divine Office (Latin:Officium Divinum) is the official set of daily prayers prescribed by the Catholic Church to be recited at the canonical hours
Canonical hours
Canonical hours are divisions of time which serve as increments between the prescribed prayers of the daily round. A Book of Hours contains such a set of prayers....
by the clergy, religious orders
Christian monasticism
Christian monasticism is a practice which began to develop early in the history of the Christian Church, modeled upon scriptural examples and ideals, including those in the Old Testament, but not mandated as an institution in the scriptures. It has come to be regulated by religious rules Christian...
, and laity
Laity
In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
. The Liturgy of the Hours consists primarily of psalms
Psalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
supplemented by hymns and readings. Together with the Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
, it constitutes the official public prayer life of the Church. Upon ordination
Ordination
In general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
to the Diaconate, the daily recitation of the Liturgy of the Hours becomes a canonical obligation. The Liturgy of the Hours also forms the basis of prayer within Christian monasticism
Christian monasticism
Christian monasticism is a practice which began to develop early in the history of the Christian Church, modeled upon scriptural examples and ideals, including those in the Old Testament, but not mandated as an institution in the scriptures. It has come to be regulated by religious rules Christian...
.
The Liturgy of the Hours, along with the Eucharist
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
, has formed part of the Catholic Church's public worship from the earliest times. Christians of both Eastern
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
and Western
Western Christianity
Western Christianity is a term used to include the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church and groups historically derivative thereof, including the churches of the Anglican and Protestant traditions, which share common attributes that can be traced back to their medieval heritage...
traditions (including the Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
, Oriental Orthodox
Oriental Orthodoxy
Oriental Orthodoxy is the faith of those Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the First Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
, Anglican, and Lutheran churches) celebrate the Liturgy of the Hours under various names. Within Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
, the Liturgy of the Hours is contained within the Roman Breviary. In Greek the corresponding services are found in the (Horologion), meaning Book of Hours. Within Anglicanism
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
, the Liturgy of the Hours is contained within the book of Daily Prayer of Common Worship
Common Worship
Common Worship is the name given to the series of services authorised by the General Synod of the Church of England and launched on the first Sunday of Advent in 2000. It represents the most recent stage of development of the Liturgical Movement within the Church and is the successor to the...
and Book of Common Prayer
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
, as well as in the Anglican Breviary
Anglican Breviary
The Anglican Breviary is a privately published Anglo-Catholic edition of the Divine Office translated into English. It is based on the Roman Breviary as it existed prior to both the Second Vatican Council and the 1955 liturgical reforms of Pope Pius XII....
. Within Lutheranism
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
, it is contained within the liturgical books used by the individual synods, such as Lutheran Worship
Lutheran Worship
Lutheran Worship is one of the official hymnals of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. Published in 1982 by Concordia Publishing House in St. Louis, Missouri, it is the LCMS' third English-language hymnal and was intended to replace The Lutheran Hymnal...
and the Lutheran Service Book
Lutheran Service Book
Lutheran Service Book is the newest official hymnal of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and the Lutheran Church–Canada . It was prepared by the LCMS Commission on Worship and published by Concordia Publishing House, the official publisher of the LCMS...
. Other names for the Liturgy of the Hours within the Latin Rite include the Divine Office, the Diurnal and Nocturnal Office, Ecclesiastical Office, Cursus ecclesiasticus, or simply cursus.
Origins
The early Christians continued the Jewish practice of reciting prayers at certain hours of the day or night. In the Psalms are found expressions like "in the morning I offer you my prayer"; "At midnight I will rise and thank you" ; "Evening, morning and at noon I will cry and lament"; "Seven times a day I praise you". The Apostles observed the Jewish custom of praying at the third, sixth and ninth hour and at midnight (Acts 10:3, 9; 16:25; etc.). The Christian prayer of that time consisted of almost the same elements as the Jewish: recital or chanting of psalms, reading of the Old Testament, to which were soon added readings of the Gospels, Acts, and epistles, and canticleCanticle
A canticle is a hymn taken from the Bible. The term is often expanded to include ancient non-biblical hymns such as the Te Deum and certain psalms used liturgically.-Roman Catholic Church:From the Old Testament, the Roman Breviary takes seven canticles for use at Lauds, as follows:*...
s such as the Gloria in Excelsis Deo
Gloria in Excelsis Deo
"Gloria in excelsis Deo" is the title and beginning of a hymn known also as the Greater Doxology and the Angelic Hymn. The name is often abbreviated to Gloria in Excelsis or simply Gloria.It is an example of the psalmi idiotici "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Latin for "Glory to God in the highest")...
. Other elements were added later in the course of the centuries.
Traditional Roman Breviary
By the end of the fifth century, the Liturgy of the Hours was composed of seven offices, of which ComplineCompline
Compline is the final church service of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. The English word Compline is derived from the Latin completorium, as Compline is the completion of the working day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century by St...
seems to be the last to appear, since the fourth-century Apostolic Constitutions
Apostolic Constitutions
The Apostolic Constitutions is a Christian collection of eight treatises which belongs to genre of the Church Orders. The work can be dated from 375 to 380 AD. The provenience is usually regarded as Syria, probably Antioch...
VIII, iv, 34 do not mention it in the exhortation: "Offer up your prayers in the morning, at the third hour, the sixth, the ninth, the evening, and at cock-crowing".
An eighth hour, Prime
Prime (liturgy)
Prime, or the First Hour, is a fixed time of prayer of the traditional Divine Office , said at the first hour of daylight , between the morning Hour of Lauds and the 9 a.m. Hour of Terce. It is part of the Christian liturgies of Eastern Christianity, but in the Latin Rite it was suppressed by the...
, was added by Benedict of Nursia
Benedict of Nursia
Saint Benedict of Nursia is a Christian saint, honored by the Roman Catholic Church as the patron saint of Europe and students.Benedict founded twelve communities for monks at Subiaco, about to the east of Rome, before moving to Monte Cassino in the mountains of southern Italy. There is no...
in the sixth century. These eight hours are known by the following names:
- Matins (during the night, at midnight with some), sometimes referred to as VigilsVigilsVigils is a term for night prayer in ancient Christianity. See Vespers, Compline, Nocturns, Matins, and Lauds for more information. A Vigil is a night spent in prayer....
or NocturnsNocturnsNocturns are divisions of Matins, the night office of the Christian Liturgy of the Hours. A nocturn consists of psalms with antiphons followed by three lessons, which are taken either from scripture or from the writings of the Church Fathers. The office of Matins is composed of one to three nocturns...
, or in monastic usage the Night Office; in the Breviary of Paul VI it has been replaced by the Office of Readings - LaudsLaudsLauds is a divine office that takes place in the early morning hours and is one of the two major hours in the Roman Catholic Liturgy of the Hours. In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, it forms part of the Office of Matins...
or Dawn Prayer (at Dawn, or 3 a.m.) - PrimePrime (liturgy)Prime, or the First Hour, is a fixed time of prayer of the traditional Divine Office , said at the first hour of daylight , between the morning Hour of Lauds and the 9 a.m. Hour of Terce. It is part of the Christian liturgies of Eastern Christianity, but in the Latin Rite it was suppressed by the...
or Early Morning Prayer (First Hour = approximately 6 a.m.) - TerceTerceTerce, or Third Hour, is a fixed time of prayer of the Divine Office of almost all the Christian liturgies. It consists mainly of psalms and is said at 9 a.m. Its name comes from Latin and refers to the third hour of the day after dawn....
or Mid-Morning Prayer (Third Hour = approximately 9 a.m.) - SextSextSext, or Sixth Hour, is a fixed time of prayer of the Divine Office of almost all the traditional Christian liturgies. It consists mainly of psalms and is said at noon...
or Midday Prayer (Sixth Hour = approximately 12 noon) - NoneNone (liturgy)None , or the Ninth Hour, is a fixed time of prayer of the Divine Office of almost all the traditional Christian liturgies. It consists mainly of psalms and is said around 3 p.m...
or Mid-Afternoon Prayer (Ninth Hour = approximately 3 p.m.) - VespersVespersVespers is the evening prayer service in the Western Catholic, Eastern Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran liturgies of the canonical hours...
or Evening Prayer ("at the lighting of the lamps", generally at 6 p.m.) - ComplineComplineCompline is the final church service of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. The English word Compline is derived from the Latin completorium, as Compline is the completion of the working day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century by St...
or Night Prayer (before retiring, generally at 9 p.m.)
Saint Benedict of Nursia (c. 480 – 543) is credited with having given this organization to the Liturgy of the Hours. However, his scheme was taken from that described by John Cassian, in his two major spiritual works, the Institutes and the Conferences, in which he described the monastic
Monasticism
Monasticism is a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work...
practices of the Desert Fathers
Desert Fathers
The Desert Fathers were hermits, ascetics, monks, and nuns who lived mainly in the Scetes desert of Egypt beginning around the third century AD. The most well known was Anthony the Great, who moved to the desert in 270–271 and became known as both the father and founder of desert monasticism...
of Egypt. Taylor Marshall has demonstrated how these Christian cycles of daily prayer derived from Jewish customs of prayer.
Liturgy of the Hours of Paul VI
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
, Pope Paul VI promulgated a new Roman Breviary, commonly referred to as "Liturgy of the Hours". In this Breviary, the structure of the offices, the distribution of psalms and the prayers themselves were heavily modified. Prime was suppressed entirely and Matins was replaced by the new Office of Readings.
Its usage focuses on three major hours and from two to four minor hours:
- The Officium lectionis or Office of Readings (formerly Matins), major hour
- Lauds or Morning prayer, major hour
- Daytime prayerLittle HoursThe Little Hours are the fixed daytime hours of prayer in the Divine Office of Christians, in both Western Christianity and the Eastern Orthodox Church. These Hours are called 'little' due to their shorter and simpler structure compared to the Night Hours...
, which can be one or all of:- Terce or Mid-Morning Prayer
- Sext or Midday Prayer
- None or Mid-Afternoon Prayer
- Vespers or Evening Prayer, major hour
- Compline or Night Prayer
All hours, including the minor hours start with the versicle
Versicle
A versicle is the first half of one of a set of preces, said or sung by an officiant or cantor and answered with a said or sung response by the congregation or choir...
from Ps 69(70) v. 2 (as do all offices in the traditional Breviary except Matins and Compline): "V. Deus in adjutorium meum intende. R. Domine ad adjuvandum me festina" (God come to my assistance, Lord make haste to help me), followed by the doxology
Glory Be to the Father
Gloria Patri, also known as Glory Be to the Father’ , is a doxology, a short hymn of praise to God in various Christian liturgies...
. The verse is omitted if the hour begins with the Invitatory (Lauds or Office of Reading). The Invitatory
Invitatory
The Invitatory is the psalm Venite exsultemus, traditionally numbered 94 in the Septuagint or 95 in the Masoretic text, used to start Nocturns in the Divine Office. After the reform of the Liturgy of the Hours following the Second Vatican Council, the Invitatory is said either before the Office of...
is the introduction to the first hour said on the current day, whether it be the Office of Readings or Morning Prayer. The opening is followed by a hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
. The hymn is followed by psalmody
Latin Psalters
The Latin Psalters are the translations of the Book of Psalms into the Latin language. They are the premier liturgical resource used in the Liturgy of the Hours of the Latin Rites of the Roman Catholic Church...
. The psalmody is followed by a scripture reading. The reading is called a chapter (capitula) if it is short, or a lesson (lectio) if it is long. The reading is followed by a versicle. The hour is closed by an oration followed by a concluding versicle. Other components are included depending on the exact type of hour being celebrated.
In each office, the psalms and canticle are framed by antiphon
Antiphon
An antiphon in Christian music and ritual, is a "responsory" by a choir or congregation, usually in Gregorian chant, to a psalm or other text in a religious service or musical work....
s, and each concludes with the traditional Catholic doxology
Doxology
A doxology is a short hymn of praises to God in various Christian worship services, often added to the end of canticles, psalms, and hymns...
.
Major hours
The major hours consist of the Office of Readings, Morning (or Lauds) and Evening Prayer (or Vespers).The Office of Readings consists of:
- opening versicle or invitatory
- a hymn
- one or two long psalms divided into three parts
- a long passage from scripture, usually arranged so that in any one week, all the readings come from the same text
- a long hagiographical passage, such as an account of a saintSaintA saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
's martyrMartyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
dom, or a theological treatise commenting on some aspect of the scriptural reading, or a passage from the documents of the Second Vatican Council - on nights preceding Sundays and feast days, the office may be expanded to a vigil by inserting three Old TestamentOld TestamentThe Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
canticles and a reading from the gospels - the hymn Te DeumTe DeumThe Te Deum is an early Christian hymn of praise. The title is taken from its opening Latin words, Te Deum laudamus, rendered literally as "Thee, O God, we praise"....
(on Sundays, solemnities, and feasts, except in Lent) - the concluding prayer
- a short concluding verse (especially when prayed in groups)
The character of Morning Prayer is that of praise; of Evening Prayer, that of thanksgiving. Both follow a similar format:
- opening versicle or (for morning prayer) the invitatory
- a hymn, composed by the Church
- two psalms, or parts of psalms with a scriptural canticle. At Morning Prayer, this consists of a psalm of praise, a canticle from the Old Testament, followed by another psalm. At Evening Prayer this consists of two psalms, or one psalm divided into two parts, and a scriptural canticle taken from the New TestamentNew TestamentThe New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
. - a short passage from scripture
- a responsoryResponsory-Definition:The most general of a responsory is any psalm, canticle, or other sacred musical work sung responsorially, that is, with a cantor or small group singing verses while the whole choir or congregation respond with a refrain. However, this article focuses on those chants of the western...
, typically a verse of scripture, but sometimes liturgical poetry - a canticle taken from the Gospel of LukeGospel of LukeThe Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
: the Canticle of Zechariah (Benedictus) for morning prayer, and the Canticle of Mary (MagnificatMagnificatThe Magnificat — also known as the Song of Mary or the Canticle of Mary — is a canticle frequently sung liturgically in Christian church services. It is one of the eight most ancient Christian hymns and perhaps the earliest Marian hymn...
) for evening prayer - intercessions, composed by the Church
- the Lord's PrayerLord's PrayerThe Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
- the concluding prayer, composed by the Church
- a blessing given by the priestPriestA priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
or deaconDeaconDeacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
leading Morning or Evening Prayer, or in the absence of clergy and in individual recitation, a short concluding versicle.
Minor hours
The daytime hours follow a simpler format, like a very compact form of the Office of Readings:- opening versicle
- a hymn
- three short psalms, or, three pieces of longer psalms; in the daytime hours when only one is said it follows a variable psalmody which usually opens with part of the longest psalm, psalm 118/119, when all three are said this psalmody is used at one of the hours, while the other two follow the complementary psalmody which consists of 119/120-121/122 at Terce, 122/123-124/125 at Sext and 125/126-127/128 at None
- a very short passage of scripture, followed by a responsorial verse
- the concluding prayer
- a short concluding verse (V. Benedicamus Domino R. Deo gratias)
Night prayer has the character of preparing the soul for its passage to eternal life:
- opening versicle
- an examination of conscienceExamination of conscienceExamination of conscience is a review of one's past thoughts, words, actions, and omissions for the purpose of ascertaining their conformity with, or deviation from, the moral law. Among Christians, this is generally a private review; secular intellectuals have, on occasion, published autocritiques...
- a hymn
- a psalm, or two short psalms; The psalms of Sunday - Psalm 90/91 or 4 & 133/134 - may always be used as an alternative to the psalm(s) appointed on weekdays
- a short reading from scripture
- the responsory In manus tuas, Domine (Into Your Hands, Lord)
- the Canticle of Simeon, Nunc dimittisNunc dimittisThe Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Luke named after its first words in Latin, meaning 'Now dismiss...'....
, from the Gospel of Luke, framed by the antiphon Salva nos (Save us Lord) - a concluding prayer
- a short blessing (noctem quietam et finem perfectum concedat nobis dominus omnipotens. Amen.)
- Marian antiphon without versicle and concluding prayer; either one of the four traditional seasonal antiphons, or Sub Tuum, or another antiphon approved by the local episcopal conference; the Regina Caeli is always used in Eastertide.
Usage
An Invitatory precedes the canonical hours of the day beginning with the versicle "Lord, open my lips. And my mouth will proclaim your praise" (Ps 50/51 v.17), and continuing with an antiphon and the Invitatory Psalm, usually Psalm 94/95 .All psalms and canticles are accompanied by antiphons.
Unless the Invitatory is used, each Hour begins with the versicle "God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me" (Ps 69/70 v.2), followed by a hymn. Each Hour concludes with a prayer followed by a short versicle and response.
Matins or the Office of Readings is the longest hour. Before Pope St. Pius X's reform, it involved the recitation of 18 psalms on Sundays and 12 on ferial days. Pope Pius X reduced this to 9 psalms or portions of psalms, still arranged in three "nocturns", each set of three psalms followed by three short readings, usually three consecutive sections from the same text. Pope Paul VI's reform reduced the number of psalms or portions of psalms to three, and the readings to two, but lengthened these. On feast days the Te Deum is sung or recited before the concluding prayer.
After St. Pius X's reform, Lauds was reduced to four psalms or portions of psalms and an Old Testament canticle, putting an end to the custom of adding the last three psalms of the Psalter (148-150) at the end of Lauds every day. The number of psalms or portions of psalms is now reduced to two, together with one Old Testament canticle chosen from a wider range than before. After these there is a short reading and response and the singing or recitation of the Benedictus. Vespers has a very similar structure, differing in that Pius X assigned to it five psalms (now reduced to 2 psalms and a New Testament canticle) and the Magnificat took the place of the Benedictus. On some days in Pius X's arrangement, but now always, there follow Preces or intercessions. In the present arrangement, the Lord's Prayer is also recited before the concluding prayer.
Terce, Sext and None have an identical structure, each with three psalms or portions of psalms. These are followed by a short reading from Scripture, once referred to as a "little chapter" (capitulum) , and by a versicle and response. The Lesser Litany (Kyrie
Kyrie
Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek κύριε , vocative case of κύριος , meaning "Lord", is the common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, which is also called the Kýrie, eléison ....
and the Lord's Prayer) of Pius X's arrangement have now been omitted.
Prime and Compline also were of similar structure, though different from Terce, Sext and None.
Books used
In the monasteries and also in the cathedrals, which were served by monks or canons, celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours became more elaborate requiring not only a Psalter for the psalms, a lectionaryLectionary
A Lectionary is a book or listing that contains a collection of scripture readings appointed for Christian or Judaic worship on a given day or occasion.-History:...
for the Scripture readings, other books for hagiographical readings, a collectary for the orations, and also books, such as the antiphonary and the responsoriary, for the various chants. These were usually of large size, to enable several monks to chant together from the same book. Smaller books called breviaries (a word that etymologically refers to a compendium or abridgment) were developed to indicate the format of the daily office and assist in identifying the texts to be chosen. These developed into books that gave in abbreviated form (because they omitted the chants) and in small lettering the whole of the texts and that could be carried when travelling. Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. His birth name was Lotario dei Conti di Segni, sometimes anglicised to Lothar of Segni....
made them official in the Roman Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
, and the itinerant Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
s adopted the Breviarium Curiae and soon spread its use throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. By the 14th century, these breviaries contained the entire text of the canonical hours. The invention of printing made it possible to produce them in great numbers.
In its final session, the Council of Trent
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. It convened in Trent between December 13, 1545, and December 4, 1563 in twenty-five sessions for three periods...
entrusted to the Pope the revision of the breviary. On 9 July 1568 Pope Pius V
Pope Pius V
Pope Saint Pius V , born Antonio Ghislieri , was Pope from 1566 to 1572 and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He is chiefly notable for his role in the Council of Trent, the Counter-Reformation, and the standardization of the Roman liturgy within the Latin Church...
promulgated an edition, known as the Roman Breviary, with his Apostolic Constitution
Apostolic constitution
An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...
Quod a nobis, imposing it in the same way in which he imposed his Roman Missal
Roman Missal
The Roman Missal is the liturgical book that contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church.-Situation before the Council of Trent:...
two years later and using language very similar to that in the bull Quo primum
Quo Primum
Quo Primum is the name of an Apostolic constitution in the form of a Papal bull issued by Pope St. Pius V on 14 July 1570...
with which he promulgated the Missal, regarding, for instance, the perpetual force of its provisions, the obligation to use the promulgated text in all places, and the total prohibition of adding or omitting anything, declaring in fact: "No one whosoever is permitted to alter this letter or heedlessly to venture to go contrary to this notice of Our permission, statute, ordinance, command, precept, grant, indult declaration, will decree and prohibition. Should anyone, however, presume to commit such an act, he should know that he will incur the wrath of Almighty God and of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul." It is obvious that he did not thereby intend to bind his successors. Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII , born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was Pope from 30 January 1592 to 3 March 1605.-Cardinal:...
made changes that he made obligatory on 10 May 1602, 34 years after Pius V's revision. Urban VIII made further changes, including "a profound alteration in the character of some of the hymns. Although some of them without doubt gained in literary style, nevertheless, to the regret of many, they also lost something of their old charm of simplicity and fervour." For the profound revision of the book by Pope Pius X see Reform of the Roman Breviary by Pope Pius X.
Finally, a new revision was made by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
with his Apostolic Constitution Laudis Canticum of 1 November 1970.
Many of the complicated rubrics (or instructions) that had governed recitation of the Liturgy were clarified, and the actual method of praying the office was made simpler. Prime had already been abolished by the Second Vatican Council. Of the three intermediate Hours of Terce, Sext and None, only one was to be of strict obligation. Recitation of the psalms (excluding two imprecatory Psalms and some verses of others) and a much increased number of canticles was spread over four weeks instead of one.
Two typical editions for celebrating the revised Liturgy of the Hours (Liturgia Horarum) according to the Roman Rite have been published by Rome. The current typical edition for the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite is the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera, promulgated in 1985 (printed between 1985 and 1987, and reprinted in 2000); this uses the Nova Vulgata Latin Bible for the readings, psalms and canticles rather than the Clementina; it has changed some of the readings and responsories according to the Nova Vulgata; and it provided for the Benedictus and Magnificat on Sundays with three antiphons each that reflect the three-year cycle of Gospel readings. Pope Urban VIII's lamented alterations of the hymns are undone. Verse numberings are added to the Psalms and the longer Scripture readings, while the Psalms are given both the Septuagint numbering and (in parentheses) that of the Masoretic text. And new texts, taken from the Missale Romanum
Roman Missal
The Roman Missal is the liturgical book that contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church.-Situation before the Council of Trent:...
, have been added in the appendix for solemn blessings and the penitential acts.
Thus far, this second Latin typical edition has only been translated in the Liturgy of the Hours for Africa. The earlier edition has appeared in two English translations, one under the title "Liturgy of the Hours", the other as "The Divine Office'".
Obligation of recitation
In the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, all bishops and other prelates, all presbyters (priests), and all transitional deaconTransitional deacon
In the Roman Catholic Church, a transitional deacon is a celibate man who has been ordained a deacon and who intends to become a priest. Transitional deacons are usually ordained to the diaconate after they complete their third year at the theological seminary. For several centuries, all Roman...
s (those seminarians who have been ordained to the diaconate, as a necessary part of their final year in the graduate theological seminary, before then being ordained to the priesthood), are obliged to pray the Office daily according to the approved liturgical books that apply to them. Permanent deacons (men from the laity who have spent around five years in philosophical and theological training and who are ordained as clerics to serve in the diaconate for life in parish or diocesan ministries) are strongly encouraged to do so; whether they must do so or not (and the degree to which they must participate, if they do so) is laid down by individual dioceses under the guidelines set forth by the area's Episcopal Conference
Episcopal Conference
In the Roman Catholic Church, an Episcopal Conference, Conference of Bishops, or National Conference of Bishops is an official assembly of all the bishops of a given territory...
. Members of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life are bound according to the norm of their constitutions as adapted by the custom of the superiors of the house at which they reside. All Latin clerics can lawfully fulfill their obligation to pray the Office using the traditional Roman Breviary (using the last version promulgated by John XXIII) or the Breviary of Paul VI. Additionally, religious institutes can choose to use exclusively the traditional Breviary instead of the Liturgy of the Hours, without prior approval from the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. Any religious, members of institutes of consecrated life, and societies of apostolic life who are transitional deacons, priests, or bishops, even if their order has a less strict policy, are obliged to say the office because of the obligation of these ordained ministers to do so. Laity, especially if they are attached to religious orders as lay oblates or are involved in ministries of the Church (lector, cantor, extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, catechists, religious education directors or school principals, altar servers, those contemplating religious life or the seminary), should be strongly encouraged to participate.
The constitutions of some institutes of consecrated life, in particular many congregations of Benedictine monks and nuns, but also others, oblige them to follow an arrangement of the Psalter whereby all the psalms are recited in the course of a single week, partly through an extension of the Office of Readings, and by maintaining the Hour of Prime.
Judaism and the Early Church
As is noted above, the canonical hours stemmed from Jewish prayerPrayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
. During the Babylonian Exile, when the Temple was no longer in use, the first synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
s were established, and the services (at fixed hours of the day) of Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
readings, psalms, and hymns began to evolve. This "sacrifice of praise" began to be substituted for the sacrifices of animals.
By the time of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, the Jews (and eventually early Christians) began to follow the Roman system of conducting the business day in scheduling their times for prayer. In Roman cities, the bell
Bell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
in the forum
Forum (Roman)
A forum was a public square in a Roman municipium, or any civitas, reserved primarily for the vending of goods; i.e., a marketplace, along with the buildings used for shops and the stoas used for open stalls...
rang the beginning of the business day at about six o'clock in the morning (Prime, the "first hour"), noted the day's progress by striking again at about nine o'clock in the morning (Terce, the "third hour"), tolled for the lunch break at noon (Sext, the "sixth hour"), called the people back to work again at about three o'clock in the afternoon (None, the "ninth hour"), and rang the close of the business day at about six o'clock in the evening (the time for evening prayer).
The first miracle attributed to the Apostles, the healing of the crippled man on the temple steps, occurred because Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
and John
John the Apostle
John the Apostle, John the Apostle, John the Apostle, (Aramaic Yoħanna, (c. 6 - c. 100) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of James, another of the Twelve Apostles...
went to the Temple to pray . This was at the "ninth hour" of prayer (about 3 pm), the time at which the "evening" sacrifice was celebrated in the Temple in the New Testament [Second Temple] period. One of the defining moments of the early Church, the decision to include Gentiles among the community of believers, arose from a vision Peter had while praying at noontime . This was at the "sixth hour," the time of the Mussaf prayers associated with additional sacrifices in the Temple on special days.
As Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
began to separate from Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, the practice of praying at fixed times continued. The early church was known to pray the Psalms , which has remained a part of the canonical hours and all Christian prayer since. By 60 AD, the Didache
Didache
The Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles is a brief early Christian treatise, dated by most scholars to the late first or early 2nd century...
, the oldest known liturgical manual for Christians, recommended disciples to pray the Lord's Prayer three times a day; this practice found its way into the canonical hours as well. Pliny the Younger
Pliny the Younger
Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo , better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome. Pliny's uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him...
(63 - ca. 113), who was not a Christian himself, mentions not only fixed times of prayer by believers, but also specific services—other than the Eucharist—assigned to those times: “they met on a stated day before it was light, and addressed a form of prayer to Christ, as to a divinity ... after which it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble, to eat in common a harmless meal. .”
By the second and third centuries, such Church Fathers
Church Fathers
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were early and influential theologians, eminent Christian teachers and great bishops. Their scholarly works were used as a precedent for centuries to come...
as Clement of Alexandria
Clement of Alexandria
Titus Flavius Clemens , known as Clement of Alexandria , was a Christian theologian and the head of the noted Catechetical School of Alexandria. Clement is best remembered as the teacher of Origen...
, Origen
Origen
Origen , or Origen Adamantius, 184/5–253/4, was an early Christian Alexandrian scholar and theologian, and one of the most distinguished writers of the early Church. As early as the fourth century, his orthodoxy was suspect, in part because he believed in the pre-existence of souls...
, and Tertullian
Tertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
wrote of the practice of Morning and Evening Prayer, and of the prayers at terce, sext, and none. The prayers could be prayed individually or in groups. By the third century, the Desert Fathers (the earliest monks), began to live out St. Paul's command to "pray without ceasing" by having one group of monks pray one fixed-hour prayer while having another group pray the next prayer.
Middle Ages
As the format of unbroken fixed-hour prayer developed in the Christian monastic communities in the East and West, longer prayers soon grew, but the cycle of prayer became the norm in daily life in monasteriesMonastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
. By the fourth century, the characteristics of the canonical hours more or less took their present shape. For secular (non-monastic) clergymen and lay people, the fixed-hour prayers were by necessity much shorter. In many churches and basilicas staffed by monks, the form of the fixed-hour prayers was a hybrid of secular and monastic practice.
In the East, the development of the Divine Services shifted from the area around Jerusalem to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. In particular, St. Theodore the Studite
Theodore the Studite
Theodore the Studite was a Byzantine Greek monk and abbot of the Stoudios monastery in Constantinople. He played a major role in the revivals both of Byzantine monasticism and of classical literary genres in Byzantium...
(ca. 758 - ca. 826) combined a number of influences from the Byzantine court ritual with monastic practices common in Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
, and added thereto a number of hymns composed by himself and his brother Joseph (see Typicon for further details).
In the West, St. Benedict in his famous Rule modeled his guidelines for the prayers on the customs of the basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
s of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. It was he who expounded the concept in Christian prayer of the inseparability of the spiritual life from the physical life. St. Benedict was known to have said "Orare est laborare, laborare est orare" ("To pray is to work, to work is to pray"). Thus, the fixed-hour prayers came to be known as the "Divine Office" (office coming from the Latin word for work). The Benedictines began to call the prayers the Opus Dei or "Work of God."
As the Divine Office grew more important in the life of the Church, the rituals became more elaborate. Soon, praying the Office began to require various books, such as a psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...
for the psalms, a lectionary to find the assigned Scripture reading for the day, a Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
to proclaim the reading, a hymnal
Hymnal
Hymnal or hymnary or hymnbook is a collection of hymns, i.e. religious songs, usually in the form of a book. The earliest hand-written hymnals are known since Middle Ages in the context of European Christianity...
for singing, etc. As parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
es grew in the Middle Ages away from cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
s and basilicas, a more concise way of arranging the hours was needed. So, a sort of list developed called the Breviary
Breviary
A breviary is a liturgical book of the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially by bishops, priests, and deacons in the Divine Office...
, which gave the format of the daily office and the texts to be used. The spread of breviaries eventually reached Rome, where Pope Innocent III extended its use to the Roman Curia. The Franciscans sought a one-volume breviary for its friars to use during travels, so the order
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
adopted the Breviarium Curiae
Breviary
A breviary is a liturgical book of the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially by bishops, priests, and deacons in the Divine Office...
, but substituting the Gallican
Gallican rite
The Gallican Rite is a historical sub-grouping of the Roman Catholic liturgy in western Europe; it is not a single rite but actually a family of rites within the Western Rite which comprised the majority use of most of Christianity in western Europe for the greater part of the 1st millennium AD...
Psalter for the Roman. The Franciscans gradually spread this breviary throughout Europe. Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...
would then adopt the widely-used Franciscan breviary to be the breviary used in Rome. By the 14th century, the breviary contained the entire text of the canonical hours.
Revision by Pope Pius V
The Council of Trent, in its final session on 4 December 1563 entrusted the reform of the breviary to the then pope, Pius IV. On 9 July 1568, PopePope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
(Saint) Pius V, the successor to Pius IV who closed the Council of Trent, promulgated an edition, known as the Roman Breviary, with his Apostolic Constitution Quod a nobis, imposing it in the same way in which, two years later, he imposed his Roman Missal and using language very similar to that in the bull Quo primum with which he promulgated the Missal, regarding; for instance, the perpetual force of its provisions, the obligation to use the promulgated text in all places, and the total prohibition of adding or omitting anything, declaring in fact: "No one whosoever is permitted to alter this letter or heedlessly to venture to go contrary to this notice of Our permission, statute, ordinance, command, precept, grant, indult declaration, will decree and prohibition. Should anyone, however, presume to commit such an act, he should know that he will incur the wrath of Almighty God and of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul."
Further revision before the Second Vatican Council
Later popes altered the Roman Breviary of Pope Pius V. Pope Clement VIII instituted obligatory changes on 10 May 1602, 34 years after Pius V's revision. Pope Urban VIIIPope Urban VIII
Pope Urban VIII , born Maffeo Barberini, was pope from 1623 to 1644. He was the last pope to expand the papal territory by force of arms, and was a prominent patron of the arts and reformer of Church missions...
made further changes, including "a profound alteration in the character of some of the hymns. Although some of them without doubt gained in literary style, nevertheless, to the regret of many, they also lost something of their old charm of simplicity and fervour."
Pope Pius XII allowed the use of a new translation of the Psalms from the Hebrew and established a special commission to study a general revision, concerning which all the Catholic bishops were consulted in 1955. His successor, Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
, implemented these revisions in 1960.
Latin typical editions
Following the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church's Latin Rite, hoping to restore their character as the prayer of the entire Church, revised the liturgical book for the celebration of the Divine Office, and published it under the title "Liturgy of the Hours".The Council itself abolished the office of Prime, and envisioned a manner of distributing the psalms over a period of more than 1 week. In the succeeding revision, the character of Matins was changed to an Office of Readings so that it could be used at any time of the day as an office of Scriptural and hagiographical readings. Furthermore, the period over which the entire Psalter is recited has been expanded from one week to four. The Latin hymns of the Roman Office were in many cases restored to the pre-Urban form, albeit several of them were shortened.
This new "Liturgy of the Hours" (Liturgia Horarum in Latin) is published by the Vatican in four volumes, arranged according to the liturgical seasons of the Church year.
- Volume I: Advent & Christmastide
- Volume II: Lent, the Sacred Triduum & Eastertide
- Volume III: Weeks 1 to 17 of the Year
- Volume IV: Weeks 18 to 34 of the Year
The current liturgical books for the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours in Latin are those of the editio typica altera (second typical edition) promulgated in 1985 and re-issued, by the Vatican Publishing House - Libreria Editrice Vaticana, in 2000 and 2003.
Recently in 2010, Midwest Theological Forum also received Vatican approval to publish the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera, but complete in six volumes:
- Volume I: Advent & Christmastide
- Volume II: Lent, & the Sacred Triduum
- Volume III: Eastertide
- Volume IV: Weeks 1 to 14 of the Year
- Volume V: Weeks 12 to 24 of the Year
- Volume VI: Weeks 21 to 34 of the Year
Although most priests and other clerics in the Latin Rite use nowadays the new Liturgy of the Hours, many others (such as those in the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter or similar religious institutes) have continued using the traditional Breviary, of which the latest edition is the one issued by Blessed John XXIII, having received special dispensation from the Holy See to do so. The promulgation of the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum
Summorum Pontificum
Summorum Pontificum is an Apostolic Letter of Pope Benedict XVI, issued "motu proprio" . The document specified the rules, for the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, for celebrating Mass according to the "Missal promulgated by John XXIII in 1962" , and for administering most of the sacraments in...
in 2007 restored the right to every Latin Rite cleric to continue using the traditional form of the Breviary instead of the post-Vatican II Liturgy of the Hours, and as such, every Latin Rite Catholic priest can fulfill his canonical obligation to pray the Divine Office by using exclusively the traditional Roman Breviary, without any further authorization. An English/Latin parallel edition of the post-Vatican II office, prepared by Baronius Press
Baronius Press
Baronius Press is a traditional Catholic book publisher with headquarters in London, England. It was founded in Glasgow, Scotland in 2003 by former St Austin Press editor, Ashley Paver and other young Catholics who had previously worked in publishing and printing...
, is due out in August 2011.
Official English translations
Three English translations are in use.The Divine Office (non-ICEL translation)
The Divine Office was produced by a commission set up by the Episcopal Conferences of Australia, England and Wales, Ireland and Scotland. First published in 1974 by HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
, this edition is the official English edition for use in the dioceses of the above countries as well as many other dioceses around the world, especially in Asian and African countries. It is arranged in three volumes:
- Volume I: AdventAdventAdvent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches, a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. It is the beginning of the Western liturgical year and commences on Advent Sunday, called Levavi...
, Christmastide & Weeks 1-9 of the Year - Volume II: LentLentIn the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
and EastertideEastertideEastertide, or the Easter Season, or Paschal Time, is the period of fifty days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.It is celebrated as a single joyful feast, indeed as the "great Lord's Day". Each Sunday of the season is treated as a Sunday of Easter, and, after the Sunday of the Resurrection,... - Volume III: Weeks of the Church YearOrdinary TimeOrdinary Time is a season of the Christian liturgical calendar, in particular the calendar of the Roman rite and related liturgical rites. The English name is intended to translate the Latin term Tempus per annum...
6-34.
The psalms are taken (with slight adaptations) from the 1963 Grail Psalms, while the Scripture readings and non-Gospel canticles are taken from various versions of the Bible, including the Revised Standard Version
Revised Standard Version
The Revised Standard Version is an English translation of the Bible published in the mid-20th century. It traces its history to William Tyndale's New Testament translation of 1525. The RSV is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version of 1901...
, the Jerusalem Bible
Jerusalem Bible
The Jerusalem Bible is a Roman Catholic translation of the Bible which first was introduced to the English-speaking public in 1966 and published by Darton, Longman & Todd...
, the Good News Bible
Good News Bible
The Good News Bible , also called the Good News Translation , is an English language translation of the Bible by the American Bible Society, first published as the New Testament under the name Good News for Modern Man in 1966...
, the New English Bible
New English Bible
The New English Bible is a translation of the Bible into modern English directly from the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts . The New Testament was published in 1961...
and Ronald Knox's Translation of the Vulgate
Knox's Translation of the Vulgate
The Holy Bible: A Translation From the Latin Vulgate in the Light of the Hebrew and Greek Originals is a Catholic version of the Bible in three volumes translated by Monsignor Ronald Knox, the English theologian, priest, and crime writer. It is more commonly known as the Knox Version...
. Interestingly, some of the canticles taken from the Revised Standard Version were amended slightly to conform the English text to the Vulgate in The Divine Office. The intercessions, concluding prayers, antiphons, short responses, responsories, second readings in the Office of Readings, Te Deum and Glory be to the Father
Glory Be to the Father
Gloria Patri, also known as Glory Be to the Father’ , is a doxology, a short hymn of praise to God in various Christian liturgies...
are all translations approved by the Episcopal Conferences mentioned and confirmed by the Holy See in December 1973. The Gospel canticles (Benedictus
Benedictus
-Music:* Benedictus , the canticle sung at Lauds, also called the Canticle of Zachary.* The second part of the Sanctus, part of the eucharistic prayer* Benedictus , a song by Simon and Garfunkel...
, Magnificat
Magnificat
The Magnificat — also known as the Song of Mary or the Canticle of Mary — is a canticle frequently sung liturgically in Christian church services. It is one of the eight most ancient Christian hymns and perhaps the earliest Marian hymn...
, Nunc Dimittis
Nunc dimittis
The Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Luke named after its first words in Latin, meaning 'Now dismiss...'....
) are from the 1963 Grail Translation, but an appendix at the end of the book gives the ELLC versions of the Gospel canticles as alternatives.
Collins also publishes shorter editions of The Divine Office:
- Daily Prayer - comprising the complete Divine Office, except for the Office of Readings (but the full Office of Readings are printed only for Christmas, Good Friday and Holy Saturday)
- Morning & Evening Prayer - comprising the complete Morning, Evening and Night prayers from the Divine Office
- Shorter Morning & Evening Prayer - comprising the Psalter for Morning, Evening and Night prayers and a selection of texts from the liturgical seasons and feasts.
Between 2005 and 2006, Collins republished The Divine Office and its various shorter editions with a new cover and revised Calendar of the Moveable Feasts.
Besides these shorter editions of The Divine Office, there used to be A Shorter Prayer During the Day comprising the Psalter for the Middle Hours also published by Collins. The last known reprint year is 1986, but this edition is now out of print.
Liturgy of the Hours (ICEL translation)
The Liturgy of the Hours, produced by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL), was first published in 1975 by Catholic Book Publishing Company in the USA. This edition is the official English edition for use in the USA, Canada and some other English-speaking dioceses. It is in four volumes, an arrangement identical to the original Latin typical edition.
The psalms are taken (slightly adapted) from the 1963 Grail Psalms, while the Scripture readings and non-Gospel canticles are taken from the New American Bible
New American Bible
The New American Bible is a Catholic Bible translation first published in 1970. It had its beginnings in the Confraternity Bible, which began to be translated from the original languages in 1948....
. The prayers and intercessions are translated by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL). The ELLC versions are used for items such as the Gospel canticles. An additional feature are psalm prayers, which were ICEL's original compositions, attached to the psalms.
Shorter editions of the Liturgy of the Hours are also available from various publishers: Christian Prayer (Daughters of St Paul and Catholic Book Publishing Company) Shorter Christian Prayer and Daytime Prayer (Catholic Book Publishing Company only). In 2007, Liturgy Training Publications released the Mundelein Psalter, containing Morning, Evening and Night Prayers and the Office for the Dead, with the 1963 Grail translation of the Psalms set to specially composed chant, and with hymns translated from the hymns of the Latin Liturgia Horarum.
The Divine Office and the Liturgy of the Hours editions are both based on the Latin 1971 editio typica.
Liturgy of the Hours (ICEL/African translation)
In 2009, on the occasion of the Synod of African Bishops in Rome, the Catholic Church in Africa published a new English edition of the Liturgy of the Hours based on the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera. The antiphons and orations in this edition are taken from ICEL's 1975 translation of the Liturgy of the Hours, with independent translations for the offices for the new saints added to the General Roman Calendar as well as the Benedictus and Magnificat antiphons for the 3 year cycle on Sundays added in the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera. The Psalms are taken from the Revised Grail Psalter with the rest of the biblical texts taken from the New American Bible. To-date, this is the only official English edition of the Office that is based on the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera.
See also
- AngelusAngelusThe Angelus is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ The Angelus (Latin for "angel") is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus...
- Canonical HoursCanonical hoursCanonical hours are divisions of time which serve as increments between the prescribed prayers of the daily round. A Book of Hours contains such a set of prayers....
- Book of HoursBook of HoursThe book of hours was a devotional book popular in the later Middle Ages. It is the most common type of surviving medieval illuminated manuscript. Like every manuscript, each manuscript book of hours is unique in one way or another, but most contain a similar collection of texts, prayers and...
- Clergy
- Religious orders
- MassMass (liturgy)"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
- PlenariumPlenariumIn the Roman Catholic Church, plenarium or plenarius refers to any complete book of formulas and texts that contains all matters pertaining to one subject that might otherwise be scattered in several books...
- HorariumHorariumHorarium , is the name given to the daily schedule of those living in a religious community or seminary. Its use is almost exclusive to the Roman Catholic Church....
External links
Articles- "General Instruction" from the Breviary
- The Divine Office: A Study of the Roman Breviary by the Rev. E.J. Quigley
- EWTN article on the Liturgy of the Hours / Divine Office / Breviary
- 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia
- Discovering Prayer: How to Pray the Liturgy of the Hours by Seth H. Murray (also available with audio samples)
- Breviary Timeline - A timeline of official 20th century breviaries
Audio
- Laudis: Liturgia Horarum - Chanted Liturgy of the Hours, daily broadcasted by Radio Vaticana
- DivineOffice.org - Audio Liturgy of the Hours website, podcast and apps
Texts of the Liturgical Hours
- Universalis - an online version of the current Catholic Liturgy of the Hours, in English
- Officium Divinum - an online dynamic version of the Breviarium Romanum according to the rubrics of 1961
- Liturgia Horarum Online An online version of the Liturgy of the Hours.
- The Roman Breviary (1954 edition) (Latin with English translation in an adjoining column)
- Daily Office of the Roman Catholic Church According to the Anglican Use - Online version of the Daily Office from the Book of Divine Worship an ecclesiastically approved variant on the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church.
- The Anglican Breviary - Anglican version of the Daily Office
- Liturgia Horarum Online Online Liturgy of the Hours in Latin
- Liturgia Horarum in cantu Gregoriano - Online Gregorian chants for the Liturgy of the Hours in Latin
Guides
- CLAA Weekly Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours - A detailed daily guide to praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Free subscription.