The Daily Office: A Catholic's Guide To Daily Prayer

what is the daily office catholic

The Liturgy of the Hours, also known as the Divine Office or the Work of God (Opus Dei), is the daily prayer of the Catholic Church, marking the hours of each day and sanctifying the day with prayer. The Daily Office is a set of prayers, psalms, and Bible readings that are said at various times throughout the day. It is designed to be prayed by individuals or groups and fits in with the seasons of the church calendar. The prayers are available in the form of books or mobile applications.

Characteristics Values
Name Liturgy of the Hours, Divine Office, Work of God (Opus Dei)
Other Names Canonical Hours, Officium Divinum, Breviarium Romanum
Description Official prayer of the Church, marking the hours of each day and <co: 14,15>sanctifying the day with prayer
Structure Includes prayers, psalms, biblical canticles, readings from the Old and New Testaments, hymns, excerpts from writings of Saints, etc.
Prayer Times Morning Prayer, Noonday Prayer, Evening Prayer, Compline
Prayer Books Book of Common Prayer, Divine Worship: Daily Office, Liturgia Horarum, Prayer of the Faithful, etc.
Translations English, Latin, and other vernacular languages
Target Audience All Catholics, with specific forms for clergy and religious obligated to pray according to a particular form
Duration 18-20 minutes for Morning and Evening Prayer, 7-8 minutes for Daytime Prayer, 10 minutes for Compline
Platforms Print, Digital Apps

cyfaith

The Liturgy of the Hours

The Daily Office has its roots in the daily prayers that were traditionally said or sung by monks and nuns in dedicated communities. Thomas Cranmer, the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury, envisioned making England a nation of prayer where everyday people would keep the hours together. As regular people typically had work and other obligations that would not allow them to break for prayer as often as monastics, it was decided that the daily prayers would be moved to the people, resulting in the creation of the Daily Office.

cyfaith

Canonical hours

The current official version of the Liturgy of the Hours in the Roman Rite is published in four volumes, arranged according to the liturgical seasons of the church year. The first edition appeared in Latin in 1971, with English and other vernacular translations soon produced and made official for their respective territories. The Liturgy of the Hours is the public prayer of the church, marking the hours of each day and sanctifying them with prayer. Each of the five canonical hours includes selections from the Psalms that culminate in a scriptural proclamation.

The daily offices have always been an important part of Anglican spirituality, with Morning Prayer (or Mattins/Matins) and Evening Prayer (or Evensong) being the principal Sunday services in most Anglican churches. The Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549, forms the basis of the liturgy for Anglicans and Anglican Use Roman Catholics. The canons of the Church of England and some other Anglican provinces require clergy to read Morning and Evening Prayer daily, either in public worship or privately.

The term "Liturgy of the Hours" has been retroactively applied to the practices of saying the canonical hours in both the Christian East and West, particularly within the Latin liturgical rites. Before 1971, the official form for the Latin Church was the Breviarium Romanum, which was first published in 1568 and saw major editions through 1962. The Liturgy of the Hours is the official term for the canonical hours promulgated for usage by the Latin Church in 1971.

cyfaith

Morning and Evening Prayer

The Liturgy of the Hours, or the Divine Office, is a cycle of prayers constituting the official prayer of the Church, observed at various times throughout the day. In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, these canonical hours are also called officium, or the "divine service", "divine office", or "divine duty".

The daily offices have a significant place in Anglican spirituality, with Morning and Evening Prayer being central to this tradition. In Anglicanism, Morning Prayer is often called Mattins or Matins, while Evening Prayer is known as Evensong. In some monastic communities and Anglo-Catholic parishes, the officiant wears a surplice or an alb with a stole and cope when Evensong is celebrated solemnly. The canons of the Church of England and some other Anglican provinces require clergy to read Morning and Evening Prayer daily, either in public worship or privately.

The Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549, forms the basis of the liturgy for Anglicans and Anglican Use Roman Catholics. While Evensong continues to be an important part of Anglican worship, the Eucharist has replaced Morning Prayer as the principal Sunday morning service in most Anglican parishes and cathedrals.

The Liturgy of the Hours consists primarily of psalms supplemented by hymns, readings, and other prayers and antiphons. The Catholic Church's Latin Church revised the liturgical book for the celebration of the Divine Office following the Second Vatican Council and published it under the title "Liturgy of the Hours". The Liturgy of the Hours is published in four volumes, arranged according to the liturgical seasons of the church year.

cyfaith

The Divine Office in different languages

The Divine Office, also known as the Liturgy of the Hours, is a set of prayers said at fixed prayer times by members of the Catholic Church. It is the official prayer of the Church and is also known as the opus Dei or "work of God". The current official version of the Liturgy of the Hours in the Roman Rite is published in four volumes in Latin under the title Liturgia Horarum.

The Divine Office has been translated into various languages, including English, and adapted for use in different countries and dioceses. The English edition of the Liturgy of the Hours, first published in 1975, is the official version for the US, Canada, and some other English-speaking dioceses. It is based on the Latin typical edition and includes psalms adapted from the 1963 Grail Psalms and Scripture readings from the 1970 New American Bible.

In the UK, some Anglo-Catholics use the Anglican Breviary, an adaptation of the Pre-Vatican II Roman Rite and the Sarum Rite. The Anglican Breviary provides for the eight historical offices in one volume and does not include the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Other Anglo-Catholics use the Roman Catholic Liturgy of the Hours (US) or Divine Office (UK). Various Anglican adaptations of pre-Vatican II Roman office books have been published over the years, including Canon W. Douglas' translation of the 'Monastic Diurnal' into the idiom of the 'Book of Common Prayer'.

The Divine Office has also been translated into other languages, such as French, Dutch, Spanish, German, and Polish, as indicated by the website Divinum Officium. This website was created by Laszlo Kiss, a resident of Illinois who passed away in 2011. Mr. Kiss also developed one of the first computer-controlled manufacturing systems in the world. The Divine Office is also available in an audio format and as an app, making it accessible to a wider audience.

cyfaith

The Divine Office in different countries

The Divine Office, also known as the Liturgy of the Hours, is the official prayer of the Church offered at various times of the day. It is a form of fixed-hour prayer that developed in Christian monastic communities in the East and West. The practice of public morning and evening prayer is ancient, and early writings attest to the tradition of prayer at 9:00 am, 12:00 noon, and 3:00 pm.

In the Roman Catholic Church, there are seven canonical hours: Matins, Lauds, Vespers, Terce, Sext, None, and Compline. The Divine Office is practised in many countries, including those in the Commonwealth, the United States, and several English-speaking dioceses.

In Commonwealth nations, the three-volume Divine Office, which uses a range of different English Bibles for Scripture readings, was published in 1974. This edition is used in Australia, England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, and many other dioceses, especially in Asian and African countries.

In the United States, the Liturgy of the Hours was published in 1975 with approval from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This edition is the English version approved for use in the US, Canada, and several other English-speaking dioceses.

Additionally, the Divine Office has been adapted for use in the Anglican Use personal ordinariates. The North American Edition was released in 2020 for use by the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter, and the Commonwealth Edition was released in 2021 for use in Australia, Japan, Oceania, and other regions.

The Divine Office is also practised in Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Churches, where the canonical hours may be referred to as the Divine Services, and the book of hours is called the Horologion. The overall order is the same among Byzantine Rite monasteries, although parish and cathedral customs vary by locale.

The Gender and Religion of Christ

You may want to see also

Frequently asked questions

The daily office, also known as the Liturgy of the Hours, is a set of prayers, psalms, and Bible readings that are said at different times throughout the day. It is a way for Catholics to sanctify the day with prayer and has been published in various languages and formats.

The daily office includes Morning Prayer, Daytime Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Compline. Each prayer time has different focuses, such as thanksgiving and redemption.

Anyone can pray the daily office, although it was traditionally prayed by monks and nuns. It is now encouraged for laypeople to take up the practice.

The daily office includes prayers, psalms, and Bible readings. Some versions also include hymns, excerpts from saints' writings, and other spiritual writings.

Written by
Reviewed by
Share this post
Print
Did this article help you?

Leave a comment