Advice on Liturgy of the Hours

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My guess is that there may be a thread somewhere on what I want to ask but I tried the search function and didn’t get anything close. So my question concerns resources for learning to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. I am aware of the four volume set of books and the one volume Christian Prayer : The Liturgy of the Hours. As best as I can tell from the various Web sources I have been able to find, it seems that the single volume book is recommended for beginners without significant liturgical experience. I was curious if those experienced with praying LOH agree or would recommend that I tackle the four volume set at the outset. My goal is not just to satisfy curiosity but to incorporate LOH into my life permanently. So the cost of the single volume book could of course provide about 25% of the investment in the four volume set. Just don’t want to get in over my head at the outset if the multi-volume set would be too difficult to master for a novice. Thanks in advance to any who might offer advice.
 
Balian said:
My guess is that there may be a thread somewhere on what I want to ask but I tried the search function and didn’t get anything close. So my question concerns resources for learning to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. I am aware of the four volume set of books and the one volume Christian Prayer : The Liturgy of the Hours. As best as I can tell from the various Web sources I have been able to find, it seems that the single volume book is recommended for beginners without significant liturgical experience. I was curious if those experienced with praying LOH agree or would recommend that I tackle the four volume set at the outset. My goal is not just to satisfy curiosity but to incorporate LOH into my life permanently. So the cost of the single volume book could of course provide about 25% of the investment in the four volume set. Just don’t want to get in over my head at the outset if the multi-volume set would be too difficult to master for a novice. Thanks in advance to any who might offer advice.
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Its simple…I suggest the single volume, but it is layed out simply. The standard prayers are first then the four week Psalter the commons. You arent gonna find much help on the web, just Do It. lol
 
In part the answer to your question depends on which of the hours you want to pray.

The one-volume Christian Prayer will give you Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer. If you want to pray the Office of Readings then you really need the four-volume set.

By the way, a great source for learning how everything is set up is divineoffice.org
 
Christian Prayer also includes mid-morning, mid-day, and mid-afternoon prayer, as well as a good portion of Office of Readings, Office of the Dead, and the music for the hymns, how to sing the psalms and a wealth of other information. It’s quite a lot really.

(Note: I’m talking about Christian Prayer from Catholic Book Publishing Company).

Unless you plan to pray full time (24/7) Christian Prayer is probably way more than you need.

IMHO.
SuscipeMeDomine said:
In part the answer to your question depends on which of the hours you want to pray.

The one-volume Christian Prayer will give you Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer. If you want to pray the Office of Readings then you really need the four-volume set.

By the way, a great source for learning how everything is set up is divineoffice.org
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To the OP:

Follow along with a website like divineoffice.org. That was how I stated out, and I also listed the first little while to Praystation Portable (I didn’t like the audio versions from divineoffice.org).
ricmat said:
Christian Prayer also includes mid-morning, mid-day, and mid-afternoon prayer, as well as a good portion of Office of Readings, Office of the Dead, and the music for the hymns, how to sing the psalms and a wealth of other information. It’s quite a lot really.

(Note: I’m talking about Christian Prayer from Catholic Book Publishing Company).

Unless you plan to pray full time (24/7) Christian Prayer is probably way more than you need.

IMHO.
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That’s sort of true.

The 1-volume CP (from CBPC) has Week I of the Daytime prayer from the Psalter, there are no DP parts that you will find in the Proper of Seasons or Saints (today, Good Friday, had DP taken all from the Proper). The Office of Reading does have the full 4 week Psalter, but no verses, and again nothing that would be in either Proper. The OoR in CP also only has a select number of Readings (less than a dozen if I remember right) and no Responsories to the readings (no idea why it doesn’t make any sense to me either).
 
There is an even simpler version “Shorter Christian Prayer”. It has the basic Morning, Evening and Night Prayer" a few of the feasts and a single week for Lent and Advent. I used it for several years before I got “Christian Prayer”. I find it sufficient by using DivineOffice.org , which **SuscipeMeDomine mentioned above, **for the Office of Readings.

Note that DivineOffice.org has an audio feed so one can get the sense of doing it in community, which I think adds a lot.
 
Just a warning against my biggest failing: getting so wrapped up in the process that I forget that I am supposed to be praying. 😉
 
Thank you to everyone who responded to my question as I found lots of helpful advice. Thanks to those who pointed me to Divine Office. First of all I found there information on an awesome LOH iPhone App which of course I won’t use exclusively because I do wish to learn to use the book versions. But the app has really helped me understand some of the things I was most unclear about. And the inclusion of the hymns with the music is really great. By the way, the motivation for me is that I am looking into the Oblates of Saint Benedict and if I’m accepted as a candidate I do expect to spend the time necessary to incorporate the LOH into my life in a meaningful way. God bless you all for taking the time to help me with this.
 
A good book which I have used is the Divine Office for DODOS. Kind of like the for dummies version of how to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. The book is a great resource, and the website also has some resources to help keep track of using the 4-volume set too.

Peace! :gopray:
 
dchris said:
A good book which I have used is the Divine Office for DODOS. Kind of like the for dummies version of how to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. The book is a great resource, and the website also has some resources to help keep track of using the 4-volume set too.

Peace! :gopray:
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Thank you for the recommendation. Sounds like something that would really be useful for me and I will certainly be checking it out.
 
That book is very helpful, but what is even better is praying with others who are already familiar with the LOTH. Also, the Catholic Book Publishing version of the LOTH has a guide that helps you figure out the organization of the feast day. (4-vol) (Christian Prayer)
 
dchris said:
A good book which I have used is the Divine Office for DODOS. Kind of like the for dummies version of how to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. The book is a great resource, and the website also has some resources to help keep track of using the 4-volume set too.

Peace! :gopray:
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I do support getting the 4 volume set for LOTH. I had Christian Prayer but found myself frustrated by what was not there - Office of Readings is very minimal. Granted, I do not at this time do all the hours, but I have them available when i want to do so.

I also do not support the divine office for dodos, but that is just me. Any book that starts out with making 16 or 32 or some multiple of the same of ribbons and markers is way too AR for me!

I do find that the companion booklet from Catholic Book Publishing Co. is an important adjunct. It lists the daily readings with page numbers so makes it much easier to keep track. It also designated the volume to use. Make sure when ordering this each year that you order the 4 volume guide. You need to order sometime in November - of course usually forget around the holidays and don’t get it until February, but hopefully, you will be more diligent. 🙂
 
Balian said:
My guess is that there may be a thread somewhere on what I want to ask but I tried the search function and didn’t get anything close. So my question concerns resources for learning to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. I am aware of the four volume set of books and the one volume Christian Prayer : The Liturgy of the Hours. As best as I can tell from the various Web sources I have been able to find, it seems that the single volume book is recommended for beginners without significant liturgical experience. I was curious if those experienced with praying LOH agree or would recommend that I tackle the four volume set at the outset. My goal is not just to satisfy curiosity but to incorporate LOH into my life permanently. So the cost of the single volume book could of course provide about 25% of the investment in the four volume set. Just don’t want to get in over my head at the outset if the multi-volume set would be too difficult to master for a novice. Thanks in advance to any who might offer advice.
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Whether or not you should get the 4-volume or Christian Prayer depends on the answer to this question:

Do you plan to pray the Office of Readings regularly?

If the answer is yes, then get the 4-volume immediately. If the answer is no, get Christian Prayer.

The 4-volume is no more difficult to use than Christian Prayer; it’s the sheer amount of prayer and reading material that takes up four volumes. Each day typically has two readings.
 
I use the Morning and Evening Prayer book I got from Amazon.co.uk. It contains Morning, Evening and Night Prayer. At first it can be a bit difficult to navigate, but after a few days you soon get used to it. I think that a book like this or Christian Prayer that you spoke about may be the best place to start and then as you gain experience navigating around that then it might be time to purchase the full 4-volume set.
 
Joe_Kelley said:
Just a warning against my biggest failing: getting so wrapped up in the process that I forget that I am supposed to be praying. 😉
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Well, I agree with that! When I first did the LOTH, and if I have been off a while and pick it back up, I go through that process all over again. Paper shuffling, and finding my place but I soon settle in and really sink into the psalms, and petitions and prayers. It is just part of the learning curve.
 
Jamietw said:
I use the Morning and Evening Prayer book I got from Amazon.co.uk. It contains Morning, Evening and Night Prayer. At first it can be a bit difficult to navigate, but after a few days you soon get used to it. I think that a book like this or Christian Prayer that you spoke about may be the best place to start and then as you gain experience navigating around that then it might be time to purchase the full 4-volume set.
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That sounds similar to Shorter Christian Prayer in the U.S. It is a 4x7 book of 670 pages. I found it a good starting point and used it for several years. Eventually I wanted more for the seasons and feasts so went to the larger 1-volume Christian Prayer.
 
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