little office of the BVM

[Florida123]

What can you people tell me on the Little Office of the BVM?

 

[thomas_jd]

What can you people tell me on the Little Office of the BVM?

The Little Office of the Bessed Virgin, called such on account of its brevity,had its origins in monastaries and Cathedral chapters. It is an abridgment of the Divine Office, with the special end and purpose of singing the praises of the Blessed Virgin.
It is first heard of in the middle of the eighth century at the Benedictine monastery of Monte Cassino but probably came into general use after the eleventh century.
In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries it developed from a private devotion into part of the daily duty of the secular clergy.
By the fourteenth century it was obligatory on all the clergy, and so remained for a century, until Pope Pius V abolished the requirement in 1568.
At the present time the little office is recited on certain days by several of the older Orders
and it serves, instead of the Greater Office, the liturgical prayer of the lay brothers and sisters in some of the comtemplative Orders.
It may seem strange, but it was not the clergy, but the pious laity, like the Third Order
members today, who originated, or at least gave the principle impetus to the recitation of the Divine Office. It was men and women from whom the first martrys were drawn who began reciting what was to become the Little Office.(Hallert, L.O.Carm)

 

[Alexander_Roman]

In the 17th-18th centuries, the Little Office of the BVM was translated into Slavonic at Venice (there used to be a version online) for Orthodox Christians to use. It became very popular in the Orthodox Church of Kyiv during the Baroque era and among several Orthodox saints like St Dmitri of Rostov, as were the 15 prayers of St Brigitte.

Laity wanted to pray like the monks and clergy did and the Office of the Mother of God (which had several variations, even according to religious Order) provided them with ready prayer texts to be recited at different times of the day, thereby sanctifying time and training one in self-discipline in prayer.a

Other Books of Hours (which were gorgeously decorated and I just received a colour copy of one for my birthday today ) seem to have various other prayers such as the seven penitential psalms, the 15 Gradual Psalms, the Litany of the Saints etc. arranged to “fill out” the daily Hour-times of prayer.

I also have an early medieval version of the Office of Our Lady translated by a Protestant professor of liturgics who recommends it as a form of prayer that “illustrates the role of Mary in salvation history.”

Alex

 

[COLOS]

What can you people tell me on the Little Office of the BVM?

It’s an ancient devotion. The commentary on the one I have states that it is more than a thousand years old (and evidence that its origin is much earlier than that, even). Other statements include that it used to be used by religious communities prior to them being required to pray the Divine Office instead. Priests also were required to pray it in addition to the DO, but that was suppressed (because of duplication, perhaps? Don’t know)…I want to say at the Council of Trent, but I honestly don’t recall when it was suppressed.

One specific thing that I remember is that it was a devotion which the laity would pray with the religious. Being that the prayers are divided into the hours for the day like the Divine Office and that each day’s prayers are the same, many of the laity knew the Little Office by heart.

The Little Office is recommended to be prayed especially during times of hardship.

An excerpt from Baronius Press:

This is the first ever edition that includes the complete Gregorian Chant for the Little Office – in traditional four stave notation! The music for the Little Office has never before been gathered together in one volume. For many people the Gregorian chant of the Little Office offers an introduction to the beauty of the Church’s traditional liturgical heritage. This volume will help you sing all the Hours of the Little Office.

Our edition includes a commentary on the rubrics and ceremonial by “A Master of Novices” (which was first published in the early twentieth century), and also includes a description of the indulgences with which the recitation of the Little Office has been enriched by Holy Mother Church.

The Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a shorter form of the Divine Office in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It has long been the Church’s daily liturgical prayer to Our Lady, and these hours of praise have been used by Priests, religious and the laity throughout the centuries. Lay people used to flock to the great Cathedrals to publicly recite The Little Office during the Middle Ages, and during the great persecution, when the practice of the Catholic Faith was illegal in Great Britain, Bishop Challoner commended The Little Office to his flock.

Through its psalms, antiphons, readings, responsorials, and prayers the Little Office stresses the role Our Lady played in salvation history, and how through her fiat the divine Word took flesh in her womb and achieved salvation for us all; and how Our Lord granted her the first fruits of the general resurrection in her holy and glorious assumption.

All Catholics are called to a consistent prayer life. For those who do not feel called to recite the Divine Office, but still wish to participate in the liturgical prayer of the Church, or for those who have a particular devotion to the holy Mother of God, there is no finer form of prayer than the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Example page from the Little Office (PDF)

Emphasis mine.

This links to the same copy of the Little Office that I own. It is awesome, honestly.

I love the traditional prayers of the Church. For laity, you can’t get more traditional than the Little Office, imo.

Being that the Divine Office and the Liturgy of the Hours tend to be a bit too complicated for the likes of me, I enjoy the humble simplicity of the Little Office immensely.

If you’re looking for a special devotion to Our Lady, this is it.

 

[melchesidechpio]

What can you people tell me on the Little Office of the BVM?

it’s layout is very similar to the Liturgy of the Hours with Psalms and scripture readings for the various hours of the day. It is also a substitute for the LOTH in certain cases