What the priesr says, as you know, is called the Office. I am not at all sure what it consists of, but somewhere along the line I got the impression that it is not the complete LOTH. I also remember a priest saying that he must say his Office every day, but that it was acceptable to say it all at one time. None of this has been verified by me. Maybe, you or some othe person here, can elaborate on this a bit.I don’t know if I can help (I’m a schoolboy, not a working man, so I have much more spare time) , but that’s more or less what I do - The first two Hours before I leave for school, the Little Hours run together at the lunch break, Vespers after dinner and Compline before bed. I’,m sure that, as neither of us are monks, we are not bound to the times we pray the Hours (nor do I think priests are - I think Father just prays his Hours when he can. Apparently, it’s often done pacing up and down outside!
Prior to Vatican II the Divine Office was known as the Divine Office, and it was recited from the Breviarium Romanum (Roman Breviary), or for monastics, from the Breviarum Monasticum (monastic breviary).What the priesr says, as you know, is called the Office. I am not at all sure what it consists of, but somewhere along the line I got the impression that it is not the complete LOTH. I also remember a priest saying that he must say his Office every day, but that it was acceptable to say it all at one time. None of this has been verified by me. Maybe, you or some othe person here, can elaborate on this a bit.
Thanks very much. An excellent explanation and exactly what I was looking for.Prior to Vatican II the Divine Office was known as the Divine Office, and it was recited from the Breviarium Romanum (Roman Breviary), or for monastics, from the Breviarum Monasticum (monastic breviary).
FSSP priests would still use the Roman Breviary, and a few monastic communities still using the EF Mass would use the Monastic Breviary (pre-Vatican II).
This is what the priest meant by “the Office”. Many priests did say it all in one shot to “get it over with”.
Now since 1970, the “Office” is the LOTH. It’s what priests are obligated to pray every day. Moreover they’re supposed to respect the verity of the hours. So while praying, say, Terce somewhere between 8 and 10 am would be OK, praying it at 2 pm would not, nor would praying Lauds in the evening be OK. The only Office which can be moved around is the Office of Readings which has its historical roots in the old office of Vigils, or as it was also known, Matins. Many, myself included, still use it as Vigils (I pray it immediately upon rising in the morning and occasionally if I have a restless night, at around 4 am).
The LOTH is prayed by every diocesan priest, and part of it, by every deacon. However monastic communities usually have their own version. In ours it is called “Liturgie monastique des Heures” (Monastic Liturgy of the Hours).
AFAIK there’s no other obligation on priests for prayer, than the LOTH and the Mass. “The Office” consists exclusively of the LOTH or for priests using the older form, the Roman Breviary.
Thanks very much. An excellent explanation and exactly what I was looking for.
Now, since Joannm told me about iBreviary, I have two LOTHs:
iBreviary
- ]Office of Readings]Lauds*]Daytime Prayers*]Vespers*]Compline
–and–
DivineOffice.org
- ]Invitatory]Office of Readings*]Morning Prayer*]Midmorning Prayer*]Midday Prayer*]Midafternoon Prayer*]Evening Prayer*]Night Prayer
First, I am wonder if both are complete, or if iBreviary might not be a condensed version of the LOTH.
Second, I am wondering what the times are for their saying. If the DivineOffice.org version is complete, then there are possible 8 times indicated. For iBreviary there are possibly 5 times indicated. If one is more complete than the other, I will probably opt for the more complete version.
Lastly, I am wondering if either of these versions require any additional reading to make their renderings complete, and if that is easily determinable and accessible.
It’s a big order, so I’ll just put this out there for anyone to respond, not necessarily you, OraLabora, and thank you for help. I commend you to Our Lady.
Thank you so much. This is giving me a handle on it that I never had before.Thanks. These are the actual canonical hours:
Vigils (nocturnal prayer)- only in religious communities, which if using the LOTH would use the Office of Readings. Some time during the night or anticipated the previous evening.
Lauds (Morning Prayer) (traditionally at sunrise, now usually around 6-8:30 am)
Terce (mid-morning prayer) (third hour of the day, usually around 8-10 am)
Sext (mid-day prayer) (6th hour of the day, usually around 11 am-1 pm)
None (mid-afternoon prayer) (ninth hour, usually around 2 to 4 pm)
Vespers (evening prayer) (traditionally at sunset, now usually between 4 and 7 pm)
Compline (night prayer) (prior to retiring; usually no later than 8 or 9 pm in monasteries, sometimes earlier).
These are approximate times, not written in stone.
Now with regards to which offices to say: for diocesan priests, they need only say
Office of Readings at a convenient time for them
Morning Prayer
Daytime Prayer
Evening Prayer
Night Prayer.
Daytime prayer has a quirk: it can be prayed at any one of the three daytime canonical hours, Terce, Sext or None. Only daytime prayer need be prayed by diocesan priests, at any one of the three daytime hours, selected at their convenience.
The Invitatory is an opening to the day’s prayer sequence. It consists of the invitatory verse (“Lord open my lips…”), followed by the Invitatory Psalm (traditionally, Ps. 94(95), but the LOTH also allows 3 other choices). The invitatory is prayed at the first office of the day, depending on whether it is the Office of Readings or Morning Prayer. If the former, the Invitatory is prayed with the verse and the psalm. If the latter, the verse is used but the psalm is optional. Contrary to popular misconception the Invitatory is not prayed before any other hour.
For religious communities that want to observe all three daytime hours, there is a complementary psalter in the LOTH consisting of the Gradual Psalms. Daytime prayer is prayed at one of the three hours, and the complementary psalms appropriate for the hour, at the other two.
For deacons, usually they are bound to a part of the LOTH, usually I think, in Canada and the US, Morning and Evening Prayer.
As laity, we’re not bound. We can do any part of it, or the whole lot if we feel up to it (I do the whole thing). But to be liturgical we must at least do our best to do it correctly and use the correct prayer for the time of day.
So both lists are correct, but the iBreviary omitted indicating the Invitatory (since it’s mobile), and omitted indicating the other daytime canonical hours, which are rarely prayed outside of choir.
Hope this helps. It looks complicated, but it really isn’t, once one gets into the right groove.