Prayer Rules

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futureKC123

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Hello all,
I’ve read and heard about and prayed lots of Eastern prayers but I was wondering in practice what all of you do? (Akathists, psalms, canons, Jesus prayer, prostrations, prayerbooks, &c.) would any of you mind sharing your own personal prayer rule? I currently say the Benedictine Office but I want to look into adding something Eastern and there’s so much to pick from!
Thanks,
FKC
 
Copts use a book called the Agpeya for their daily (hourly) prayer. At that link you can find its text as well as some recordings of some of the chants used in reciting it. For one Coptic Orthodox person’s view of prayer, see this video, where he explains his personal approach (unfortunately I don’t have half the stuff he shows, but on the other hand I don’t have cantor Ibrahim Ayad blasting during my prayers, either, so I guess it’s not so bad). My approach is similar, although I do full hours (all psalms, litanies, etc. for a given hour), as this is what my priest has advised me to do in order to establish a consistent life of prayer. Because I am gone during much of the day, I bring a smaller/abbreviated Agpeya with me when I am out and about (it has only the prime and compline hours), so that I can pray from it (discreetly) when I have private time or otherwise need to.
 
I simply use a slightly modified version of the Prayer Rule of St. Pachomius. Instead of 100 Jesus Prayers I do 150 - mostly because my rope has 150 knots. 😛

Most Byzantine Christians (Catholic and Orthodox) will simply stick to the standard Morning and Evening Prayers that can be found in almost every Eastern/Byzantine prayer book. I’m personally a very big fan of the Publican’s Prayerbook put out by the Melkite Greek Catholic Eparchy of Newton. It’s pretty much the Jordanville Prayerbook in modern English, but it does have a few nice additions to it as well. Otherwise Let Us Pray to the Lord: Vol. 1 is also an excellent little prayer book and it contains the standard Morning and Evening Prayers that you’d be looking for.

I also currently use the Maronite Liturgy of the Hours Eyes of the Heart: Short Prayer of the Faithful. I use it primarily because it’s set up for private use, unlike the Byzantine Liturgy of the Hours. The translation is not that great, but once you get used to it, it does serve as an excellent little prayer book. It contains abbreviated versions of Morning Prayer (Safro) and Evening Prayer (Ramsho) from the Maronite Liturgy of the Hours.

Prayer rules are really a very personal thing and it’s something that one forms either on one’s own or, ideally, with the help of a spiritual father/mother.
 
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