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Pythagoras
Guest
Do you have any suggestions for a good morning offering prayer where you offer your actions of the day for God and for the conversion of sinners.
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Nothing beats Morning (and Evening) Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours. Outside of Mass, there is nothing better.
That said, if you’re not able or willing to do the Liturgy of the Hours, when we always have the classic:
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day, for the intentions of your Sacred Heart, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass of the world, in reparation for my sins, for the intentions of my relatives and friends, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father.
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Della
Guest
The best offering of our day is the Liturgy of the Hours: divineoffice.org/. It is the timelss, daily prayer of the Church.
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UpUpAndAway
Guest
Another vote for Morning Prayer (Lauds). Something’s missing if I don’t start my day with it.
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agnes_therese
Guest
While many of us who pray the Liturgy of the Hours would recommend that, the OPs question sounds like he’s really asking for something more on the lines of the above.
And many pray this in addition to Morning Prayer from the LoH.
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
Regardless of the prayer you use, pray with the knowledge that you are in the presence of God. This is what St Teresa called Mental Prayer.
Just don’t mindlessly read or recite the words of the prayer. Keep in mind that the King, along with His court, are in your presence as you pray.
Jim
Just don’t mindlessly read or recite the words of the prayer. Keep in mind that the King, along with His court, are in your presence as you pray.
Jim
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UpUpAndAway
Guest
Similarly, in the end the “best” Morning Offering Prayer is the one that you’ll say every day and mean with all your heart, mind and soul.
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Pythagoras
Guest
After the Holy Mass, do you mean the LOH is better than the Rosary, Stations of the Cross, or the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy? If so why?
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Della
Guest
Because it is the official liturgical prayer of the Church. The others are devotions–not required to be prayed by anyone. Religious orders pray the LOTH even if they do no other devotions, for this reason. A Morning Offering is fine, of course. Even though I pray Morning Prayer I say a Morning Offering as soon as I wake each morning–just to say “Hello” to God and start the day on the right foot.
All devotions are good, of course, but the LOTH is the prayer of the Church. Most lay people pray Morning and Evening Prayer and perhaps Night Prayer. It only takes about 10 to 15 minutes to pray one of the offices. I pray two offices daily. I simply have set aside time for it as I would for any other daily activity. I’ve found it grounding to my faith and quite spiritually beneficial. It does help if you understand something about the Psalms–they can be difficult to relate to if you know little about the OT, for instance. We interpret them in the light of the Incarnation, as did the Apostles and the Church down through the ages.
Yes. Way better. The Liturgy of the Hours is the official prayer of the Catholic Church and is offered to everyone, although clergy and religious have a mandate to say it. The Divine Office is liturgical prayer, offered as the prayer of Christ to the Father in his Mystical Body the Church. It’s also closely tied to the Mass and syncs with it, especially through the Calendar and when necessary, it can also be combined with Mass.
As such, it has a holiness and efficacy that other forms of devotion do not have. I am one of those convinced that the Liturgy of the Hours is the second highest form of worship in the Catholic Church.
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acadiANNA
Guest
All for thee, Jesus. A personal prayer I started saying every morning since my teens.
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Pythagoras
Guest
How about the ordinary Catholics like me who pray the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet devotedly. This is my first time to know about the LOTH. Is it a bad thing if I don’t pray the LOTH? In the Philippines, Catholics are fervent in praying the Rosary but I believe lots of Catholics don’t even know what this LOTH is. I have been to 4 Catholic Schools and this LOTH was never mentioned in those schools. Devotion to the Rosary is what they propagate.
No, of course not. Praying the Rosary is a good thing and not praying the Liturgy of the Hours is not a bad thing, unless you have a mandate (clergy, religious), in which case, failing to pray the Hours without serious reason is sinful.
But the Divine Office was revised by order of the Second Vatican Council to make it simpler and also accessible to laypeople, because it’s the prayer of the whole Church. As revised after Vatican II, the Liturgy of the Hours is really a hidden treasure of the Church and it’s too bad many lay Catholics still do not know about it. I myself never heard of it until my adult years, but once I started it, I was hooked.
Many of us will attest that once we’ve started getting comfortable with it, we cannot go about our daily business without it; even if we are not bound to it, those of us who have made a habit of it will feel something is lacking unless we pray it.
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agnes_therese
Guest
No, it’s not a bad thing at all. Even among those who know of the LOTH, not all are called to pray it. But I’d bet a lot more people would, if they were introduced to it.
You can try it out for free, if you like:
www.divineoffice.org
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Rosebud77
Guest
a simple thanksgiving… for the night that has passed, for the rest I have had, for my bed, blanket, pillows… for the day ahead… That i can walk , that my body works… ( I am old and take nothing for granted now )… for heat and light at the press of a switch… for water and coffee and bread… for clothes and the song of birds… YOU know! Starting THANK YOU JESUS on every item…
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Della
Guest
I can’t guess why the LOTH is not well-known among lay people in the Philippines. It isn’t well-known here in America, either, so don’t feel badly.
As another has cited, the LOTH wasn’t widely available to lay people before Vatican II, so it’s no surprise, the way things move slowly in the Church, that people are only now beggining to become aware of it.Many who pray the LOTH also pray the Rosary. It doesn’t have to be an either/or decision. Having said that, if a choice must be made and one has access to the LOTH it does “trump” the Rosary because the LOTH is the daily liturgical prayer of the Church whereas the Rosary is a private devotion. But, don’t put a guilt trip on yourself if you decide to not pray the LOTH. Lay people are not required to pray it. However, it is quite beneficial for those who do.
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