The Liturgy of the Hours, or Divine
Office, is a Catholic set of prayers emphasizing their deep connection with the
Jewish faith. When many Christians were
not being allowed in the Temple or synagogues, these prayers developed out of
the early Christian desire to “pray always and never lose heart,” Luke 18:1. Early Christians, who were also Jewish, wanted
to continue their customs so times of prayer were done at the third (9:00
a.m.), sixth (noon), and ninth (3:00 p.m.) hours. Also, there were two major times of prayer:
Morning (Lauds) and Evening (Vespers). These times coincided with the morning and
evening sacrifices in the Jewish Temple.
In the fourth century, when
Christianity became legal, people started gathering around their bishop for brief
prayer so that lay people, who had work, families, and other responsibilities,
could participate. This early version consisted
of a psalm, antiphon (short verse), Scripture reading, homily, and
intercessions.
Later on, the “monastic office”
became popular among the Religious.
Since monks and nuns had more time to devote to prayer, the Divine
Office was lengthened. Support for this communal liturgical celebration died
out in the Western church. Then came the
Franciscans. Their founder, St. Francis
of Assisi, bade his followers to travel light.
The Vatican then provided a condensed version of the Divine Office,
called the “breviary” (from the Latin word for “abbreviated”).
In the years since, the Church has
been trying to regenerate the importance of this communal liturgical celebration
that, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “…is like an extension
of the Eucharistic celebration…”(1178). Today,
lay people are encouraged to participate in the Divine Office either with a
priest, each other, or individually.
Following is the link for today’s
Night Prayer. This website offers all
the prayers used in the Divine Office.
References:
http://divineoffice.org/liturgy-of-the-hours/
http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=264
http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catechism/catechism-of-the-catholic-church/epub/index.cfm
