Recent popes have repeated this invitation. The Second Vatican Council taught that “the laity, too, are encouraged to recite the divine office, either with the priests, or among themselves, or even individually.” Permanent deacons are obliged to pray Morning and Evening Prayer.Īmong the laity, the Liturgy of the Hours has been less popular, but that is starting to change. The Liturgy of the Hours is well-known among clergy and religious, who are required to pray the five major Hours every day. In fact, the two main hours, Morning and Evening Prayer, take around fifteen minutes each, while Night Prayer takes only five to ten minutes.
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None of the liturgical hours takes anywhere close to sixty minutes. It doesn’t refer to the time it takes to complete each prayer, but to the hours of the day. The Word on Fire Liturgy of the Hours book contains the core Hours of Morning, Evening, and Night prayer. Office of Readings, the longest hour, featuring lengthy readings from the Bible, Church Fathers, or other saints, prayed at any point during the day.
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By the medieval period, monks chanted the entire Psalter, all 150 Psalms, throughout each week, and sometimes in a single day!Įventually, this form of prayer became known as the Liturgy of the Hours, also called the Divine Office. It hearkens back to the Jewish custom of praying at fixed hours, a practice early Christians continued. The Liturgy of the Hours is an ancient, structured way of praying Scripture throughout the day, focusing especially on the Psalms. A brief introduction to this ancient prayer of the Church.