![]() Paul taught: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). They made hold a printed breviary, or they might use a smartphone or tablet with the prayers, thus creating a cycle of ongoing, constant prayer being lifted to the Lord hour by hour. Stop and imagine the graces being poured out: Not only is Mass being celebrated right now in different time zones around the world, but thousands of Christians are coming before God in prayer using the Divine Office. Christ thus continues his priestly work through the prayer of his priestly people (CCC, Glossary, Divine Office definition). The Liturgy of the Hours the public prayer of the Church which sanctifies the whole course of the day and night. The Liturgy of the Hours sanctifies our time - our days and nights. Some priests and religious, especially in monasteries, add additional prayer times to the day. The Liturgy of the Hours has five main “hours.” They are the Office of Readings or Matins, Morning Prayer or Lauds, Daytime (Midday) Prayer or Sext, Evening Prayer or Vespers, and Night Prayer or Compline. “Prayed by Christ and fulfilled in him, the Psalms remain essential to the prayer of the Church” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2586). A major portion of the prayers are taken directly from the Psalms. Keyed to the liturgical calendar of the Church, each prayer time contains vocal prayer, hymns, and readings from Scripture. The prescribed prayers of the Divine Office are offered with daily devotion both day and night around the world. When Catholics talk about the Divine Office, we are referring to time spent generously lifting our hearts and offering our prayer to God using the prayers of the Church known as the Liturgy of the Hours. Yet there’s another, less familiar, definition for the word: a service or a kindness done for another. When we think of an office, we usually think buildings, cubicles, rooms, and spaces where people work.
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