Liturgy of the Hours

Liturgy of the Hours, also called the Divine Office, is considered the prayer of the Church. Based primarily on the Psalms, prayers known to Jesus, Liturgy of the Hours consists of a daily prayer schedule followed by priests, members of religious orders, and a growing number of lay people. Priests and deacons, who are required to pray Lauds (Morning Prayer) and Vespers (Evening Prayer), traditionally have referred to the Liturgy of the Hours as the breviary.

While Lauds and Vespers are most frequently prayed in parishes, Vigils, Day Prayer, and Compline have their devotees. Praying the Liturgy of the Hours requires discipline, but in return it offers the faithful the great reward of an enriched prayer life through deeper understanding of Scripture and an increased sense of Christian unity.

our related Catholic Bible study
The Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church uses as a biblical text The Abbey Psalms and Canticles prepared by the Benedictine monks at Conception Abbey and published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The 28-lesson study follows the cursus used by the monks at Conception Abbey, and has been granted an imprimatur. Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers can be purchased from our website shop. Volume II: Vigils, Day Prayer & Compline is scheduled for release in fall of 2025.

We also have found the following Liturgy of the Hours resources to be especially useful.

• Divine Office.org features audio files of the Liturgy of the Hours prayers that include the hymns. Although the website is somewhat lacking in visual appeal, it offers a an opportunity for its visitors to experience the prayers by listening to them as they’re being sung.
• ibreviary.com is among the most well-known of the many Liturgy of the Hours websites. It offers easy access to the daily prayers and readings in a range of languages.
• Universalis.com‘s strength is that it provides a variety of technical options for accessing their Liturgy of the Hours written material, including e-books, daily e-mails, RSS feeds, and Twitter.
• This monastic prayer schedule allows you to pray Liturgy of the Hours at the same time as the Benedictine monks at Conception Abbey. These are the same monks who have given us The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, the new translation approved by the Church for liturgical use in English-speaking countries.