The Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office)

Benedictine monks singing Vespers, which are part of the Liturgy of the Hours

The Liturgy of the Hours resonates with the general public through the image of monks’ offices or that of a priest reading his breviary. This liturgy (or prayer of the Hours, otherwise called the Divine Office) is the public prayer of the Church, which shows its importance. It is primarily (but not exclusively) addressed to priests, religious men and women who thus put into practice the exhortation of Saint Paul: "Pray without ceasing" because the Lord alone, reminds the Church, can guarantee the effectiveness and progress of the work to which they labor, He who said: "Without me you can do nothing". All the texts and prayers necessary for the daily liturgy of the Hours are gathered in the breviary.

The number of offices varies according to the monastic orders and the states of each (priest, religious sister, …), but the simple faithful are also called to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. They generally do so by reciting the Angelus and the rosary.

The order of the offices is organized according to the ancient division of the days of the Hebrews and Romans who began the day at sunset: 12 Hours of night and 12 Hours of day. This custom is still observed today with the Sabbath which begins Friday evening (6 pm) or the anticipated Sunday mass which can be celebrated on Saturday from 6 pm.

Origin of the Liturgy of the Hours

This ancient practice of prayer shaped several traditions of which the most complete, and often the best known, is that of the monks, codified as early as 530 by the Rule of Saint Benedict.

However, Maria Valtorta traces the origin of the Divine Office back to Christ himself, which is a constant theme of her work: everything was "created" by the divine Master during his public life and entrusted to the men He instituted to succeed Him... As confirmation of this thesis, the Church affirms that the Divine Office is a "work of Christ and of the Church" and that "Christ Jesus, assuming human nature, introduced into our earthly exile this hymn which is eternally sung in the heavenly dwellings. He gathers the whole community of men and associates them with Himself in this divine song of praise. Indeed, He continues to exercise this priestly function through His Church itself which, not only by the celebration of the Eucharist, but also by other means and especially by the fulfillment of the Divine Office, constantly praises the Lord and intercedes for the salvation of the whole world."

Carmelites choir

Its organization today

This Liturgy of the Hours was updated by the conciliar Fathers. It led on December 4, 1963, to the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum concilium) which addresses the topic in its chapter IV. Later, it gave rise to the General Presentation of the Liturgy of the Hours, a lengthy specific publication of the Congregation for Divine Worship, published on February 2, 1971.

This "prayer of the Hours" is intended to become the prayer of the entire People of God. The laity are therefore invited to participate. The Catechism of the Catholic Church mentions it among some daily rhythms of prayer: "morning and evening prayer, before and after meals, the Liturgy of the Hours.

To this end, the French-speaking Episcopal Liturgy Association (AELF) publishes on its website the texts proposed for the daily liturgy according to the different French-speaking countries.

The seven prayer times proposed are: Lauds, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers and Compline to which the Mass is added. To understand the terms used, it is necessary to remember that the liturgy follows the Hebrew division of the day: it starts at 6 pm and is divided into twelve Hours of night and twelve Hours of day. In the usages employed, Terce therefore corresponds to 9 am (3 hours after the start of the day at 6 am) and None to 3 pm (6 + 9). It is the hour of Christ’s death.

1. Vigil or Matins: Prayers around 2 am.
2. Lauds: at dawn (around 6 am). It is sometimes joined by the hour of Prime, made optional by the liturgical reform.
3. Terce: at 9 am or before the high mass.
4. The Mass.
5. Sext: around noon.
6. None: around 3 pm.
7. Vespers: early evening (around 5 or 6 pm).
8. Compline: in the evening, before sunset. It is at this hour that the "Nunc dimittis" or prayer of the old man Simeon who had just seen and touched the Messiah he was awaiting according to Luke 2:29: "Now, Lord, you can, according to your word, let your servant depart in peace; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared before all peoples, a light to enlighten the nations and the glory of your people Israel."

All these elements being recalled, one can better understand the full richness of Maria Valtorta’s vision in which Jesus explains to Marjiam, the young prodigy disciple, the praise of the Hours.

In the work of Maria Valtorta

The episode takes place at Bozrah, a central city of the Auranitis, a region beyond the Jordan but attached at the time to the kingdom of Herod. Jesus is accompanied by many disciples, including Women disciples, which is rare because Jesus most often evangelizes accompanied by the twelve apostles. But this is explained by the fact that all are returning from Jerusalem where they celebrated Sukkot, the feast of tents, one of the three obligatory feasts. Instead of taking the direct path back to Galilee, Jesus goes through the other side of the Jordan.

Marjiam, a young prodigy disciple known in history as Saint Martial and adopted son of Simon Peter, watches Jesus who has isolated himself behind the group. He joins Him and learns that Jesus acts thus to pray.

«Will You tell me how You pray, why You pray?» «Of course, I will tell you. So that you can pray with Me. The day is given to us by God. The whole day: the bright one and the dark one: day and night. It is a gift to live and have light. Our way of living is a means of sanctification. Is that right? So we must sanctify the moments of the whole day to persevere in holiness and have the Most High and His bounty present in our hearts, and at the same time keep the Demon away.»

Lauds

"Watch the little birds. They sing at sunrise. They bless the light. We must bless the light as well, because it is a gift of God, and we must bless God Who grants it to us and Who is the Light. We must crave for God as from daybreak to put a seal, a note of light on the whole oncoming day, that it may be entirely bright and holy. And we must join the whole creation in praising the Creator."

Terce

"Then, as the hours go by, and going by they make us aware of how much sorrow and ignorance there is in the world, we must pray again that sorrow may be relieved and ignorance may vanish and God may be known, loved and prayed to by all men, who, if they knew God, would be comforted in their sufferings."

Sext

"And at the sixth hour we must pray out of love for our family, to enjoy the gift of being united to those who love us. That is also a gift of God. And we must pray that our eating, instead of being useful, may not become an occasion of sin."

Vespers

"And at sunset we pray remembering that death is the inevitable end waiting for all of us. And we must pray that our end, be it today or later, may take place with our souls in grace."

Compline

"And when the lights are lit, we must pray to thank for the day which is over and to ask for protection and forgiveness, so that we may go to sleep without any fear of a sudden judgement or assaults of the demon."

Vigil or Matins

"And, finally, we must pray at night – but this applies only to adults – to make amends for the sins of the night, to keep Satan away from weak people, and that culprits may ponder, repent and make good resolutions which will become facts at sunrise. That is how and why a just person prays during the whole day."

None

«But You have not told me why You are so absorbed, so serious and imposing at the ninth hour…»

«Because… I say: “Through the Sacrifice of this hour, let Your Kingdom come to the world and may all those who believe in Your Word be redeemed”. Say the same yourself…»

«What sacrifice is it? You said that incense is offered in the morning and evening, and the victims at the same hour, every day, on the altar of the Temple. And that the victims for vows and expiation are offered at any hour. There is no indication of a special rite for the ninth hour.»

Jesus stops and takes the boy with both hands, and lifts him holding him in front of Himself, and as if He were saying a psalm, with His face raised, He says: «“And between the sixth and ninth hour, He Who has come as Saviour and Redeemer, He of Whom the prophets speak, will consume His Sacrifice after eating the bitter bread of betrayal and after giving the sweet Bread of Life, after crushing Himself like grapes in a vat and quenching with His whole being the thirst of men and plants, and making for Himself a Royal purple with His own blood, and putting on a crown and seizing the sceptre, and taking His throne on the high place, so that Zion and Israel and the world might see it. Lifted up in the purple garment of His numberless wounds, in the dark to give Light, in death to give Life, He will die at the ninth hour and the world will be redeemed”.»

Jesus does not speak of the Mass (Eucharist) because it will only be instituted at the Last Supper as a prelude to His Passion. He consoles Marjiam, upset by the announcement of the Passion, then rejoins the group of disciples.

"«Master, what have You done?»

«I was explaining the hours of the day to Marjiam.»

«And has the boy wept? He must have been naughty, and You are excusing him out of kindness» says Peter.

«No, Simon. He watched Me praying. You have not done that. He asked Me why. I told him. The boy was moved by My words. Now leave him alone. Go to My Mother, Marjiam. And you all, listen to Me. The lesson will do no harm to you either.»

And Jesus explains once again the usefulness of prayer at the main hours of the day, leaving out the explanation of the ninth hour and concluding: «Union to God is to have Him present every moment to praise and invoke Him. Do so and you will make progress in the life of the spirit.»"