Here is a website which makes it easy to understand/learn how to pray the Little Office of the BVM at which time during which day. It's still sort of confusing to me.
http://www.liturgies.net/Liturgies/Catholic/LittleOffice.htmIf this is the *litte* office, I don't think I want to see the big one!
Alexis
Actually I don't think that one is exactly approved. It follows some features of the Rotelle version.
Originally the Little Office was not variable from day to day- it was exactly the same except for some seasons - according to what was posted earlier in the thread.
After the glorious 70's when the Latin liturgy was revised, the Little Office was also revised. One of the most common revisions, the Rotelle version, expanded it to include the texts for each day of the week. The one from the site is loosely based on the Rotelle - it has some parts and not others and it throws in other stuff for Lauds and Vespers like a Trisagion, Ps. 50, acclamations from the saints, etc.
In any case, one of the main reasons for the Little Office has disappeared. The breviary used to be more complicated previously with myriads of rubrics on occurence and concurrence and transferring hymns and antiphons if they were impeded and things like that. In addition, festal Matins was very long. The Little Office provided a simple and easy way of joining in the public prayer and fulfilled a devotional need (since the Roman Office was quite 'dry' in terms of Marian devotion- unlike the East who to this uninformed Latin seem to have Theotokia at the drop of a hat!!
) Now the modern Latin Office is so simple, the only real reason to recite the Little Office becomes devotional.
