www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology Is there a BC equivalent of the 'Liturgy of the Hours'?

I pray the Liturgy of the Hours (aka the 'Breviary') of the Roman Church, and find it deeply moving and inspiring a sense of connectedness with the Church calendar.

Is there an equivalent service in the Byzantine Rite? The Roman Liturgy of the Hours is flexible for both laity and clergy - is the Byzantine form also flexible? (aka, does it lend itself to personal as well as communal prayer?)

Also, if there is such an equivalent, is the service book sort of thing available anywhere? I'm interested in experimenting with it, provided there IS such a thing.

Thanks all, and Christ is Risen!

FB

Frodo,

The Byzantine tradition does have the Liturgy of Time. The two main services are Vespers (evening prayer) and Matins (morning prayer), with lesser canonical hours during the day (prime, tierce, none, sext) and then compline before retiring.

The services are focused on psalmody, as are the Latin services. However, the Byzantine offices of Vespers and Matins are far, far more involved than the streamlined Litrugy of the Hours presently in use in the Latin Church. The structure of the lesser canonical hours is closer, in size and scope, to the contemporary Latin Liturgy of the Hours. In private recitation of the hours, flexibility is the norm. One recites the hours in a more full, or a less full, form according to the time at one's disposal.

The Byzantine hours are available on-line (someone posted a URL for them somewhere on these pages not so long ago, I believe). The on-line version has all of the "proper" texts for the particular days of the week, the church calendar and season, etc (different from in the West, obviously). There are many versions available commercially. Perhaps the best overall resource is a book called "Byzantine Daily Worship", by Melkite Archbishop Joseph Raya -- it contains all of the hours, vespers, matins, divine liturgy, the calendar (different in the East than in the West).

Melkite1

Frodo,

The Byzantine tradition does have the Liturgy of Time. The two main services are Vespers (evening prayer) and Matins (morning prayer), with lesser canonical hours during the day (prime, tierce, none, sext) and then compline before retiring.

The services are focused on psalmody, as are the Latin services. However, the Byzantine offices of Vespers and Matins are far, far more involved than the streamlined Litrugy of the Hours presently in use in the Latin Church. The structure of the lesser canonical hours is closer, in size and scope, to the contemporary Latin Liturgy of the Hours. In private recitation of the hours, flexibility is the norm. One recites the hours in a more full, or a less full, form according to the time at one's disposal.

The Byzantine hours are available on-line (someone posted a URL for them somewhere on these pages not so long ago, I believe). The on-line version has all of the "proper" texts for the particular days of the week, the church calendar and season, etc (different from in the West, obviously). There are many versions available commercially. Perhaps the best overall resource is a book called "Byzantine Daily Worship", by Melkite Archbishop Joseph Raya -- it contains all of the hours, vespers, matins, divine liturgy, the calendar (different in the East than in the West).

Melkite1

There is another book to check out: Let Us Pray to the Lord, Vol. 1, available from Eastern Christian Publications in Fairfax Virginia. It contains the core parts of Vespers, Matins and the little hours as well as weekday propers. It does not contain a menaion, however (that's in vol. 2, along with the Divine Liturgy).

As a tool for personal devotion, this may be exactly what you're looking for.

Peter

Frodo,

Try The Byzantine Bible Study e-mail service.
http://www.cris.com/~bronson/byzantines.net/bbs.htm The Byzantine Bible Study is a daily devotional delivered to your email address each day. The BBS, as we like to call it, consists of the following:

Prayers, including morning and evening prayers.
Reading from the Psalms. Daily Epistle and Gospel according to the Byzantine Liturgical Calendar.
Troparion and Kontakions for the day, along with a very brief piece of information about that day's particular saint

It will take about 5 to 10 minutes to read. The goal is to get you into the scriptures daily, and into a deeper pray life with Christ.


Ron

[This message has been edited by Ron (edited 04-26-99).]

Frodo, if your current devotion to the Roman Breviary is beneficial to you, then don't go looking around for something else. Check with your spiritual director (priest, monk, nun, theologian, etc.) for assistance. But if you are making true progress where you are, don't distract ourself.

frodo: I have used the Liturgy of the Hours for many years and began trying to use the Byzantine Office. I have observed that in my own case it is far too complicated and I would need a private tutor. I simply use the Byzantine Office books in my private prayer and don't really worry whether or not it is correct. The meditations on the Mysteries of God that are presented there are beautiful and enrich my soul. As far as doing it correctly, I'm lost but it's not all that important to me. Our Community prays the Hours according to the Cistercian (Trappist) Rite.