I've had the Andrewes Diurnal for a few days now, and am even more impressed with the quality of their productions. Money well-spent, as I've already managed to integrate most of the hours into my not-too-busy schedule.
And just out of curiosity, I decided to check out the Byzantine equivalent of the breviary. Here, with all these editions of our office, I thought we had it bad ;D
From Wikipedia, all the different volumes which comprise the Eastern breviary (all presumably separate):
The Horologion (Greek: Ωρολόγιον; Church Slavonic: Chasoslov, Часocлoвъ), or Book of Hours, provides the fixed portions of the Daily Cycle of services (Greek: akolouthies, ἀκολουθίες) as used by the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches.
Into this fixed framework, numerous moveable parts of the service are inserted. These are taken from a variety of liturgical books:
* Psalter (Greek: Ψαλτήριον, Psalterion; Slavonic: Ѱалтырь or Ѱалтирь, Psaltyr' )—A book containing the 150 Psalms divided into Kathismata[8] together with the Biblical Canticles which are chanted at Matins.[9] The Psalter is used at Vespers and Matins,[10] and normally contains tables for determining which Kathismata are to be read at each service, depending upon the day of the week and the liturgical season of the year.
* Octoechos (Greek: Παρακλητική, Paraklētikē; Slavonic: Октоихъ, Oktoikh or Осмогласникъ, Osmoglasnik)—Literally, the Book of the "Eight Tones" or modes. This book contains an eight-week cycle, providing texts to be chanted for every day of the week at Vespers, Matins, Compline and (on Sundays) the Midnight Office. Each week, the hymns are sung in a different liturgical Mode or Tone. The origins of this book go back to compositions by St. John Damascene.
* Menaion (Greek: Μηναίον; Slavonic: Минеѧ, Mineya)—A twelve-volume set which provides liturgical texts for each day of the calendar year.[11] The twelve volumes correspond to the months of the year. The liturgical year begins in September, so the first volume of the Menaion is September.
* Menologion—A collection of the lives of the saints. The selection for the day is read after the Kontakion and Oikos at Matins.
* Triodion (Greek: Τριῴδιον, Triodion; Slavonic: Постнаѧ Трїωдь, Postnaya Triod' ; Romanian: Triodul)—Also called the Lenten Triodion. During Great Lent the services undergo profound changes. The Lenten Triodion contains propers for:
o the Pre-Lenten Season
o the Forty Days of Great Lent itself
o Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday
o Holy Week
* Pentecostarion (Greek: Πεντηκοστάριον, Pentekostarion; Slavonic: Цвѣтнаѧ Трїωдь, Tsvetnaya Triod' , literally "Flowery Triodon"; Romanian: Penticostar)—This volume contains the propers for the period from Pascha to the Sunday of All Saints. This period can be broken down into the following periods:
o Bright Week (Easter Week)—The seven days from the Pascha (Easter Sunday) through the following Saturday
o Paschal Season—The period from Thomas Sunday until Ascension
o Ascension and its Afterfeast
o Pentecost and its Afterfeast
o All Saints Sunday (the Sunday after Pentecost)
* Synaxarion (Greek: Συναξάριον; Romanian: Sinaxar)—The Synaxarion contains brief lives of the saints for each day of the year, usually read at Matins.
* Irmologion (Greek: Ειρμολόγιον, Heirmologion; Slavonic: Ирмологий, Irmologii)—Contains the Irmoi chanted at the Canon of Matins and other services.
* Euchologion (Greek: Ευχολόγιον, Eukhologion; Slavonic: Слѹжебникъ, Sluzhebnik)—Contains the portions of the services which are said by the priest and deacon.
* Gospel Book (Greek: Ευαγγέλιον, Evangelion)—Book containing the Gospel readings that are used at Matins, Divine Liturgy, and other services. Among the Greeks the Evangélion is laid out in order of the cycle of readings as they occur in the ecclesiastical year, with a section in the back providing the Gospel readings for Matins, Feasts and special occasions. In the Slavic usage, the Evangélion contains the four gospels in canonical order (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) with annotations in the margin to indicate the beginning and ending of each reading (and an index in the back).
* Epistle Book (Greek: Απόστολος, Apostolos; Slavonic: Апостолъ, Apostol)—Contains the readings from the Epistles and the Acts of the Apostles (the Apocalypse is not read during Divine Services in the Orthodox Church). It also contains the Prokeimenon and Alleluia verses that are chanted with the readings. The Apostól is laid out in the same manner as the Evangélion, depending on whether the book was prepared for the Greek or Slavic usage.[12]
* Collections (Greek: Ανθολόγιον, Anthologion; Slavonic: Сборникъ, Sbornik)—There are numerous smaller anthologies available, taking portions from the books mentioned above, or from other sources. For instance, the Festal Menaion contains only those portions of the Menaion that have to do with the Great Feasts; and the General Menaion contains propers for each class of saints (with blank spaces for the name of the saint) which may be employed when one does not have the propers for that particular saint; etc.
* Typicon (Greek: Τυπικόν, Typikon; Slavonic: Тѵпикъ, Typik)—A book which contains all of the rules for the performance of the Divine Services, giving directions for every possible combination of the materials from the books mentioned above into the Daily Cycle of Services.
If any man here think toting merely two volumes of the Roman or Benedictine breviary a difficult endeavor...
