time required for Breviary

[creimann]

Does anyone pray the breviary consistently? It seems like a huge project. Once I tried to pray the entire office for one day. I'm sure it was more than 2.5 hours. Can anyone keep that up? And the Latin. Quite a good knowledge is required, particularly for the lectiones not from Scripture.

[piusx1914]

Does anyone pray the breviary consistently? It seems like a huge project. Once I tried to pray the entire office for one day. I'm sure it was more than 2.5 hours. Can anyone keep that up? And the Latin. Quite a good knowledge is required, particularly for the lectiones not from Scripture.

 

Creimann,

 

You are right, for a working person to recite the whole Office daily would be a huge project.  However, if you consider that the Office is the prayer of the Church and the Church prayers regardless of whether you can participate or not it might make more sense.  The goal is to join the Church in the hours as often as your state in life will permit.  For me that means praying Lauds, Vespers and Compline every day and the other hours as often as I can. 

[Credo]

       How about the time needed to pray the LOTH daily? I suppose it takes me about 1 1/2 hours to pray, what do you find?

[creimann]

When I prayed the LotH, I think it took me about 2.25 hours per day when I would max it out. The reason why it took me so long is that I was adding in everything that could be applicable. For instance, I'd add the readings from the commons of saints, to honor a saint, even on a day when the LotH had no saint indicated. On Saturdays I'd add readings from the Common of the Blessed Virgin. I'd do the whole afternoon section, including from the psalter, the afternoon section, and anything I could find in a relevant common. I added more because I wanted to supplement what I felt was a weak office. And I'd always be looking for replacements for the prayers of the faithful, by getting from the commons instead of using the ones in the psalter. Of course I couldn't do that every day, but when I could, I'd max it out. Currently I'm not doing any office, but now that I don't get to mass each morning I want to add an office back in. Perhaps I'll do the Little Office, because I have the Carmel edition that has the English right there, so I won't get stuck on a Latin word here and there.

[Credo]

       If a priest is enrolled in the Brown Scapular, what does he pray? As a priest, he must pray the Office. However, as a third order Carmalite, he is bound to pray the Little Office. I understand there is the option to pray the Rosary or do some other good work. However, what did a priest pray before those options became available? If one is currently enrolled in the Brown Scapular, can one choose between the LOTH (or BR) and the Little Office?

       Secondly, what do you folks pray concerning the Little Office? Do you use the LOTH-type of revised office, or the older versions? Where does one obtain an older Little Office?

[StThomasMore]

you can get the Little Office at angeluspress.org

[Paul]

Does anyone pray the breviary consistently? It seems  like a huge project. Once I tried to pray the entire office for one  day. I'm sure it was more than 2.5 hours. Can anyone keep that up? And  the Latin. Quite a good knowledge is required, particularly for the  lectiones not from Scripture.

 
  I've been praying the whole Office for just over a year now, and it takes me about an hour and a half to pray it.
 

[creimann]

Thanks for the info, Paul! That sounds encouraging. I must have been doing extra steps or something.

[Paul]

Thanks for the info, Paul! That sounds encouraging. I must have been doing extra steps or something.

 
  It varies from day to day, depending on which Psalms are used (some  days are a bit longer than others), and whether the Office is Double,  Semidouble, or Simple. Generally, Matins and Lauds take me about 40  minutes, Prime 10-15, Terce, Sext, and None about 5-7 each, Vespers  10-15, and Compline about 10.
 
  Praying it a lot also helps shorten it, since the Latin starts to make  more sense the more you say it, especially the Psalms, and you figure  out the structure of the Office and don't waste time page-flipping. I  rarely need the Ordo anymore, although transferring Lessons can get a  bit tricky sometimes. The one on breviary.net is good for the pre-1962  Office; the FSSP has one for the '62 Mass and Office, and I'd guess the  SSPX also does.
 
  It does sound like you were adding all sorts of extra things to the  LotH - only one set of Psalms and Lessons are said each day. In the  Breviary, Pius X's reform uses the ferial Psalms almost every day,  rather than those from the Common, and the Scripture Lessons in the  first Nocturn are also usually ferial. I wish he had retained the  Common Antiphons for Feasts of Saints, and proper ninth Lessons on  Sunday, but overall, I think his reform (unlike the ones of the 1950s  and later) was a good one.
 

[DominusTecum]

Credo, before the council of Trent, many priests prayed the Little Office either before or after they prayed the Divine Office. Many laity prayed the Little Office also, and believed that it was simply an obligation as Catholics to pray it. It is a shame that the L.O. has been neglected as much as it has been in our day.