Monday, March 23, 2009

Question: Resources for the Liturgy of the Hours in a Parish

The General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, 1971, says: "The liturgy of the hours, like other liturgical services, is not a private matter but belongs to the whole Body of the Church, whose life it both expresses and affects... Wherever possible, other groups of the faithful should celebrate the liturgy of the hours communally in church. This especially applies to parishes - the cells of the diocese, established under their pastors, taking the place of the bishop; they 'represent in some degree the visible Church established throughout the world.'" (par. 20, 21).

(Talk about unfulfilled hopes of the postconcilar era!)

Let's say a parish decides to hold morning and noon prayer every day, perhaps as an alternative to the rise of "communion services" in the absence of a priest.

What is the best resource for a parish to use? I see no regular and affordable periodical from the regular publishers that would make this possible. Is eBreviary the best source, so that you can just print and distribute?

More recent articles:

For more articles, see the NLM archives: