Mandatory Recitation of the Hours Mentally
I am a transitional deacon and am bound by ordination to recite the Liturgy of the Hours. Most of the time, I pray the Breviary alone. It is permissible to pray the hours silently, without moving the lips or whispering? I find it more prayerful when I am alone to pray it slowly and reflectively, without "saying" it. I know the old method was to at least move the lips, but no mention is made of this sort of thing. I have seen in one commentary a reference to a 1973 statement in Notitiae by the Congregation for Divine Worship saying that when praying the Office alone, moving the lips is not necessary, but the quote itself wasn't given, and Notitiae is printed in Latin, which I don't read.
Do you know anything about this?
Many thanks for your insights!
Benedict
QUESTION from Deacon Benedict on February 24, 2004
God bless,
ANSWER by John-Paul Ignatius, OLSM on March 3, 2004
|
Dear Deacon: The current General Instruction for the Liturgy of the Hours does not make any explicit practice of mouthing or whispering the Office in private recitation (at least not that I can find). However, the GILH always refers to the "recitation" of the Office, or to "recite" the office. This implies a verbal expression. Recitation is not a mental thinking of the Office. Although whispering or mouthing is no longer specified overtly in the General Instructions, it is certain that we are to "recite" the Office in private. Recite, by definition, means to verbally express. If you are not reciting the Office, I would say that I wish I had your mental discipline to pray an Office solely from mental thought rather than by some form of verbal expression. To even mouth the office does things in your brain and to the concentration that mere thinking about it does not do. Perhaps this is one reason the old rule about mouthing or whispering the Office was made -- because it engages our brains and soul is a way that mere thinking the Office does not do. Also mouthing the Office may kept us centered on the type of prayer that is the Office. But ultimately the Divine Office is liturgy and as liturgy the Divine Office is vocal prayer, not mental or contemplative prayer. Since the Divine Office is meant to be vocal prayer, and the GILH specifically says that in private we "recite" the Office, I think that is what we need to do. Otherwise the Office loses it liturgical character that needs to be maintained even when "saying" the Office in private. This is, afterall, liturgy and not meditative or contemplative prayer. If, however, there is legislation that dispenses this requirement in private "recitation", so be it, but I think we better be sure of that before relying on an obscure commentary and reference. Perhaps you can send me a copy of that commentary, and/or a copy of the Latin Notitiae that references this?
You can send that if you have a copy by email:
Or snail mail:
God Bless, |
Back to Index Page