The Monastic Hours - Directory for the Celebration of the Work of God and Directive Norms for the Celebration of the Celebration of the Monastic Liturgy of the Hours

by Anne M. Field

The liturgical prayer of the Church, and the monastic experience of it, constitutes a theological and spiritual value which is the legacy of all Christians. In The Monastic Hours , Anne M. Field, OSB, provides an accessible aid not only to the monastics of men's and women's Benedictine monasteries, but also to the oblates and friends of these communities to assist them in understanding the significance of the monastic Liturgy of the Hours. In 1977 the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship approved a series of recommendations that ensured that the praying of the monastic Office would be in keeping with the norms of the Council and the Rule of St. Benedict, as well as with tradition and contemporary needs. These recommendations were published in 1981 as the Directory for the Celebration of the Work of God , along with a parallel document known as the Directive Norms for the Celebration of the Monastic Liturgy of the Hours . These documents are republished for wide distribution here in a second edition that includes updated text, a new foreword by Abbot Primate Marcel Rooney, OSB, and a new introduction by Ruben M. Leikam, OSB This publication of the documents presents the theological and celebrative element of the monastic Liturgy of the Hours. Together, these documents will encourage many to love and savor the prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours. In that way they may promote a living and fruitful celebration, thus fulfilling the two-fold purpose of all liturgical the sanctification of men and women and the glorification of God.

56 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2001

Reviews

[Adam Carnehl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains two Benedictine documents that add theological illumination to the celebration of the daily office and practical steps for implementation. The two documents, "Directory for the Celebration of the Work of God" and "Directive Norms for the Celebration of the Monastic Liturgy of the Hours" presuppose the reader's acquaintance with the "Rule of Benedict," "Laudis Canticum," and the "Thesaurus Liturgiae Horarum monasticae." Also, a familiarity with the reformed Roman Office and the "General Instruction for the Liturgy of the Hours" would also be advisable, as this book assumes the reader's knowledge of these texts.

The first part of this book contains two chapters, "Theology of the Work of God" and "Celebration of the Work of God," with 27 individual sections. The first chapter explores various aspects of sacramental and liturgical theology in the office, while the second chapter looks more practically at the implementation of the hours in monastic communities.

The section I found most interesting is #11: "The Three Temporal Cycles," which notes that the paschal event of Christ's resurrection is set before his people daily, monthly, and yearly. Just as the hours are "a memorial of the things Christ has done," the week culminates in the Eucharistic celebration on the Lord's Day, and the year's celebrations link the Christian community with the mysteries of Christ's birth and resurrection. The opus dei ("Work of God") of the daily office "embraces the mystery of salvation in its totality; that is to say it includes the announcement of salvation, its fulfillment in Christ, and the prolongation of this fulfillment in the Church until it attains its plenitude at the end of time."