In every age of Christian history, the Church has obeyed the Apostle’s command to “pray without ceasing.” The Liturgy of the Hours, or Divine Office, is the Church’s official response to that command. It is not a personal devotion, but a public act of worship that sanctifies the day and joins the individual soul to the unceasing praise of the Church on earth and in heaven. While modern conveniences have made this prayer accessible through apps and online guides, such tools are not necessary and often distract from the deeper purpose of the Office. The Liturgy of the Hours is already self-contained, with all the necessary directions provided within the printed breviary. Anyone with patience and a desire to learn can follow these instructions and enter into the rhythm of the Church’s daily prayer. What follows is a plain explanation of how to do this.
The Liturgy of the Hours consists of a cycle of psalms, readings, canticles, hymns, and prayers arranged to be prayed at specific times of day. These hours—Morning Prayer (Lauds), Daytime Prayer (Terce, Sext, or None), Evening Prayer (Vespers), Night Prayer (Compline), and the Office of Readings (formerly Matins)—form the backbone of the Church’s daily praise. The goal is not novelty or customization, but faithful repetition. Like the seasons, the Office moves in a constant rhythm that aligns the individual soul with the liturgical life of the Church.
The first task of anyone desiring to pray the Hours is to obtain a breviary. In English, the most commonly used edition is the four-volume Liturgy of the Hours published by the Catholic Book Publishing Corporation. There is also a one-volume edition called Christian Prayer, which contains Morning, Evening, and Night Prayer, but omits most of the Office of Readings. The complete four-volume set is arranged according to the liturgical seasons: Volume I for Advent and Christmas, Volume II for Lent and Easter, and Volumes III and IV for Ordinary Time. The inside front pages of each volume indicate the precise date range it covers. The first step, therefore, is to make sure one is using the correct volume for the time of year.
Note: I do not recommend using the single volume Christian Prayer. While it may be less expensive than the full Liturgy of the Hours 4 volume set, it does not contain the Office of Readings
Each breviary contains a section called the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, usually at the beginning of the book. These pages explain the theology and structure of the Divine Office and provide detailed directions on its use. They are written for clergy and religious but are meant for all who pray the Office, including laity. These instructions are not optional, nor are they decorative. They are the Church’s own explanation of how the Liturgy of the Hours is to be prayed. A person learning the breviary should read this section slowly and repeatedly until its order becomes familiar.
The breviary itself is divided into several parts. The major sections are the Ordinary, the Proper of Seasons, the Proper of Saints, and the Psalter. The Ordinary contains the basic structure of each hour—the order of psalms, readings, responsories, canticles, and concluding prayers. The Proper of Seasons provides the unique texts assigned to each day of the liturgical year (such as the Collects for Sundays of Advent or the antiphons for Lent). The Proper of Saints gives the specific elements for each saint’s feast. The Psalter contains the four-week cycle of psalms arranged for each day of the week and each hour of the day.
The Ordinary is the anchor. It lays out the skeleton of each hour. For Morning and Evening Prayer, the structure is the same: an opening verse, a hymn, three psalms or psalm sections with antiphons, a short reading, a responsory, a Gospel canticle (the Benedictus in the morning, the Magnificat in the evening) with its antiphon, intercessions, the Lord’s Prayer, the concluding prayer (often from the Proper), and a dismissal. The Office of Readings follows a similar form but includes two longer readings: one from Scripture and one from a saint or Church Father. Night Prayer is shorter and simpler, with one psalm, one reading, the Nunc Dimittis (Simeon’s canticle), and the final blessing.
The psalms and canticles are drawn from the Psalter, which is divided into four weeks. Each day of the week has assigned psalms for each hour. Week I is prayed in the first week of Advent, the Octave of Easter, and the first week of Ordinary Time after Christmas and Easter. The other weeks follow in order. The breviary indicates which week of the Psalter is to be used on any given day. This may seem complicated at first, but the Table of Liturgical Days and the Ordo printed at the beginning of the volume give precise directions. Over time, the order becomes second nature.
Each hour begins with the invocation: “God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me.” This is followed by the Glory Be and, outside of Lent, the Alleluia. Then comes the hymn. The hymn is assigned in the Proper or suggested in the Ordinary, and one may use a suitable traditional hymn if needed. The hymn is not merely a song but a liturgical text meant to prepare the soul for prayer.
Next come the psalms, which are the heart of the Office. Morning and Evening Prayer each contain three psalms or psalm sections, each with its own antiphon. The psalms are taken from the Psalter section according to the day and week. The antiphons, however, come from the Proper of Seasons or Proper of Saints if a special feast or season is being observed. Otherwise, they are taken from the Psalter itself. Each psalm is prayed in full, with its antiphon recited before and after. At the end of each psalm, the Glory Be is added, again followed by the antiphon. This rhythmic pattern creates a meditative structure and allows the psalms to sink into the soul.
After the psalms, the breviary assigns a short reading from Scripture. These are concise but rich, meant for quiet reflection. They change daily and are found in the Proper. After the reading, a responsory is prayed, usually a simple verse repeated twice. Then comes the Gospel canticle. In Morning Prayer, this is the Benedictus, Zechariah’s canticle from Luke 1. In Evening Prayer, it is the Magnificat, Mary’s canticle from the same chapter. These canticles are always prayed, never omitted, and they each have an antiphon taken from the Proper or Psalter. They are recited slowly and reverently, for they are the central proclamation of the hour.
Following the canticle are the intercessions. These are printed in the Proper and vary by day. They express the Church’s petitions and are phrased to involve all people. After these, the Lord’s Prayer is prayed, followed by the concluding prayer (called the Collect). This prayer is the same one found in the Mass of the day and is printed in the Proper of Seasons or Proper of Saints. Finally, the hour concludes with a dismissal: “May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.”
The Office of Readings differs slightly. It begins like the other hours but includes two long readings instead of one short one. The first is from the Bible, usually from the Old Testament or Apostolic writings. The second is from a Church Father, saint, or council. These readings are printed in full in the Proper and are followed by responsories. The Office of Readings may be prayed at any time of day, though traditionally it was prayed in the early hours of the morning.
Night Prayer is the briefest and most personal of the hours. It is meant to be prayed just before going to sleep and includes a short examination of conscience, one psalm, a reading, and the Nunc Dimittis, or Canticle of Simeon. It ends with a Marian antiphon, which varies by season.
When saints’ feast days occur, the Proper of Saints gives their assigned readings, antiphons, and Collect. If the feast is optional, the priest or individual may choose to observe the saint or continue with the weekday. If it is a memorial, feast, or solemnity, then the breviary assigns specific texts to be used, often replacing parts of the Psalter. The General Instruction explains which texts are to be taken from the Common of Martyrs, Virgins, Pastors, or other categories, depending on the saint. Again, these directions are printed in the breviary itself and can be followed with patience and care.
A common difficulty for beginners is determining which parts to turn to and when. The best remedy is to practice daily and to use the ribbon markers provided in the breviary. One ribbon should mark the Ordinary, one the Psalter, one the Proper of Seasons, and one the Proper of Saints. If additional ribbons are available, they can be used for the Commons or the Office of Readings. By moving through the pages and reading the instructions printed at the beginning of each section, a person gradually learns the rhythm and flow of the Office.
It is not necessary to pray all the hours at once. The Church encourages the laity to begin with Morning and Evening Prayer, which are considered the two “hinges” of the daily liturgy. These two hours give structure to the day: Morning Prayer consecrates the day to God at its beginning, and Evening Prayer offers thanks and praise at its close. Over time, one may add Night Prayer or the Office of Readings, as time permits. The important thing is not quantity but consistency.
It is worth emphasizing that the breviary itself is sufficient. The instructions printed in it are complete and authoritative. There is no need for external guides, charts, or digital apps. In fact, such tools often weaken the soul’s confidence in the liturgy and encourage dependence on conveniences rather than familiarity with the structure. The purpose of praying the Liturgy of the Hours is not efficiency or personalization but union with the Church’s constant voice of prayer. By relying on the book itself, one learns to follow the Church’s rhythm as it has been handed down and preserved.
The Liturgy of the Hours is not meant to be rushed or reduced to a checklist. It is an act of prayer, an offering of time, mind, and voice to God. Each psalm, reading, and antiphon should be spoken reverently and attentively. Whether one is alone or in a group, the Office remains a public act of worship. One prays it not merely as a private devotion but as a member of the Body of Christ, joining in the song of the whole Church.
The psalms will sometimes feel joyful, sometimes sorrowful, sometimes obscure. But they are always the inspired Word of God and the prayer of Christ Himself. Over time, they shape the soul, forming it in praise, humility, repentance, and longing for God. The repetition of the liturgical hours is not mechanical—it is formative. It roots the soul in the Word and conforms it to the Church’s spirit of prayer.
For those who persevere, the printed breviary becomes a daily companion. The hands learn the sections. The eye recognizes the layout. The heart becomes attuned to the hours. The day is no longer divided by secular busyness alone but punctuated by sacred intervals of prayer. Morning and evening are no longer merely physical transitions but sacred moments of offering. The week takes on a fourfold rhythm. The seasons of the Church become the seasons of the soul.
This is the goal: not mastery of a book but participation in the Church’s worship of God. The breviary is not meant to be manipulated or customized, but followed. The instruction it provides is enough. It leads, patiently and thoroughly, through the ordered worship of the Church. To pray the Liturgy of the Hours faithfully, day after day, following the printed instructions and learning its rhythm, is to live in the heart of the Church’s life. It is to join the saints in their praise, to echo the voice of Christ, and to sanctify time with the Word of God. No app can offer this. No guide can replace it. The printed breviary is sufficient. One need only begin.
