Called to Pray the Liturgy of the Hours
On February 26, 2022, the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity, Manitowoc, offered a workshop on the Liturgy of the Hours to discerning women interested in learning to pray or to pray with more depth this beautiful daily prayer of the Church. The Zoom conferences commenced at 10 AM, 2 and 4 PM. They offered a variety of topics, presenters, and experiences. Each session began with the following prayer and the ritual of crossing the forehead, lips, and heart:
Lord, open our + minds that we may learn and understand this great prayer of your Church.
Lord, open our + lips that we may speak your Word and pray with zeal and attention.
Lord, open our + hearts that we may not only understand and speak but may integrate this prayer into our day-to-day life. We ask you to guide every thought, word, and action of this day to your greater honor and glory.
Amen.
Sister Anne Marie Lom explained the use of imagery and anthropomorphism in the Psalms and examples were given. Then, Sister Pamela Biehl traced the origins and development of the Liturgy of the Hours from early Christian times to the more recent format used after Vatican II. Some comments from the participants were:
“It was very helpful to understand the background and development of Liturgy of the Hours and recognize how we can incorporate some earlier elements of this prayer while we pray it today (i.e. lighting a candle)” and “having more background knowledge to the Liturgy of the Hours helped to create better appreciation for it.”
For simplicity, brevity, and clarity, a website was used to show examples of Lauds, Vespers, and Night Prayer. Participants offered their favorite sites/apps for praying Liturgy of the Hours.
A YouTube video explaining step by step the use of the ribbons and sections of the book Christian Prayer was shared.
https://aleteia.org/2017/06/08/a-beginners-guide-to-the-liturgy-of-the-hours/
At 2 PM, Novice Sister Mary Jane Schwartz and Temporary Professed Sisters Maria Guadalupe Martinez, and Cecilia Joy Kugel joined the group. They responded to each of these questions:
- Did you pray the Liturgy of the Hours before you entered? If yes, how did that happen?
- What struggles did you have learning to pray the Liturgy of Hours?
- What do you remember from the course on the Liturgy of the Hours that we shared last year?
- Any advice for those beginning to pray the Liturgy of the Hours?
Judging from the comments in the evaluations, this session was very helpful. Comments included: “It was so nice and helpful to get the newest sisters’ advice and learn about their struggles with the Liturgy of the Hours” and “I liked the multiple age viewpoints all the different Sisters provided.”
Another positive feature of the day was the attendance of Postulant Kathrine Logan and future Postulant, Michelle Ozuna.
The 4 PM conference included in-depth exploration of the daily Canticles of Simeon, Zachariah, and the Magnificat. Another valuable site was shared that connects the reader to commentaries of the Psalms and Canticles for all four weeks of the Liturgy of the Hours. These commentaries were begun by Saint John Paul II and completed by Pope Benedict XVI.
http://ch.catholic.or.kr/pundang/4/psalter/jp2_b16_commentaries.htm
This session concluded with Vespers for the eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time led by Sister Pamela Biehl. Sister’s explanation of the rubrics for our prayer together, the artwork that drew our attention to the prayer and her prayerful layout of Vespers helped us to end with a true reverence for praying the Liturgy of the Hours.
All were grateful for a day full of learning and grace.
Speaker credentials:
Sister Pamela Biehl holds a MA in Liturgy from the University of Notre Dame and Sister Anne Marie Lom holds a MA in Applied Spirituality from the University of San Francisco. Visit the Community website:
fscc-calledtobe.org/