The Benedictine Monastic Office

The Divine Office is at the center of the Benedictine life. Through it the monk lifts heart and mind to Almighty God, uniting himself to his confreres, the Church and the entire world in offering God praise and thanks, in confessing his sins, and in calling on God for the needs of all people. The office punctuates the day of the monk, awakening his soul to make the entire day, indeed the whole of life, a gift of the self to God. Praying the hours puts the monk into the real world, sanctifying his whole life and assisting him toward his goal of unceasing prayer – Ut In Omnibus Glorificetur Deus.

The Benedictine Office is a rich collection of prayer that is based on the Rule of St. Benedict. Historically it is distinct from the Roman Office, also called the Liturgy of the Hours, which, after the Second Vatican Council, was shaped in part to simplify and make more practical the prayer of the hours for the secular clergy, as well as the laity and religious who elect to use it. In 1966 the Breviarium Monasticum was the universal order of Divine Office for Benedictines. In that year the monks were given a period of time for liturgical experimentation, allowing each congregation or monastery to adapt the tradition for its particular use. To this day the Breviarium Monasticum remains “official” and the time of experimentation remains in effect, and no other universal office has been established for use by Benedictines. In that circumstance, communities are using various forms of the Divine Office, and a few communities have elected to take the new Roman Office (Liturgy of the Hours) as a convenient guideline because of its universal use among the secular clergy, but that is rare.

The following is a brief, general description of the centuries old Benedictine tradition of prayer in word and action. Reference is made occasionally to the Roman Office as another point of reference. The structure of the Office described below is according to the use at St. Bernard Abbey in Cullman, Alabama.