Spiritual Practices - 2. Praying the Hours

Summary: This is one of those practices that has been on-again, off-again for me over the past couple of years. When I have engaged in this practice, I have enjoyed it very much and found myself much more focused on God throughout the day. So I am motivated to begin this (again) and to try my best to stick with it longer this time.

"Praying the hours" is the spiritual practice of praying set prayers at certain fixed times during the day. Sometimes it's called "praying the offices" or "fixed-hour prayer" or "the divine office." The tradition goes back to the early days of Judaism, but has been largely lost in Protestant circles. Within the larger sphere of Christianity, there are several "manuals" containing prayers for morning, midday, afternoon, evening, and so forth. One of the more common ones is the Book of Common Prayer. This book is handed down from the Church of England and is used principally in the Anglican and Episcopal communities. Another very user-friendly manual is the 3-volume set called The Divine Hours, compiled by Phyllis Tickle. There is also on online version of these volumes, and I have found both the print and electronic versions to be very easy to use. Two things which are common among them all are the Lord's Prayer and the Psalms. If you've never tried this practice, I highly recommend picking up one of the volumes of The Divine Hours (each volume covers a certain time of the year) and giving it a try. Each of the volumes has an introduction which covers some of the history and tradition behind praying the hours. Also, Scot McKnight's Praying with the Church, which I just finished reading, gives an excellent introduction to this practice.

Reasons: In his book, Scot McKnight gives many good examples and reasons for praying the hours. For me, though, a lot of it comes down to trying to organize my days around prayer instead of everything else that comes along. When I have done this in the past, my routine went something like this. I would wake up and get ready for the day. Somewhere during that process, I would pause and read the morning prayers for the day. Typically something would be especially meaningful, and I would try to reflect on that throughout the morning. Around lunch time, I would read the midday prayers. On work days, I would access one of the online versions from my computer. Again, I would usually find something to reflect on during the afternoon. Then in the evening, I would read the evening or compline prayers for the day, usually just before going to bed. I would then try to fall asleep praying the Lord's Prayer. So, in a very real sense, praying the hours helped me develop a daily rhythm of prayer and my days became ordered around these prayers.

Where I'm doing well: Basically, I'm not doing well on this one. I haven't practiced this regularly for some time now. But reading McKnight's book has inspired me to begin again! Historically, I have done better on weekdays, when my days are already somewhat ordered around work.

Where I need more work: Getting started, for one thing. And the weekends. My weekends tend to be very unordered, so continuing this on off-days, vacations, and holidays will take some extra discipline. But I'm pretty sure that if I can do this for 40-60 days, I will be hooked.

Next steps: Get the summer volume of The Divine Hours and just get started! Also, get a smaller version (perhaps Merton's Book of Hours) to take with me on trips.

If someone were to ask me today about my prayer life, I would have to confess, "It's not very good right now." My hope is that this practice will become one of the staples in my life and that these times with God, praying with the words of all those who have gone before me, will deepen my bond and love for God. How about you?