44 Liturgy of Hours - Evening and Night Prayer

Visitation - Lancaster Cathedral

Evening Prayer is known in Latin as Vespers.   For detail of the structure of evening prayer from the Liturgy Office for England and Wales 

Vespers is regularly prayed in the Cathedral at Lancaster on a Sunday late afternoon (4.40pm) and on special feast days or celebrations.  
The Canticle or song of praise is Mary's Magnificat which is found in Luke 1: 46:55 which reminds us of the visitation.

Night Prayer
Night Prayer is known as Compline.  This is the shorter set of prayers and includes the Canticle or song of praise of Simeon known as the Nunc Dimittis who had waited for the Lord.  The song is based on Luke 2: 29-32.  The two videos come from Ampleforth and cover the Night Prayer or click the titles to open in a separate page

Part 1 of Evening Prayer                                      Part 2 of Evening Prayer

     

44 Liturgy of Hours - Morning Prayer

Morning Prayer is known in Latin as Lauds.  For details of the structure of morning prayer from the Liturgy Office for England and Wales
The Benedictus
The canticle or song of praise that is sung each day in morning prayer is known as the Benedictus.  It comes from Luke 1: 68-79 and is the song of Zechariah which John the Baptist's father sang on the birth of his son.

This English version of the Benedictus lasts just  over 2 minutes.

Divine Office

For a more detailed explanation of the Liturgy of Office offered by a Benedictine Monk from Mount Angel Abbey, Oregon. It lasts about 20 minutes and explains the background to the different hours in the Divine Office.

44 Liturgy of the Hours

Liturgy of Hours: Breviary

The Liturgy of the Hours is also known as the Divine Office and is a set of prayers that members of the Church use throughout the day so that day and night are 'made holy by the praise of God'. When a priest is ordained, he promises to pray the Liturgy of the Office in the morning, in the evening and at other times during the day. The Liturgy of the Hours includes psalms, readings from the Old and New Testaments, hymns and prayers and can be prayed individually or as part of a community. It can also be sung. 

CCC 1176 The celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours demands not only harmonizing the voice with the praying heart, but also a deeper "understanding  of the liturgy and of the Bible, especially of the Psalms."

During the coming week we'll post some videos covering the liturgy of the hours. We start with an explanation of the Liturgy of Hours by a young person - they give an electronic link to: 

• an e-breviary which is the name of the book with the Liturgy of Hours.  
• an online version which also includes Mass readings Universalis.  

Calling younger readers and schools ... 

if you've created or would like to create a video or explanation of an object of faith we'd like to hear from you.  Please use the contact us page

43 Wedding Rings

A couple who married
at Lancaster Cathedral

When a couple get married, they exchange rings as a symbol of the bond of marriage. The circle of the ring represents undying love and the continually renewed vows of the married couple. Marriage is a vocation created by God. God created man and woman and their mutual love expressed in marriage becomes an image of the absolute and unfailing love that God has for us. 

[ccc 1621-24, 1663]

YOUCAT 266 How is a Church wedding celebrated?

As a rule a wedding must take place publicly.  The bride and bridegroom are questions as to their intention to marry.  The PRIEST or the DEACON blesses the rings.  The bride and bridegroom exchange rings and mutually promise "to be true in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health" and vow to each other: "I will love you and honour you all the days of my life." The celebrant ratifies the wedding and administers the BLESSING 

CCC 1603 "The intimate community of life and love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws. . . . God himself is the author of marriage." The vocation to marriage is written in the very nature of man and woman as they came from the hand of the Creator. Marriage is not a purely human institution despite the many variations it may have undergone through the centuries in different cultures, social structures, and spiritual attitudes. These differences should not cause us to forget its common and permanent characteristics. Although the dignity of this institution is not transparent everywhere with the same clarity, some sense of the greatness of the matrimonial union exists in all cultures. "The well-being of the individual person and of both human and Christian society is closely bound up with the healthy state of conjugal and family life."


If anyone has an interesting or unusual story about their wedding rings that they would be willing to share please get in touch using contact us page

42 Deacon ordination and call to service

Ordination of Rev Paul Marley - July 1991

In the Cathedral's 150th Anniversary there was a special blog (Billington's Blog) reporting on events from the past 150 years.  There is an entry about the ordination of a Deacon the Rev. Paul Marley, who was ordained by Bishop John Brewer, on 20th July 1991.  This was a few years before the reordering of the Cathedral, so a chance to see what it used to look like.

What is the role of the deacon?

Deacons supporting Bishop Michael Campbell during Eucharistic Prayer

CCC 1570 Deacons share in Christ's mission and grace in a special way. The sacrament of Holy Orders marks them with an imprint ("character") which cannot be removed and which configures them to Christ, who made himself the  "deacon" or servant of all. Among other tasks, it is the task of deacons to assist the bishop and priests in the celebration of the divine mysteries, above all the Eucharist, in the distribution of Holy Communion, in assisting at and blessing marriages, in the proclamation of the Gospel and preaching, in presiding over funerals, and in dedicating themselves to the various ministries of charity.

Who can be a permanent deacon?

CCC 1571 Since the Second Vatican Council the Latin Church has restored the diaconate "as a proper and permanent rank of the hierarchy," while the Churches of the East had always maintained it. This permanent diaconate, which can be conferred on married men, constitutes an important enrichment for the Church's mission. Indeed it is appropriate and useful that men who carry out a truly diaconal ministry in the Church, whether in its liturgical and pastoral life or whether in its social and charitable works, should "be strengthened by the imposition of hands which has come down from the apostles. They would be more closely bound to the altar and their ministry would be made more fruitful through the sacramental grace of the diaconate."

   

42 Deacon Stole and Book of Gospels

Deacons at Chrism Mass 2013

Deacons are called to share in Christ's mission in a special way. They are men who have been ordained to help priests in the celebration of the sacraments and in serving the Church. Unlike priests, deacons may be married when they are ordained but a single man who becomes a deacon cannot later marry. A deacon can help to celebrate Mass by proclaiming the Gospel, preaching and distributing Holy Communion. A deacon can also minister the Sacraments of Baptism and be the official witness in the Sacrament of Marriage. Deacons help in parish life by supporting the priest in serving the needs of the people, visiting the sick, helping with preparation for receiving the Sacraments and leading people to God through prayer.

To hear more about the life of a deacon you may want to read recent post on Cathedral's novena of vocation messages Deacon Jim Wood - Call to Service

Deacon Jim Wood carrying the Gospel 

Below a short video explaining the importance of the permanent diaconate

41 Priest and the Joy of Priesthood

Canon Alf Hayes: Parish Priest
 St Wulstans and St Edmund of Canterbury, Fleetwood

In the recent novena for vocations we featured some entries from the Lancaster Diocese vocations posts The Joy of Priesthood 

Guess who this priest is?
"Variety is a hallmark of the diocesan priesthood.  In all the variety, I can truly say it is indeed a great joy to be a priest, serving Christ and his people"

Click 'The Joy of Priesthood' to read more via the follow up links to priests in the diocese and for the most recent priest in the series Canon Alf Hayes (Cathedral Dean 1999-2003)