WE WELCOME YOU AS CHRIST. (RB)

The purpose of this site is to propagate, explain, and help souls to pray the Benedictine Monastic Diurnal re-published by St. Michael's Abbey, Farnborough (UK), in 2004.

All are called by Holy Scripture to pray to God seven times a day. (As the Prophet saith: "Seven times a day I have given praise to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:164), this sacred sevenfold number will be fulfilled by us in this wise if we perform the duties of our service at the time of Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline; because it was of these day hours that he hath said: "Seven times a day I have given praise to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:164). For the same Prophet saith of the night watches: "At midnight I arose to confess to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:62). At these times, therefore, let us offer praise to our Creator "for the judgments of His justice;" namely, at Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline; and let us rise at night to praise Him (cf Ps 118[119]:164, 62).) RB Chapter XVI

And since: "...because those monks show too lax a service in their devotion who in the course of a week chant less than the whole Psalter with is customary canticles; since we read, that our holy forefathers promptly fulfilled in one day what we lukewarm monks should, please God, perform at least in a week." RB Chapter XVIII; the Psalms of Matins are available to enable a soul to pray the entire Psalter in one week.

To my mind, there is no Breviary in publication today that follows the specific pattern of Psalms carefully laid out by St. Benedict as the Monastic Diurnal does so faithfully.

"INDEED, NOTHING IS TO BE PREFERRED TO THE WORK OF GOD." (Rule of Benedict, Chapter 43)

My hope is that this site will provide similarities to monastic life without physical monasteries, regardless of your station in life.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/OblatesOfStBenedict/ and

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/a_few_thoughts/

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