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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Praying the Divine Office This Lent

Fr. David Friel · February 15, 2015

ENT IS JUST around the corner. During this holy season, the Church invites us to strengthen what should be our year-round regimen of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Personally, I have sometimes made very specific plans, and other times I have set out into Lent with just a few rather general desires. Without question, the more fruitful Lents have been those in which I’ve made specific plans—not necessarily big plans, just specific.

The desire to “pray more,” for example, is unhelpfully general (although I suspect it is among the most common of Lenten resolutions). You could specify this good desire in any number of ways: attend Mass certain extra days of the week, attend weekly Eucharistic adoration, pray the rosary daily, study a particular book of the Bible, etc. Another praiseworthy way to “pray more” would be to join the universal Church in reciting portions of the Divine Office (also called the “breviary” and the “Liturgy of the Hours”). This “official prayer of the Church,” after all, is intended not only for priests & religious (who are bound to pray the Office), but for all Christians.

Do you like the idea of praying Lauds and Vespers in the morning and evening, but you have no idea how to begin? Luckily, in this age of websites & apps, there are plenty of tools to assist you in getting started. I thought this week would be a good opportunity to introduce a few of the resources that are available for your smartphone.

IRST, one of the finest Catholic apps available is Divine Office. This app does have a cost ($24.99), but it offers both text and audio versions of the official breviary texts, packaged in a sleek and trim design. It operates from the US liturgical calendar. The hymns included in the audio version, as well as the voices used for the recited elements in the recordings, are sometimes excellent and sometimes horrid. The audio is still an interesting feature, though, especially for those just trying to learn how to pray the office. (This app has recently released an upgrade, so search for “Divine Office 2.”)

Another very popular app is iBreviary. This app is free, and it also has an attractive layout. Also included is a complete Roman Missal, which can be helpful for following Mass. The content of iBreviary is also available in a host of lanaguages. In the breviary component, iBreviary does not seem to favor the US liturgical calendar.

Universalis is an app that has been around for quite a while and has a cost ($13.33). It includes both the breviary and the Missal, along with a full liturgical calendar and Lectionary. Its prayer texts and Psalms very often do not match what is found in the USA editions of the breviary.

Laudate is another great free app, offering the complete Liturgy of the Hours according to the British version. There are many other features, too, including a tool for praying the Rosary in Latin.

For printing booklets to be used by groups, E-Breviary is the way to go. An annual subscription ($29.95) gets you accept to .pdf downloads for Lauds, Vespers, and Matins. These downloads are especially nice because they follow the same formatting as the print breviary. They have certain prayers available in Spanish, still in beta for now.

The FSSP has developed a fine resource called iMass, offering a variety of traditional Latin breviaries (Tridentine Monastic, Tridentine 1570, Tridentine 1910, Reduced 1955, etc.). It also includes the Roman Missal, and both breviary & Missal are formatted with Latin on the left and English on the right. You can also watch Mass via live stream.

Finally, if you are looking for a free version of the current Divine Office in Latin, check out Liturgia Horarum. This is a website, not an app, so the content can only be viewed, not downloaded.

HIS IS JUST a sampling of what’s available. I personally still prefer to use my actual, printed breviaries to pray. Nevertheless, I understand that many of the lay faithful either do not own a print set of breviaries or fear the ribbons. I hope the above list of apps will help some readers to find the tools they need to start praying the Liturgy of the Hours this Lent.

Let’s not forget, of course, that Lent is not the great Catholic Ironman; it’s not the season for proving what we can do for God. It is, rather, the season for opening ourselves to whatever God should want to do in us.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Evangelization, Latin Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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President’s Corner

    New Bulletin Article • “21 September 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 21 September 2025) discusses some theological items—supported by certain verses in ancient Catholic hymns—and ends by explaining why certain folks become delirious with jealousy when they observe feats by Monsignor Ronald Knox.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Cheap! Cheap! Cheap!
    It’s always amusing to see old diocesan newspapers—in huge capital letters—advertising the Cheapest Catholic Paper in the United States. The correspondent who sent this to me added: “I can think of certain composers, published by large companies in our own day, who could truthfully brag about the most tawdry compositions in the world!” I wonder what she could have meant by such a cryptic comment…
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • Dom Murray Harmonies
    Along with so many others, I have deep respect for Dom Gregory Gregory Murray, who produced this clever harmonization (PDF) of “O SANCTISSIMA.” It’s always amazed me that Dom Gregory—a truly inspired composer—was so confused when it came to GREGORIAN CHANT. Throughout his life, he published contradictory statements, veering back-and-forth like a weather vane. Toward the end of his life, he declared: “I see clearly that the need for reform in liturgical music arose, not in the 18th and 19th centuries, but a thousand years earlier—in the 8th and 9th centuries, or even before that. The abuses began, not with Mozart and Haydn, but with those over-enthusiastic medieval musicians who developed the elaborate and flamboyant Gregorian Chant.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Karl Keating • “Canonization Questions”
    We were sent an internet statement (screenshot) that’s garnered significant attention, in which KARL KEATING (founder of Catholic Answers) speaks about whether canonizations are infallible. Mr. Keating seems unaware that canonizations are—in the final analysis—a theological opinion. They are not infallible, as explained in this 2014 article by a priest (with a doctorate in theology) who worked for multiple popes. Mr. Keating says: “I’m unaware of such claims arising from any quarter until several recent popes disliked by these Traditionalists were canonized, including John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul II. Usually Paul VI receives the most opprobrium.” Mr. Keating is incorrect; e.g. Father John Vianney, several centuries ago, taught clearly that canonizations are not infallible. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen would be another example, although clearly much more recent than Saint John Vianney.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Vatican II Changed Wedding Propers?
    It’s often claimed that the wedding propers were changed after Vatican II. As a matter of fact, that is a false claim. The EDITIO VATICANA propers (Introit: Deus Israel) remained the same after Vatican II. However, a new set of propers (Introit: Ecce Deus) was provided for optional use. The same holds true for the feast of Pope Saint Gregory the Great on 3 September: the 1943 propers (Introit: Si díligis me) were provided for optional use, but the traditional PROPRIA MISSAE (Introit: Sacerdótes Dei) were retained; they weren’t gotten rid of. The Ordo Cantus Missae (1970) makes this crystal clear, as does the Missal itself. There was an effort made in the post-conciliar years to eliminate so-called “Neo-Gregorian” chants, but (contrary to popular belief) most were retained: cf. the feast of Christ the King, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, and so forth.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Solemn “Salve Regina” (Chant)
    How many “S” words can you think of using alliteration? How about Schwann Solemn Salve Score? You can download the SOLEMN SALVE REGINA in Gregorian Chant. The notation follows the official rhythm (EDITIO VATICANA). Canon Jules Van Nuffel, choirmaster of the Cathedral of Saint Rumbold, composed this accompaniment for it (although some feel it isn’t his best work).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a direct war, a direct killing—direct murder by the mother herself. And we read in the Scripture, for God says very clearly: “Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you: I have carved you in the palm of my hand.”

— Mother Theresa (11 Dec 1979)

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