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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

    “Music List” • 29th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 19 October 2025, which is the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the sensational feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Liturgical Round (“Canon”) in C-Major
    Those who direct children’s choirs are always on the lookout for repertoire that’s dignified, inspired, and pleasing—yet still within reach of young choristers. Such directors will want to investigate this haunting liturgical round (PDF download) which has been married to the KYRIE from Mass VI (EDITIO VATICANA). I have provided an accompaniment, but it’s only for use during rehearsal; i.e. when teaching this round to your choristers. I also provided an organ accompaniment for the KYRIE—which some know by its trope (Kyrie Rex Genitor)—so that your congregation can take part when this round is used as a choral extension during Mass.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Latin Liturgy Association
    We note with pleasure that Mrs. Regina Morris, president of the Latin Liturgy Association, has featured—on page 4 of Volume CXXIX of their official newsletter—the three (3) terrific versions of the Stations of the Cross found in the Brébeuf Hymnal. One of the main authors for the blog of the Church Music Association of America said (6/10/2019) about this pew book: “It is such a fantastic hymnal that it deserves to be in the pews of every Catholic church.”
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 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 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Tournemire could be charming or he could bite your head off. One day I could not replace him at St. Clotilde because I had a wedding to play at another church. Tournemire played on Sunday, period—that was all. He did not play weddings and so forth. (He put all that on my back.) So I went to Tournemire’s house to tell him, “Master, I am sorry but, for once, I cannot replace you. I have another obligation to fulfill.” He said, “Get out of here!” I left for good.

— Testimony of Maurice Duruflé

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