Paths to God: Week 1

Many of you probably thought of traditional forms similar to the Lord’s Prayer. Some may have thought or praying in tongues. A number of you could have though of guided prayer, or prayer books. Still others may have thought of prayers of intercession, for the sake of an individual, a city, or any thing else. There are prayers of desperation where one might call out in times of despair or trial, and there are prayers of relief when a tragedy is avoided.

Did any of you think of fixed hour prayer?

Fixed hour is a regiment of prayer where a person prayers at set times during the day. It is seen most commonly in the Islamic practice of Salah (prayer 5 times a day). This originated many years before Mohamed. In fact we can see the practice mentioned throughout the bible.

Daniel was thrown in the lion’s den for praying three times a day. Many psalms specifically mention praying in the morning (5:3; 55:17; 59:16; 88:13; 92:2) or evening (17:1-3; 42:8; 63:5-6; 119:55; 141:2).

Early Christians would take time to pray at the third the sixth and ninth hours. At which times they would remember Jesus by praying the Lords Prayer. Understanding this practice in the early church actually gives light to a number of verses in the New testament.

For example: Pentecost happened at the third hour. Peter had his rooftop vision of clean and unclean animals while praying at the sixth hour. He and John healed a lame man on the temple steps as they all gathered for ninth hour prayers.

I find it little coincidence that Jesus is said to have been crucified at the third hour and died at the ninth.

Fixed hour prayer has many of the advantages of any prayer book.

1. It gives words when we don’t have any, or when we feel “cut off” from God
2. It draws from the wisdom and experience of the Body of Christ rather then relying on an individual experience
3. It allows us to join in the riches of other communities, and other periods of the churches history.

On top or these there are some added benefits:

1. It’s based on the ’fixed language’ of Scriptures, through which God has spoken for years and continues to speak.
2. It draws on a rich tradition of practice
3. It helps develop faith as a lifestyle over faith as simply a system of beliefs
4. It helps us see God in very special times of the day (see Psalm 65:8)

There are Seven hours traditionally:

Matins or The Officium lectionis or Office of Readings – The fist hour of a day
Morning or lauds – Morning prayers
Terce or Mid-Morning Prayer
Sext or Midday Prayer – done at noon
None or Mid-Afternoon Prayer (yes it’s called none)
Evening or vespers – Just evening prayers
Compline or night prayers – Just before you go to sleep

SOME LINKS:

If you are interested it trying this ancient practice please check out these links:

http://www.ebreviary.com/ – Online Prayers

http://www.ambs.edu/prayerbook – Anabaptist prayers

http://www.saintjohnsabbey.org/beingamonk/prayer.html – Catholic Prayers

http://www.osb.org/lectio/ – Benedictine Prayer

http://www.annarborvineyard.org/tdh/tdh.cfm – The divine hours (this is what I mostly use)

http://www.cofe.anglican.org/worship/dailyprayer/index.html – Anglican Prayers

http://www.rejesus.co.uk/spirituality/daily_prayer/index.html – More Prayers

http://www.universalis.com/ – Hours for the traditional three hours

Note:
There are many names for the same practice

-Catholics :
praying the divine office or the liturgy of the hours.

-St. Benedict, who wrote the first manual for praying the hours, thought of praying the offices as “opus dei,” (Benedictines understand prayer as a communal act.)

-Many Orthodox Christians refer to praying the divine office or divine hours.

-Anglicans and Episcopals generally speak of common prayer.

-A breviary is a service book of prayers, readings, and responses to be read or chanted at specific hours.

-Other Christians call their practice “morning and evening prayer” or “fixed-hour prayer.”