Apostolic Constitution Hymn of Praise

CONSTITUTIO APOSTOLICA* LAUDIS CANTICUM

Promulgating the Divine Office renewed at the Second Vatican Council

Officium divinum ex decreto Concilii Oecumenici Vaticani II instauratum, promulgatur

Paul, Bishop, Servant of the Servants of God, For an Everlasting Memory

PAULUS EPISCOPUS
SERVUS SERVORUM DEI
AD PERPETUAM REI MEMORIAM

The hymn of praise that is sung through all the ages in the heavenly places and was brought by the High Priest, Christ Jesus, into this land of exile has been continued by the Church with constant fidelity over many centuries, in a rich variety of forms.

Laudis canticum, quod in supernis sedibus omne per aevum concinitur, quodque Summus Sacerdos Christus Iesus huic exsilio invexit, Ecclesia per tot saeculorum decursum mira formarum varietate praeditum constanter fideliterque est prosecuta.

The liturgy of the hours gradually developed into the prayer of the local Church, a prayer offered at regular intervals and in appointed places under the presidency of a priest. It was seen as a kind of necessary complement by which the fullness of divine worship contained in the eucharistic sacrifice would overflow to reach all the hours of daily life.

Liturgia igitur Horarum paulatim ita processit, ut Ecclesiae localis evaderet oratio, quae statutis temporibus et locis, sacerdote praesidente, fiebat quasi necessarium quoddam complementum, quo illa divini cultus summa, quae in Eucharistico Sacrificio continetur, ad horas vitae humanae redundaret et extenderetur.

The book of the divine office, gradually enlarged by many additions in the course of time, became a suitable instrument for the sacred service for which it was designed. Since over the generations a good many changes were introduced in the form of celebration, including the practice of individual recitation, it is not strange that the breviary, as it was sometimes called, underwent many transformations, sometimes affecting the principles of its arrangement.

Liber autem divini Officii, qui pluribus additamentis sensim decursu temporum crevit, effectus est instrumentum aptum sacrae illi actioni, cui destinatur. Quoniam vero per hominum aetates in modum celebrationis mutationes satis amplae sunt inductae, in quibus etiam singularis divini Officii celebratio numeratur, mirum non est, si idem liber, Breviarium aliquando appellatus, ad multimodas formas est accommodatus, quae ipsas compositionis rationes interdum afficiebant.

The Council of Trent, unable, because of shortness of time, to complete the reform of the breviary, left this matter to the Apostolic See. The Roman Breviary, promulgated in 1568 by our predecessor St. Pius V, achieved above all what was so urgently needed, the introduction of uniformity in the canonical prayer of the Latin Church, after this uniformity had lapsed.

Concilium Tridentinum, cum propter angustias temporis reformationem Breviarii absolvere non potuisset, eam rem ad Sedem Apostolicam detulit. Breviarium Romanum, quod a Decessore Nostro Sancto Pio V anno MDLXVIII promulgatum est, ante omnia, ut vehementer postulabatur, uniformitatem orationis canonicae in Ecclesia Latina importavit, quae tunc temporis erat dilapsa.

In subsequent centuries many revisions were made by Sixtus V, Clement VIII, Urban VIII, Clement XI, and other popes.

Subsequentibus saeculis plura a Summis Pontificibus Xysto V, Clemente VIII, Urbano VIII, Clemente XI aliisque recognita sunt.

In 1911 St. Pius X promulgated a new breviary, prepared at his command. The ancient custom was restored of reciting the 150 psalms each week and the arrangement of the psalter was entirely revised to remove all repetitions and to harmonize the weekday psalter and the cycle of biblical readings with the offices of saints. In addition, the office of Sunday was raised in rank and dignity to take general precedence over feasts of saints.

Sanctus Pius X novum Breviarium suo iussu apparatum anno MCMXI edidit. Instaurato antiquo more CL psalmos unaquaque hebdomada recitandi, tota Psalterii dispositio est innovata, quod omnes amotae sunt repetitiones atque facultas data componendi  Psalterium feriale necnon cursum lectionis biblicae cum Officiis Sanctorum. Praeterea Officium diei dominicae ita elatum est et auctum, ut festis Sanctorum plerumque anteponeretur.

The whole work of liturgical revision was undertaken again by Pius XII. For both private and public recitation of the office he permitted the use of the new translation of the psalter prepared by the Pontifical Biblical Institute and in 1947 established a special commission with the responsibility of studying the question of the breviary. In 1955 all the bishops throughout the world were questioned about this matter. The fruits of this labor and concern were first seen in the decree on the simplification of the rubrics, published 23 March 1955, and in the regulations for the breviary issued by John XXIII in the Codex rubricarum of 1960.

Totum rursus liturgicae instaurationis opus susceptum est a Pio XII, qui, ut nova Psalterii interpretatio a Pontificio Instituto Biblico confecta tam in privata quam in publica recitatione adhiberetur, concessit, itemque peculiari coetui, a se anno MCMXLVII constituto, mandavit, ut hanc Breviarii quaestionem expenderet. Eadem de re ab anno MCMLV universi per orbem Episcopi interrogati sunt. Huius operae et sollertiae fructus coepti sunt percipi ex Decreto de rubricis ad simpliciorem formam redigendis, die XXIII meresis martii anno MCMLV edito, atque ex normis, quas de Breviario Ioannes XXIII in Codice Rubricarum anno MCMLX emisit.

Though only a part of the liturgical reform came under his seal, Pope John XXIII was aware that the fundamental principles on which the liturgy rests required further study. He entrusted this task to the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, which in the meantime he had convoked. The result was that the Council treated the liturgy as a whole, and the hours in particular, with such thoroughness and skill, such spirituality and power, that there is scarcely a parallel to the Council’s work in the entire history of the Church.

At cum partem tantum renovationis liturgicae sanciret, idem Summus Pontifex Ioannes XXIII perspiciebat altiora principia, quibus res liturgica inniteretur, maiore investigatione egere; quod quidem opus Concilio Oecumenico Vaticano II mandavit, quod interea convocaverat. Sic factum est, ut illa Synodus de Liturgia uniiversim ac de precibus horariis particulatim tam copiose ac diserte, tam religiose et valide ageret, ut vix simile quicquam in tota Ecclesiae historia inveniatur.

While Vatican Council II was still in session, it was our concern that after the promulgation of the Constitution on the Liturgy, its decrees should be put immediately into effect.

Dum Concilium Vaticanum adhuc celebrabatur, Nobis curae fuit, ut statim, post promulgatam Constitutionem de sacra Liturgia, eius statuta ad effectum deducerentur.

For this purpose we established a special commission within the Consilium for the Implementation of the Constitution on the Liturgy. With the help of scholars and specialists in the liturgical, theological, spiritual, and pastoral disciplines, the Consilium worked with the greatest zeal and diligence over a period of seven years to produce the new book for the liturgy of the hours.

Qua de causa in ipso Consilio ad exsequendam Constitutionem de sacra Liturgia, a Nobis condito, peculiaris coetus est institutu qui, viris doctis peritisque disciplina liturgica, theologica, spirituali; pastorali adiutricem operam praebentibus, septem annos summa cum diligentia et navitate in novo libro Liturgiae Horarum conficiendo elaboravit.

The principles underlying it, its whole arrangement, as well as its individual parts were approved by the Consilium and also by the 1967 Synod of Bishops, after consultation with the bishops of the whole Church and a very large number of pastors, religious, and laity.

Principia totiusque operis contexendi ratio necnon singulae eius, partes a praedicto Consilio atque etiam a Synodo Episcoporum, anno MCMLXVII coacta, sunt probata, consultis totius Ecclesiae Episcopis et permultis animarum pastoribus, religiosis et laicis.

It will be helpful here, then, to set out in detail the underlying principles and the structure of the liturgy of the hours.

Iuvat igitur ea, quae ad novam Liturgiae Horarum rationem ordinationemque pertinent, singillatim exponere.

1. As required by the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium, account was taken of the circumstances in which priests engaged in apostolic works find themselves today.

1. Quemadmodum Constitutione a verbis Sacrosanctum Concilium incipiente postulatur, ratio est habita condicionum, in quibus hac aetate sacerdotes operibus apostolicis addicti versantur.

The office has been drawn up and arranged in such a way that not only clergy but also religious and indeed laity may participate in it, since it is the prayer of the whole people of God. People of different callings and circumstances, with their individual needs, were kept in mind and a variety of ways of celebrating the office has been provided, by means of which the prayer can be adapted to suit the way of life and vocation of different groups dedicated to the liturgy of the hours.

Ita autem Officium est concinnatum et instructum, ut idem, cum sit oratio totius populi Dei, partecipare possint non solum clerici, sed etiam religiosi, quin etiam laici. Diversi ordinis et gradus hominibus ac peculiaribus eorum postulatis eo consultum est, quod variae formae celebrationis sunt inductae, quibus oratio accommodari potest variis coetibus ad Horarum Liturgiam incumbentibus, secundum eorum condicionem atque vocationem.

2. Since the liturgy of the hours is the means of sanctifying the day, the order of this prayer was revised so that in the circumstances of contemporary life the canonical hours could be more easily related to the chronological hours of the day.

2. Cum vero Liturgia Horarum sit sanctificatio diei, ordo orationis sic est recognitus, ut Horae canonicae facilius componi possent cum horis dïei naturalibus, iis rerum adiunctis attentis, in quibus vita hominum nostris temporibus degitur.

For this reason the hour of prime was suppressed; morning prayer and evening prayer, as hinges of the entire office, were assigned the most important role and now have the character of true morning and evening prayer; the office of readings retains its character as a night office for those who celebrate it during the night, but it is suitable for any hour of the day; the daytime prayer is so arranged that those who choose only one of the hours for midmorning, midday, and midafternoon may say the one most suitable to the actual time of day, without losing any part of the four-week psalter.

Quapropter Hora Prima abolita est; Laudes vero matutinae et Vesperae, utpote quasi quidam cardines totius Officii, maximum acceperunt momentum, siquidem iis inest indoles verae orationis matutinae et vespertinae; Officium lectionis, dum pro iis, qui vigilias celebrant, indolem nocturnam servat, cuilibet tamen horae diei accommodatur; quoad ceteras, Hora media ita disposita est, ut qui ex Tertia, Sexta, Nona unam tantum eligant Horam, hanc diei tempori, quo eam celebrent, aptent ac de cursu Psalterii per liebdomadas distributo nihil omittant.

3. To ensure that in celebrating the office mind and voice may be more easily in harmony and that the liturgy of the hours may become in reality “a source of devotion and nourishment for personal prayer,” (SC art. 90)  in the new book, the amount of obligatory daily prayer has been considerably reduced, but variety in the texts has been notably increased and many aids to meditation on the psalms provided, for example, the captions, antiphons, psalm-prayers, and optional periods of silence.

3. Ut in Officio celebrando mens voci facilius concordet et Liturgia Horarum vere fiat fons pietatis et orationis personalis nutrimentum (CONC. VAT. II, Const. de sacra Liturgia, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 90: 56 (1964), p. 122), in novo libro Horarum onus cotidianum est nonnihil deminutum, textuum autem varietas insigniter aucta, plura adiumenta ad psalmorum meditationem praebentur, cuiusmodi sunt tituli, antiphonae, orationes psalmicae, atque tempora silentii pro opportunitate servandi proponuntur.

4. In accordance with the ruling by the Council, (SC art. 91) the weekly cycle of the psalter has been replaced by an arrangement of the psalms over a period of four weeks, in the new version prepared by the Commission for the Neo-Vulgate edition of the Bible, which we ourselves established. In this new arrangement of the psalms a few of the psalms and verses that are somewhat harsh in tone have been omitted, especially because of the difficulties anticipated from their use in vernacular celebration. In addition, new canticles from the Old Testament have been added to morning prayer in order to increase its spiritual richness and canticles from the New Testament now enhance the beauty of evening prayer.

4. Secundum ordinationem Concilii (Ibid., n. 91, pp. 122-123), Psalterium, hebdomadario cyclo ablato, in quattuor hebdomadas distribuitur, nova recepta interpretatione latina, quam Commissio pro nova Vulgata Bibliorum editione a Nobis condita apparavit. Qua in nova psalmorum distributione pauci quidam psalmi et versiculi asperiores omissi sunt, ratione ducta praesertim difficultatum, quae in celebratione lingua vulgari peragenda inde essent oriturae. Praeterea nova quaedam cantica, ex libris Veteris Testamenti deprompta, Laudibi a matutinis, ad earum spiritualem ubertatem augendam, addita sunt; in Vesperas etiam cantica sunt inducta ex Novo Testamento, quibus veluti margaritis ornantur.

5. In the new cycle of readings from holy Scripture there is a more ample selection from the treasury of God’s word, so planned as to harmonize with the cycle of readings at Mass.

5. Verbi divini thesaurus copiosior effunditur in novo ordine lectionum e sacra Scriptura sumptarum, qui ita compositus est, ut cum ordine lectionum, quae in Missa fiunt, congruat.

The passages provide in general a certain unity of theme and have been chosen to present, in the course of the year, the principal stages in the history of salvation.

Pericopae quandam unitatem argumenti universe prae se ferunt et ita selectae sunt, ut praecipua historiae salutis momenta per anni cursum repraesentent.

6. In accordance with the norms laid down by the Council, the daily reading the works of the Fathers and of ecclesiastical writers has been revised in such a way that the best of the writings of Christian authors, especially of the Fathers, is included. Besides this, an optional lectionary will be prepared with a fuller selection from the spiritual riches of these writers, as a source of even more abundant benefits.

6. Secundum normas a Concilio oecumenico statutas, lectio cotidiana ex operibus sanctorum Patrum et Scriptorum ecclesiasticorum peragenda ita instaurata est, ut optima quaeque e scriptis christianorum auctorum, maxime sanctorum Patrum, proponantur. Praeterea, ut spirituales divitiae horum Scriptorum abundantius suppeditentur, alterum parabitur Lectionarium ad libitum, unde uberiores fructus percipi possint.

7. Anything that is not in harmony with historical truth has been removed from the text of the liturgy of the hours. On this score, the readings, especially biographies of the saints, have been revised in such a way that, first and foremost, the spiritual portrait of the saints and their significance for the life of the Church emerge and are placed in their true context.

7. E textu libri Liturgiae Horarum ea omnia ablata sunt, quae cum fide historiae non conveniunt, atque adeo lectiones praesertim hagiographicae ita recognitae, ut singulorum Sanctorum imprimis effigies spiritualis et momentum, quod ad vitam Ecclesiae habuerunt, exponantur in suaque luce collocentur.

8. Intercessions (preces) have been added to morning prayer to express the consecration of the day and to offer prayer for the day’s work about to begin. There is also a short act of supplication at evening prayer, drawn up in the form of general intercessions.

8. Ad Laudes matutinas additae sunt Preces, quibus consecratio diei et supplicationes pro inchoando opere enuntientur. Ad Vesperas vero brevis fit supplicatio, in modum orationis universalis concinnata.

The Lord’s Prayer has been restored to its position at the end of these prayers. Since the Lord’s Prayer is also said at Mass, this change represents a return in our time to early Christian usage, namely, of saying this prayer three times in the day.

In fine autem huiusmodi precum resumpta est Oratio dominica; quo fit, ut, cum eadem in Missa etiam dicatur, postris tandem temporibus mos redeat Christianitatis primaevae orationem illam ter in die proferendi.

NOW that the prayer of holy Church has been reformed and entirely revised in keeping with its very ancient tradition and in the light of the needs of our day, it is to be hoped above all that the liturgy of the hours may pervade and penetrate the whole of Christian prayer, giving it life, direction, and expression and effectively nourishing the spiritual life of the people of God.

Renovata igitur atque ex integro instaurata sanctae Ecclesiae oratione Secundum perantiquam eius traditionem et ratione habita necessitatum huius temporis, summopere optandum esse videtur, ut ea totam precationem christianam penitus pervadat, vivificet, regat, exprimat atque vitam spiritualem populi Dei efficaciter alat.

We have, therefore, every confidence that an appreciation of the prayer “without ceasing” (See Lk 18:1 and 21:36; 1 Thes 5:17; Eph 6:18)  that our Lord Jesus Christ commanded will take on new life. The book for the liturgy of the hours, distributed as it is according to seasons, continually strengthens and supports that prayer. The very celebration of the liturgy of the hours, especially when a community gathered for this purpose expresses the genuine nature of the praying Church and stands as a wonderful sign of that Church.

Prorsus ergo fore confidimus, ut sensus illius orationis sine intermissione faciendae (Cf Lc 18, 1; 21, 36; 1 Thess 5, 17; Eph 6,18), quam Dominus noster Iesus Christus Ecclesiae suae mandavit, reviviscat, siquidem liber Liturgiae Horarum, apta per tempora partitus, eam iugiter fulcit et adiuvat, ipsa vero actio, praesertim cum aliqua communitas eius causa est congregata, veram Ecclesiae orantis naturam exprimit eiusque admirabile signum apparet.

Christian prayer above all is the prayer of the whole human community, which Christ joins to himself. (See SC art. 83) Everyone shares in this prayer, which is proper to the one Body as it offers prayers that give expression to the voice of Christ’s beloved Bride, to the hopes and desires of the whole Christian people, to supplications and petitions for the needs of all humanity.

Oratio christiana est imprimis precatio universae hominum communitatis, quam Christus sibi coagmentat (Cf CONC. VAT. II, Const. de sacra Liturgia, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 83: AAS 56 (1964), p. 121), hanc scilicet orationem singuli participant estque haec unius corporis propria, duro preces funduntur, quae ideo vocero dilectae Sponsae Christi, optata et vota totius populi christiani, supplicationes et implorationes pro omnium hominum necessitatibus significant.

This prayer takes its unity from the heart of Christ, for our Redeemer desired “that the life he had entered upon in his mortal body with supplications and with his sacrifice should continue without interruption through the ages in his Mystical Body, which is the Church.” (Pius XII, Encycl. Mediator Dei, Nov. 1947, no. 2: AAS 39, 1947, 522) Because of this, the prayer of the Church is at the same time “the very prayer that Christ himself, together with his Body, addresses to the Father.” (SC art. 84) As we celebrate the office, therefore, we must recognize our own voices echoing in Christ, his voice echoing in us. (See Augustine, Enarrat. in Ps. 85, 1: CCL 39, 1176)

Ex corde autem Christi haec oratio accipit unitatem. Voluit enim Redemptor noster, ut quam in mortali corpore supplicationibus suis suoque sacrificio inierat vitam, eadem per saeculorum decursum non intermitteretuи in Corpore suo mystico, quod est Ecclesia (PIUS XII, Litt. Encycl. Mediator Dei, 20 nov. 1947, n. 2: AAS 39 (1947), p. 522); ita fit, ut oratio Ecclesiae sit simul oratio Christi cum ipsius Corpore ad Patrem (CONC. VAT. II, Const. de sacra Liturgia, Sacrosanctum Concilim, n. 85: AAS 56 (1964), p. 121). Agnoscamus igitur oportet, duro Officium persolvimus, in Christo resonantes voces nostras et voces eius in nobis (Cf S. AUGUSTINUS, Enarrationes in ps. 85, n. 1).

To manifest this quality of our prayer more clearly, “the warm and living love for holy Scripture” (SC art. 24) that permeates the liturgy of the hours must come to life in all of us, so that Scripture may indeed become the chief source of all Christian prayer. In particular, the praying of the psalms, which continually ponders and proclaims the action of God in the history of salvation, must be grasped with new warmth by the people of God. This will be achieved more readily if a deeper understanding of the psalms, in the meaning in which they are used in the liturgy, is more diligently promoted among the clergy and communicated to all the faithful by means of appropriate catechesis. The wider range of Scripture readings provided not only in the Mass but also in the new liturgy of the hours will enable the history of salvation to be constantly recalled and its continuation in the life of the human race to be effectively proclaimed.

Quo autem apertius haec orationis nostrae indoles elucescat, necesse est, ut ille suavis et vivus sacrae Scripturae affectus (CONC.VAT. II, Const. de sacra Liturgia, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 24: AA8 56 (1964), pp. 106-107), quem Liturgia Horarum aspirat, in omnibus reviviscat, ita ut sacra Scriptura fons praecipuus totius orationis christianae reapse evadat. Oratio praesertim psalmorum, quae actionem Dei in historia salutis iugiter prosequitur ac praedicat, novo affectu comprehendatur oportet a populo Dei; quod facilius eveniet, si psalmorum altior intellectus, secundum eum sensum, quo in sacra Liturgia canuntur, diligentius apud clerum promovebitur et apta catechesi omnibus fidelibus impertietur. Haec vero sacrae Scripturae ditior lectio non solum in Missa, sed etiam in nova Liturgia Horarum efficiet, ut historia salutis indesinenter recolatur eiusque continuatio in vita hominum efficaciter annuntietur.

The life of Christ in his Mystical Body also perfects and elevates the personal life of each member of the faithful. Any conflict therefore between the prayer of the Church and personal prayer must be entirely excluded; rather the relationship between them must be strengthened and enlarged. Mental prayer should draw unfailing nourishment from readings, psalms, and the other parts of the liturgy of the hours. The recitation of the office should be adapted, as far as possible, to the needs of living and personal prayer, so that as the General Instruction provides, rhythms and melodies are used and forms of celebration chosen that are more suited to the spiritual needs of those who pray it. If the prayer of the divine office becomes genuine personal prayer, the relation between the liturgy and the whole Christian life also becomes clearer. The whole life of the faithful, hour by hour during day and night, is a kind of leitourgia or public service, in which the faithful give themselves over to the ministry of love toward God and neighbor, identifying themselves with the action of Christ, who by his life and self-offering sanctified the life of all humanity.

Cum vero vita Christi in eius Corpore Mystico vitam etiam cuiusque fidelis propriam seu personalem perficiat et elevet, quaevis repugnantia inter orationem Ecclesiae et orationem personalem prorsus est reicienda, atque rationes, quae inter utramque intercedunt, maiorem vim accipiant magisque dilatentur oportet. Oratio mentalis ex lectionibus, psalmis ceterisque Liturgiae Horarum partibus indeficiens hauriat alimentum. Ipsa Officii recitatio necessitatibus orationis vivae et personalis, quantum fieri potest, accommodetur oportet, eo quod, prout in Institutione generali cavetur, rhythmi et modi adhibentur atque celebrationis formae seliguntur, quae orantium spirituali condicioni magis congruant. Quodsi oratio divini Officii vera efficitur oratio personalis, nexus etiam illi magis patescunt, quibus Liturgia ac tota vita christiana inter se coniunguntur. Est enim universa fidelium vita, per singulas diei ac noctis horas, quasi quaedam leitourgia, qua illi se ipsos in ministerium amoris erga Deum et homines tradunt, actioni Christi inhaerentes, qui cunctorum hominum vitam conversatione et oblatione sua sanctificavit.

The liturgy of the hours clearly expresses and effectively strengthens this sublime truth, embodied in the Christian life.

Hanc altissimam veritatem, quae in vita christiana inest, Liturgia Horarum plane significat et efficaciter confirmat.

For this reason the hours are recommended to all Christ’s faithful members, including those who are not bound by law to their recitation.

Qua de causa horariae preces omnibus christifidelibus proponuntur, iis etiam, qui eas recitandi lege non tenentur.

Those who have received from the Church the mandate to celebrate the liturgy of the hours are to complete its entire course faithfully each day, respecting as far as possible the actual time of day; first and foremost, they are to give due importance to morning and evening prayer.

Ii vero, qui mandatum ab Ecclesia acceperunt Liturgiam Horarum celebrandi, integrum eius cursum cotidie religiose persolvant, horarum veritate, quantum fieri potest, servata; ac debitum imprimis momentum tribuant Laudibus matutinis et Vesperis.

Those who are in holy orders and are marked in a special way with the sign of Christ the Priest, as well as those consecrated in a particular way to the service of God and of the Church by the vows of religious profession, should not only be moved to celebrate the hours through obedience to law, but should also feel themselves drawn to them because of the intrinsic excellence of the hours and their pastoral and ascetical value. It is extremely desirable that the public prayer of the Church be offered by all from hearts renewed, in acknowledgment of the inherent need within the whole Body of the Church: as the image of its Head, the Church must be described as the praying Church.

Ad hoc autem peragendum ii, qui, Ordine sacro aucti, signum Christi Sacerdotis speciali modo prae se ferunt, aut qui per vota religiosae professionis Dei et Ecclesiae servitio peculiariter consecrati sunt, non sola legis observantia adducantur, sed perspecta rei intima praestantia necnon convenientia pastorali et ascetica impelli se sentiant. Est enim valde optandum, ut apud omnes oratio publica Ecclesiae ex renovatione spiritus procedat atque ex agnita necessitate interna totius corporis Ecclesiae, quae ad imaginem Capitis sui aliter describi nequit quam ut Ecclesia orans.

May the praise of God reecho in the Church of our day with greater grandeur and beauty by means of the new book for the liturgy of the hours, which now by Apostolic authority we sanction, approve, and promulgate. May it join the praise sung by saints and angels in the court of heaven. May it go from strength to strength in the days of this earthly exile and soon attain the fullness of praise that throughout eternity will be given “to the One who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb.” (Rv 5:13)

Resonet ergo, ope novi libri Liturgiae Horarum, quem nunc Apostolica auctoritate Nostra sancimus, approbamus et promulgamus, magnificentior et pulchrior laus Dei in Ecclesia huius aetatis; societur ei, quae a Sanctis et Angelis in aula caelesti canitur, et per dignos progressus diebus huius terrestris exsilii celerior occurrat illi laudi plenae, quae per omne aevum tribuetur Sedenti in throno, et Agno (Cf Apc 5, 13).

We decree that this new book for the liturgy of the hours may be put into use as soon as it is published. Meanwhile, the conferences of bishops are to see to the preparation of editions of this liturgical work in the vernacular and, after approval, that is, confirmation, of these editions by the Apostolic See, are to fix the date when the vernacular editions may or must be used, either in whole or in part. Beginning on the effective date for use of these versions in vernacular celebrations, only the revised form of the liturgy of the hours is to be followed, even by those who continue to use Latin.

Statuimus autem, ut novus hic Liturgiae Horarum liber statim usurpari possit atque in lucem editus fuerit. Episcopales interea Conferentiae editiones eiusdem liturgici operis lingua vernacula apparandas curent atque, post datam a Sancta Sede approbationem seu confirmationem, diem definiant, quo eaedem, sive ex toto sive ex parte, in usum recipi possint vel debeant. A die autem quo populares huiusmodi interpretationes in celebrationes, lingua vernacula peragendas, assumi debebunt, iis etiam qui lingua Latina uti pergunt, instaurata tantum Liturgiae Horarum forma adhibenda erit.

For those however who, because of advanced age or for special reasons, experience serious difficulties in observing the new rite it is lawful to continue to use the former Roman Breviary, in whole or in part, with the consent of their Ordinary, and exclusively in individual recitation.

Iis vero, qui, ob provectam aetatem vel ob peculiares causas, graves experiuntur difficultates in novo Ordine servando, licet, de consensu sui Ordinarii ac tantummodo in recitatione a solo peragenda, Breviarium Romanum, quod antea in usu erat, sive ex toto sive ex parte retinere.

We wish that these decrees and prescriptions be firm and effective now and in the future, notwithstanding, to the extent necessary, apostolic constitutions and ordinances issued by our predecessors, and other prescriptions, even those deserving explicit mention and amendment

Nostra vero haec statuta et praescripta nunc et in posterum furma et efficacia esse et fore volumus, non obstantibus, quatenus opus sit, Constitutionibus et Ordinationibus Apostolicis a Decessoribus Nostris editis, ceterisque praescriptionibus etiam peculiari mentione et derogatione dignis.

Dated in St. Peter’s, Rome, November 1, 1970, the Solemnity of All Saints.

Datum Romae, apud Sanctum Petrum, die I mensis novembris, in sollemnitate Omnium Sanctorum, anno MCMLXX, Pontificato Nostri octavo.