"Aperi, Domine, os meum … Open Thou, O Lord, my mouth to bless Thy holy name; cleanse my heart from vain, evil and wandering thoughts; enlighten my understanding, inflame my will, that so I may worthily, attentively and devoutly recite this Office and deserve to be heard in the presence of Thy Divine Majesty. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. O Lord, in union with that divine intention wherewith Thou whilst here on earth didst Thyself praise God, I offer these Hours to Thee."

~ Preparatory Prayer in the Breviary

Dad and I have made a resolution to pray the Officium Divinum (Divine Office).  Rose will be joining us this school year. 

We had been using this online Breviary and The Little Office of The Blessed Virgin Mary.  Recently, we found a wonderful app for our phone, Breviarium Meum. 

The Breviarium Meum is a free application, from the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate.  It’s available from iTunes here.

Breviarium Meum allows you to pray the traditional (1962) Latin breviary of the Catholic Church wherever you go. You can download the texts up to a week in advance, so you can pray even when you don’t have a network connection. A parallel English translation of the breviary and an collection of Latin prayers and blessings are also included. Pray the breviary you know in a new way, or get to know for the first time the Roman Liturgy in the Usus Antiquior, considered by Summorum Pontificum as a precious treasure to be preserved and made accessible to all the faithful.

~ Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate

The Divine Office is a school of prayer, a meditative method for internalizing and understanding the Faith, and for conforming yourself to Christ. Using the books has always been somewhat difficult, and this application takes care of most of the rubrics, commons and propers for each Hour. The Friars ought to be commended for doing this work which brings the riches of the Hours to the laity in a straight-forward and simple manner.

Click here to download Breviarium Meum.

 

We are thankful for this Catholic tech resource but would eventually like to purchase a hard copy of Breviarium Romanum (The Roman Breviary).

~~~

"Dearly beloved priest, when you take the Breviary in your hand, imagine that an angel stands on one side to register your merits in the Book of Life if you say the Office with devotion, and on the other a devil who, if you recite it with distraction, writes your faults in the book of death. With this thought excite yourself to say the Office with the greatest possible devotion. Endeavour, then, not only at the beginning of the Office, but also at the beginning of each psalm, to renew your attention, that you may be able to excite in your heart all the sentiments that you shall read."  ~St. Alphonsus