Folia Theologica et Canonica 4. 26/18 (2015)

IUS CANONICUM - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi, O.Praem., The systematic development of the Liturgy of Hours during the first centuries - based on the Jewish and Christian tradition

THE SYSTEMATIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE LITURGY OF HOURS...

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for your just decrees. (...) My soul obeys your will / and loves it dearly. /1 obey your precepts and your will / all that I do is before you (...).” The expressively emphasized “seven times” is in contrast as compared with the contents of Psalm 55:18 and Daniel 6:11 where we can be found “three times”.* The above indicated quotation shows perfectly on one hand the custom of the seven times praying - personal or later on linked to the Temple of Jerusalem, moreover during the Babylonian captivity in the Jewish community, then (after 515 BC) in the rebuilt Temple of Jerusalem -, on other, it expresses the faithful Israelite daily life which is consecrated to God through the prayers, therefore the entire life of the faithful happens before God and it motivates every single human activity. Naturally, we can list several other examples to support the relation between structuralized prayerful daily life and the teaching of the Old Testament, like Ezra 9:5; Daniel 9:21 ; Judith 9:1 ; or Numbers 6:7;9 however, these are only references to improve the indispensable role of the Psalms in the daily life of the faithful Jewish people.

II. The Psalms in the daily life of the Church 1. Fundamental role of Psalms

The scientific research classifies three epochs of the developing process of the Divine Office. 1 ) during the first centuries; 2) between the 4lh and 10lh centuries; 3) finally, from the 1 Th up to the 2151 century.1" Obviously, here we focus basically on the first epoch.

The Catholic Encyclopedia (published in New York between 1907 and 1914) dedicate a short part of article to the development of the Divine Office in the Church. This text emphasizes that “(...) The celebration of the Eucharist was preceded by the recital of the psalms (...) Probably this part of the Mass was the first form of the Divine Office (...).”“ Ever so impressive this hypothesis, we cannot accept it, because faithful tradition to pray the Psalms and celebration of the Holy Mass - even its earliest form - have essentially different in* About this question cf. Metzger, B. M. - Hubbard, D. A. - Barker, G. W. (gen. edj, Word Biblical Commentary, 21 : Allen, L. C., Psalms 101-150, Dallas 2002. 192.

9 Oury, G-M., Office Divin - I. En Occident, in Dictionnaire de spiritualité, ascétique et mystique, XL 685-707, especially 686.

10 Cf. R adó, P., Enchiridion liturgicum. Complectens theologiae sac rameutai is et dogmata et leges iuxta novum codicem rubricarum, I. Romae-Friburgi Brisg.-Barcinone 1961.413.

11 Cabrol, F., Breviary, in Catholic Encyclopedia, IL New York 1907. 768-777, especially 770.