THE SPIRITUAL DIRECTORY FOR DAILY ACTIONS

Article IV

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The Divine Office

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Those who have an attraction for the Divine Office and have the opportunity to say it may recite the Roman Breviary, the Short Breviary or the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

 

When the time comes for them to recite the Office, they shall place them­selves in the presence of God, and in the words of St. Bernard ask their souls what they are about to do in speaking to God. Moreover, they may observe this method in all their other exercises, so that to each of them they may bring the proper spirit, for their countenance and bearing ought not to be the same in chapel as at recreation.

 

In exercises which immediately con­cern the honor and service of God, they must have a spirit humble, lowly, grave, devout and thoroughly pious. To such affections, therefore, they shall excite their souls before commencing the Of­fice, and after the act of adoration, they shall offer this action to Our Lord for His glory, in honor of the Blessed Virgin, our Lady and Mistress, and for the salvation of all creatures.

 

When saying the "O God, come to my assistance," they should imagine that our Lord answers them, "Be you likewise mindful of My love."

 

In order to maintain in themselves a befitting respect and attention, they should now and then consider what an honor and privilege it is for them to perform here below the same Office which the angels and saints perform in heaven above, for though in different languages, both utter the praises of the same Lord, whose greatness and majesty make the highest Seraphim tremble.

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COMMENTARY

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The Roman Breviary and the Roman Missal are two of the greatest treasures of Holy Mother the Church. Thanks to the liturgical movement in our day, many men and women living in the world are profiting greatly by using the Breviary and Missal. For those devout souls who say some part of the Divine Office, this Article will be extremely helpful.

 

An exercise of such importance requires serious preparation. Therefore, before be­ginning the Office, St. Francis de Sales tells us to recall the presence of God and in imitation of St. Bernard ask our souls what are we about to do in speaking to God. Ad quid venisti? Why have you come here? This is one of the greatest sentences in the (Spiritual Directory. St. Francis de Sales says that we should not only ask ourselves this question when preparing for the Office but I before all our exercises. Ad quid venisti? It is the voice of the heavenly Father saying to us constantly throughout the day, "My child, why have you come here?" Of course, the general answer is,  "Eternal Father, I have come here to continue the life of Your Divine Son." At each action, we will make the answer more specific.

 

Here, then, in the form of prayer is the preparation that St. Francis de Sales suggests for the Divine Office.

 

Ad quid venisti? My child, why have you come here?

 

Eternal Father, I have come here to con­tinue the most holy praises which Your Divine Son rendered to You when He was on earth.

 

My Jesus, annihilate me, establish Yourself In me, and sing the praises of Your Eternal Father in me and through me.

 

My Jesus, in union with You, I say this Office for the glory of our Father, in honor of our Mother, and for the salvation and sanctification of all our brothers and sisters.

 

We should not only identify ourselves with Jesus Christ at the beginning of the Divine Office, but we should also remain united to Him during it.

 

In this Article of the Directory, St. Francis de Sales gives us the great theme of the entire Office in this sentence, "When saying the 'O God, come to my assistance,’ they should imagine that Our Lord answers them, 'Be you likewise mindful of My love '

 

Be you likewise mindful of my love as I chanted the praises of My Eternal Father:

In the womb of My beloved Mother,

In the manger at Bethlehem,

In the workshop at Nazareth,

In My public ministry,

In My passion and death,

In the tabernacle.

In time and eternity.

 

The thought of Jesus should permeate the Office. As St. Augustine says, "In the psalms, it is not David who speaks; it is Jesus Christ, whole and entire, united to His whole Mystical Body and consequently United to us” (Ps. 140:3)

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Prayer for Fidelity to the Article on the Office

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My Jesus, give me a great love for the great grayer of Your Mystical Body. I know that when I recite the psalms and prayers of the Office, it is You Who are reciting them in me. May I always be conscious of this. Before beginning the Office, I shall never fail to unite myself to You and I shall try to be attentive to Your love throughout the Office.

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