The Liturgy

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"What is the liturgy? It is the visible, earthly expression of the invisible, heavenly prayer of the glorified Christ. The word "liturgy" means worship. Worship means humans united to God in body and soul, mind and heart: as an individual, yet together with one's fellow humans.

Of all the bodily activities engaged in by monks, liturgy is the highest. It is the "Work of God" par excellence. Monks work in order to support a life of prayer and contemplation. Contemplative prayer achieves its fullest expression in the world when believers are gathered together in Christ's name to worship God. Solitary prayer images and begins the unique union of each person with God. Communal prayer represents and initiates on earth the eternal union of God with God's People as a whole body.

The center and source of all liturgy as of the Christian life itself, is the solemn celebration of the Eucharist. This is the worship service, "liturgy," given to us by the Lord on the night before the Lord suffered. The Eucharistic sacrifice and meal is unitive in its intent and its content. God is glorified when people are sanctified by eating and drinking the Body and Blood of Christ. "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in Him" says the Lord Jesus. Eucharist is thanksgiving. We must mean it. Eucharist is Bread from heaven. We must eat it. Meant and eaten, the Eucharist expresses our union with God in the present, prepares for fuller union with God in time and eternity to come, and causes the union it signifies.

The seven canonical hours flow out from the Eucharistic celebration and back into it. Vigils and Lauds prepare for the Eucharist which follows. The "little hours" (terce, sext, none), Vespers and Compline are a kind of continuation of and return to the Eucharist that precedes them each day.

The spiritual essence of the Eucharistic Liturgy is the Self-gift of God received by worshipers who give themselves in return. Likewise, in the Liturgy of the hours, God gives God's self, and self-giving persons receive God. At the Mass, people of faith are united with God, as they recall the words and deeds of Jesus and repeat them "in remembrance of Him." Likewise, every gathering of Christians for the Divine Office is a repeating of the words of God in Scripture, a recalling of God's saving deeds, a sacred remembering which unites them with God in Christ.

We may think of monastic liturgy as one living reality composed of all the daily assemblies of the monks for prayer. The Heart of this living being is the Eucharist and all the Hours of the Office are its members. The life-principle of this liturgical organism is the "one spirit" formed by the worshiper and Christ. "For all who cling to the Lord are one spirit with Him." Our spirit, together with the Divine Spirit with whom we have now become "one Spirit" ever cries out in our heart: "Abba Father." True, this perpetual liturgy, this unceasing cry of the Spirit in our hearts, is secret and hidden. But at the time of liturgy it becomes visible in the world. Prayer in the heart is incarnated as external liturgical action in the world. In liturgy, the secret treasure of the heart becomes riches in the world. The hidden mystery of personal union with God becomes the public manifestation of the Body of Christ.

Our monastic liturgy is our highest privilege: to stand in the presence of God ever singing God's praise. It is our most serious responsibility: to be a voice of prayer on behalf of all our mute unbelieving brothers and sisters in the world: and to give voice to the Bride-Church as she waits in vigil, ever calling upon Her Lord to come and take her to the "mansions" of God.

Our liturgy is also our mission in the world. All Christians, even contemplative monks, are sent into the world to be signs of salvation. Signs which, used by God, cause salvation. Our liturgical assemblies represent and actualize in the world the beginning of the Kingdom of God. They are sacraments of salvation, to be received by all who can see and hear. Our liturgy is light in this world of darkness. Here we proclaim the message of Christ by living it publicly. Before the eyes of believers and unbelievers alike, the monks in choir demonstrate their faith in God, in Christ, and in Salvation. To see and hear the monks at the Divine Office is to experience the Body of Christ. In the choir of monks, the beholder sees that God draws all together into unity in God's presence...that God is the Supreme Reality for Christians...that people become peaceful, loving, beautiful, and happy through their union with God in Christ. To put all this briefly: the Divine Office makes the lived Gospel a tangible, undeniable reality in the world. We monks owe this service to the world. We owe it to all the people for whom it will be an influence of salvation. And we owe it to the God who sent us for this purpose.

The daily cycle of liturgy is the principle means of sanctification for cenobitic monks. Brothers and sisters, let us firmly believe that we shall gradually be transformed every time we go into the church to worship God. We will never be exactly the same after we have been to church as we were before. If we desire to grow in love, in integrity, in union with God, let us be sure, in faith, that every single office we attend will add to our sanctification. We must hope this absolutely. Otherwise, it would be senseless to go repeatedly to church for liturgy. Unless the liturgy can make us grow in love it is fruitless to participate. But we believe that there is no greater hope of sanctification than that which is held out to us by the liturgy. All that is required of us is that we share in the liturgy as well as we can. Our dispositions need not be perfect. No matter how imperfect our faith, love and conscious attention may be, let us bring the little we do have to the liturgy. God will multiply the little we have, like the loaves and fishes. So let us be firm in our decision of faith: every single time we go to the church to celebrate the liturgy, we believe God in God's goodness will bring me one degree closer to the Glory of Christ. Monks who have spent a lifetime returning to the church repeatedly each day, will testify to their faith: you will not always feel closer to God after any given liturgical prayer, but you will always be closer to God.