Saint Benedict, in his Rule, ordained that every monastic office was to begin with the verse 'God, come to my aid!', as it contains the essence of the prayer that follows.
Compositional Technique
Each psalm is almost always accompanied by an antiphon, which assigns its musical modality and highlights a central theme of the text.
Compositional Technique
The Christian liturgical office, like its Jewish predecessor, is based on psalmody, the recitation of psalms.
Historical Context
The very first Christian monks in Egypt and Palestine used to incessantly repeat certain verses from Scripture, such as 'God, come to my aid!'.
Historical Context
The Liturgy of the Hours, also called 'offices', structures the monastic day from morning to evening, with specific hours consecrated to public and social prayer.
Compositional Technique
The hymn 'Lucis creator optime' is a very ancient vesperal hymn that inaugurates a cycle of six pieces, each referring to a different day of Creation.
Historical Context
While the psalms of Compline vary each evening in the Roman rite, many monasteries continue to use those chosen by Saint Benedict in his 6th-century Rule.
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