Divine Office - Audio Prayer - Liturgy of the Hours of the Roman Catholic Church
By Surgeworks, Inc.
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Description
The Divine Office App is The Best Catholic iPhone and iPad App [About.com Reader's Choice Awards 2011]. This app is an opportunity for you to participate in the recitation of the Liturgy of the Hours: the public prayer of the Christian community.
Don't take our word for it: read the reviews...
"This App alone is worth the price of my iPod."
by d_hues on Feb 22, 2010 v1.5
"The music is incredible and I especially like days when the psalms are sung. There are days when my time is limited and I do morning or evening prayer on my commute to work. [...] Ribbon placement is provided. Very easy to use and intuitive app and WELL worth the money."
by Iron Mikes on Mar 6, 2010 v1.5
"Well worth it. Exceptional App! Not cheap, but well worth in."
by Johnmo on Jan 14, 2010 v1.5
The Divine Office App is an opportunity for you to participate in the recitation of the Liturgy of the Hours, an ancient and meditative collection of psalms, hymns and scripture that represent the public prayer of the Christian community.
If you are unable to pray in community, but love the contentment of praying with others, an added feature of The Divine Office App lets you view locations where other Christians around the world are simultaneously praying with you.
Hours included for each day are:
* Invitatory
* Office of Readings
* Morning Prayer
* Daytime Prayer - text only, no audio
* Evening Prayer
* Night Prayer
This app will automatically update its content while you are running it with an Internet connection.
This App is an audio and text version of the official set of daily prayers from the Liturgy of the Hours of the Roman Catholic Church (Breviary). It wirelessly downloads several days of prayers at a time, without the need for iTunes synchronization or access to a computer.
For clergy required to pray the Liturgy of the Hours daily, or laity who recite the daily prayers to maintain their intimate connection with God, The Divine Office App is designed to make praying more convenient, enjoyable, and simple enough for anyone to use. It automatically downloads the appropriate prayers for each office, every day of the year, including Solemnities, Feasts, and Memorials.
The Divine Office App uses the current four-volume Liturgy of the Hours with a bias towards the USA calendar. This version is the official prayer book of the Catholic Church, however, it is suitable for those following Eastern Orthodox and Anglican traditions.
When St. Paul advises us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing,” he intends more than simply bowing our heads and speaking to God on a regular basis. He means for us to adopt an ongoing attitude of prayer that is a way of life and a constant intercession for the salvation of all mankind.
As the mystical body of Christ prays in unison, it fulfills what Paul advises as Christian conduct, that believers at once pray for the good of themselves, their neighbors, and the world. In this way, prayers become liturgy, a way to fulfill our divine calling and a practical approach for addressing the suffering of the world.
The Divine Office is also available free from our website at www.DivineOffice.org or our podcast called Divine Office. Thank you for supporting our ministry by your purchase.
Check out also Divine Office Prayer app - a reference of 2000+ Catholic prayers in several languages.
Please note: This app requires Internet access through wifi or a data connection through the cellular network. iPod Touch users will need to have Internet access through a wifi connection at least every four days for about 10 to 30 minutes (depending on Internet speeds).
What's New in Version 2.3.5
Due to popular demand, this app now works again with iOS 4.2 on iPod Touch 2G and iPhone 3G!
More changes:
Fixed an issue with the 3D earth disappearing for some users on iPad 2 running iOS 5. New Twitter and Facebook views, other smaller fixes and optimizations.
Customer Reviews
Like everything except the audio...
I really like having my four volume breviary on my iPhone. The text is accurate (i.e., ICEL translation) & the app attractive with an easy to use interface.
The only thing I don't like is the audio. The readers do not speak in a natural but prayerful voice. They sound too slow & dramatic. They unnecessarily repeat the antiphons at times. There are too many pauses. The music is not well chosen, in my opinion. I wish they could record a seminary community praying the office, for this would sound much more natural to me, yet reverent as well. I like having the option of listening to the audio, for it is useful when I am in my car. But it just has a way of getting on my nerves. Happy to have this app on my iPhone though!
A Couple of Rough Edges, But a Must-Have
For serious Catholics, especially priests, consecrated religious, and members of third orders, this is a must-have app.
A typical day's material contains the Invitatory, the Office of Readings, Morning Prayer, Terce, Sext, None, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer (their choice of titles, btw). Special feast days may include the feature "About Today," which may provide a brief summary or explanation of the feast ( -- or not, which can be strange). Audio for Morning and Evening Prayer is standard, and lately the other hours usually include audio as well. The audio typically includes a hymn, with its text provided. You may listen to the audio or not, your choice. A helpful feature is at the top of each hour's text, "Ribbon Placement," which tells you the page numbers for your ribbons if you are using your physical prayer book to follow along, although with this app the prayer book is not necessary. This makes it great for keeping up with the LOTH while on the go. (Ribbon Placement is usually, but not always, offered for both the 4-volume set and Christian Prayer). The font/presentation for each hour looks remarkably like the actual prayer book; it is very well done.
Since as apps go this one is somewhat expensive, I will point out what I find to be small but irritating defects. First and foremost, the audio is almost impossible to "pray along with," since the material is presented in the form of a dramatic reading. If you have ever listened to monks, friars, nuns, or even third order religious pray the Office, you know this is NOT the way it is done. The Office prayed in community is supposed to have a cadence, and there should be a pause at the end of each line. Those of us who are required to pray the Office are expected to do it aloud if at all possible, and using this audio makes that very frustrating. And it may be a petty thing, but the pronounced regional accents and occasionally odd pronunciations ("morn-een, eve-neen, read-een") of a few of these readers is distracting. There is a reason why broadcasters have voice training.
Second, although the addition of actual music has been great, some of the choices have been questionable. Again, I may be petty, but I think the music should be restricted to chant or traditional hymns, and should avoid the occasional pop-sounding pieces. It would be great if we could be provided the same hymns that are found in the prayer book. We are supposed to join in the singing of the hymn, and this cannot be done when it is a soprano singing a pop-style solo. And it has not gone unnoticed that a few selections are frequently repeated, to the point of being annoying.
Finally, and this is a small thing: it would be lovely to see, for the opening page, a piece of beautiful Catholic art and the use of an elegant font. This is a great app, even for few issues, and it deserves a beautiful opening. There is another LOTH app out there, and it is visually much more appealing in its start-up.
I haven't found another app that offers exactly what this one does, and for the most part it does it well. It has steadily improved since I purchased it over six months ago, and I expect that will continue.
Wonderful App for Catholics!
Upon receiving the gift of an iPod Touch, I paid a visit to the app store to see what was available--and free from error--for Catholics. To my delight, I found several including this one. I have longed for a practical and portable reference to learn how to pray the Liturgy of the Hours and now I have it! I especially like the inclusion of audio with the text. Along with apps for praying the rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, and examining my conscience in preparation for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, my iPod is now way more than an entertainment device; it's a tool for spiritual growth. Thank you!
- $19.99
- Category: Reference
- Updated: Dec 12, 2011
- Version: 2.3.5
- Size: 15.3 MB
- Language: English
- Seller: Surgeworks, Inc.
- © 2008-2011 Surgeworks
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.Requires iOS 4.2 or later.
