Liturgy of the Hours
The Liturgy of the Hours (or Divine Office) is the official set of prayers "marking the hours of each day and sanctifying the day with prayer." It consists largely of psalms supplemented by hymns, readings, and other prayers to be prayed at specific times.
Praying the Hours is an obligation on priests and those living the religious life but lay people are encouraged to pray as much of the Liturgy of the Hours as is compatible with busy lives.
Pilgrims undertaking a long solitary walk may find it consoling to begin and end the day with the same prayers that multitudes of people are saying as the globe turns.
The full breviary is much too heavy to carry in a rucksack (see picture) but the Shorter Morning and Evening Prayer weighs less than 200g. Even more conveniently the full texts can be accessed on a smart phone for free at the Universalis website. The readings of the day for Mass can also be found at Universalis.
The Angelus
The Angelus is a traditional Catholic prayer commemorating moment when Mary said “Yes” to conceiving a child who would be the Son of God, and so God became incarnate in our world. The name comes from the first word of the Latin text: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ ("The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary"). The angel is Gabriel, a messenger of God.
It is traditionally recited three times a day: 6am, noon and 6pm accompanied by the ringing of the Angelus bell, which is a call to prayer and to spread goodwill to everyone. It may be a helpful marker to the middle of your walking day.
V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary,
R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to Your Word.
Hail Mary, etc...
V. And the Word was made flesh,
R. And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary, etc...
V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray:
Pour forth, we beseech You, O Lord,
Your Grace into our hearts;
that as we have known the incarnation of Christ,
your Son by the message of an angel,
so by His passion and cross
we may be brought to the glory of His Resurrection.
Through the same Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
The Rosary
The Rosary is a set of prayers and the string of knots or beads used to count the prayers. The prayers that make up the Rosary are arranged in sets of ten Hail Marys, called "decades".
At its simplest each decade is preceded by one Our Father and followed by one Glory Be. Usually, five decades are recited in a session. Each decade provides an opportunity to meditate on one of the Mysteries of the Rosary, which recall events in the lives of Jesus and his mother Mary.
The Rosary can be a helpful accompaniment to long distance walking. It can be said silently as meditation or out loud in groups. When faced with a long hill some pilgrims like to estimate the number of decades the ascent it will take and say a heartfelt Glory Be at the top!
Single decade finger Rosaries are convenient for walkers. They are easy to carry and 20% of the weight of a full Rosary.
Prayers used in the Rosary
The Lord's Prayer
Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, Amen.
The Hail Mary
Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
The Glory Be
Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Meditation
Meditation is a universal spiritual wisdom and a practice found in all the great religious traditions. It can lead a person from mind to heart and help to integrate these two centres of human being. It is not an exoteric or complicated practice.
Christian meditation draws on the desert tradition of the early Church. It is a way of simplicity, silence and stillness and so it is particularly suited to pilgrims who are travelling alone. It is also helpful to those who are in a group but feel the need for solitude during the day.
The Benedictine monk John Main, who helped to restore meditation to mainstream Christian practice, said that the most important thing about meditation is to begin and to keep on beginning. Like walking.
It can be helpful to have a focus for meditation and daily meditations can be found at the Jesuit Pray as You Go website.
