Lord, Open My Lips

The Liturgy of the Hours has existed from earliest times to fulfill the Lord's command to pray without ceasing. Now your community can participate musically in this rich treasury of prayer!

A great way to introduce the Liturgy of the Hours
Lord, Open My Lips is a resource created to help parishes and small faith-sharing groups sing and pray the Liturgy of the Hours. Designed for cantor and assembly, it provides musical settings for morning, daytime, evening and night prayer, with performance notes and music by Father Cyprian, including three hymn tunes.

Provides all the essential elements
Lord, Open My Lips provides all the essential elements of the Liturgy of the Hours: opening verses, hymns, antiphons (including seasonal antiphons), psalmody, responsory, canticles, intercessions, the Lord''s Prayer and blessing.

Simple chant in the Camaldolese style
The chanted texts of Lord, Open My Lips are in the Camaldolese style, which in turn is based on the ancient Benedictine chant tradition. An appendix provides alternative hymns and Gospel canticles, settings of the Lord''s Prayer and the Salve Regina, as well as a table of Scripture readings for the liturgical year. The Choral/Accompaniment Book provides descants for the hymns, harmony for the chant, and simple organ (or guitar) accompaniments.

The collection includes an enlightening and scholarly foreword entitled "Celebration of Communal Prayer in Cathedral, Parish and Domestic Church." The article covers the history and theology of the Hours while advocating their use in churches and homes.