In the Community of St Mary the Virgin we come together five times a day to praise God: early in the morning, around the ‘third hour’, which is associated with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the middle of the day, the late afternoon and the evening.  This is our first work.

The basic ‘building blocks’ of the Office are the Psalms; in them we can find every human condition and emotion. As we pray them together we are in a real sense the Body of Christ which prays.

Particular Bible songs or canticles are sung at particular times of the day. In the early morning we sing the ‘Benedictus’ from St Luke’s Gospel, which speaks of the dawn from on high breaking upon us and guiding our feet into the way of peace. At Vespers, Mary’s song or ‘Magnificat’ is always sung as an important part of the offering of praise. At the end of the day we sing Simeon’s song, the ‘Nunc Dimittis’, where he asks God to let him go in peace, for he has seen the sight that his aged eyes had longed for, the Christ child. Hymns from the tradition of the church are also sung. For our worship, we use the ancient music of the church, Plainsong.