Daily Office

In the west, the liturgical hours were called offices. Archbishop Cranmer, in creating the prayer book, reduced these for the laity down to two: Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, or Evensong. Together, these make up the Daily Office that is prayed by millions of Anglicans around the world.

"One of the beneficial effects of the Reformation in England was a deliberate effort to simplify the Daily Office so that both clergy and laity could participate in its offering. Morning Prayer was based upon the Medieval office of Matins together with elements from Prime. Evening Prayer was, in its essence, a combination of Vespers and Compline. But the Office as a whole was revised around the importance of regular recitation of the Psalter, reading of the whole of Scripture, and set prayer. This gives the Anglican Office its distinctive character. In more recent times, Sext (Noonday Prayer) and Compline have been restored for optional use in various Anglican Prayer Books, such as the American Book of 1979."-- from the Anglican Service Book (link below)


For more information, see also:
"The Rise and Fall of the Daily Office," a critique on Christianity Today
from the Anglican Service Book at justus.org