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For the laity, when praying the Liturgy of the Hours in private, is it more in keeping with tradition to you pray out loud or silently or does it matter?
Also, do you change the way you repeat antiphons and responses when praying in private or praying silently as opposed to praying out loud or singing/chanting it?
Liturgy in the strict sense is a public activity, so as such it should be prayed out loud, either recited in less formal settings or chanted with a melody, as monastic communities still do, or somewhere in between.
When you are praying the hours privately it's enough to just read the prayers, psalms and collects to yourself, though of course you are free to do whatever helps you to pray more devoutly, so if that means whispering the words outwardly then so be it.
The liturgy of hours, as I understand it, was traditionally a form of public prayer. The religious communities would pray this together. Thus I'm not sure if there is a "traditional" way to pray it privately. If pressed, I would say it's to sing/chant it as the religious communities did.
Should praying the Liturgy of the Hours in private be out loud or silent?
When I was in a monastery, we generally prayed the Divine Office silently when recited in private. One could if one wanted to pray the Liturgy of the Hours out loud if done in private.
However if one is praying the Divine Office while one is waiting in a doctor’s office for example, it would for obvious reasons be best to be recited silently.
This goes as well as for reciting the Holy Rosary when in public. Simply pray it silently. No one has to know what you are doing.
