A Day in the Life

7:15am – Lauds and Mass

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will proclaim Your praise!”

We start every day with what is most central in our life: the praise and worship of the God whom we serve. During sung morning prayer, we greet and praise Him. This is followed, at 8am, by the “source and summit” of our day and center of our lives: the celebration of Mass and communion with our Eucharistic Lord. Nourished by this heavenly food, we can go out and live our day in intimacy with Him.

8:45am – Breakfast, followed by Work and Adoration

“I look at Him, and He looks at me.” – a farmer to St. John Vianney

After Mass we share breakfast together and then head to our work and ministries. Each member also spends an hour in Eucharistic adoration.

12:30pm – Midday Prayer and Lunch, followed by Work and Study

“Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy Gifts …”

At midday, we come together once again as one community and sing midday prayer, followed by lunch. During this meal, we either listen to table readings (i.e., books read in the background), remain in silence, or just talk with each other in fraternal community. After lunch (and, not to forget, washing the dishes) we return to our work.

5:45pm – Vespers and Dinner, followed by Free Time

“Having come to the setting of the sun …”

As the day slowly comes to a close, we return to our church and pray evening prayer, raising our prayers and songs to God the Father and interceding for all those we met and encountered throughout the day. After that, we have dinner and some time to rest.

8pm – Compline

“Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace.”

At the end of the day, we pray night prayer, examining our day under the gaze of God, and ask Him to watch over us as we sleep. Then, we enter into the “Great Silence” for the night.

The Little Triduum

From Thursday to Sunday, we celebrate the “Little Triduum” which shapes our week and leads us up toward Sunday, the day of the Resurrection.

Thursday Evening

Fasting and silence at dinner.
At 8pm, we have Eucharistic Adoration, spending time with Jesus in the Garden, and we pray the Office of Gethsemane, interceding for the world.
In larger houses, we have exposition of the Blessed Sacrament throughout the night.

Friday

On Fridays, we remember the Passion and death of Jesus. We fast and hold silence throughout the day.
In the evening, we celebrate the entrance of Shabbat. During this time of community and prayer mostly in Hebrew (you don’t have to know the language to enjoy it), we express our love, intercession and connection to the Jewish people, and as a family anticipate the joy of the coming Kingdom. By way of entering into this living tradition of Israel, we also learn more about Jesus, who Himself lived in this tradition.

Saturday

On Saturdays we seek to enter into the peaceful expectation of Shabbat. Every Saturday is an echo of Holy Saturday for us, a time of waiting for the Lord’s Resurrection and Second Coming.
At 5:15pm, we celebrate Vespers of the Resurrection which includes Byzantine and Charismatic elements. Contemplating the great news of Easter, we can truly cry out at the end: “Christ is risen!” As we conclude pray, we share a sign of peace among one another.
In celebration of Easter, we have a potluck afterwards and continue the prayer with Israeli dances and fellowship.

Sunday

“Christ is truly risen!” Sundays are a day of joy for us.
We start the day with morning prayer and Eucharistic Adoration. After that we celebrate Mass and gather as a community for a festive lunch.