Fixed prayer times in the context of "Christian prayer"

The Liturgy of the Hours (Latin: Liturgia Horarum), Divine Office (Latin: Divinum Officium), or Opus Dei ("Work of God") is a set of Catholic prayers comprising the canonical hours, often also referred to as the breviary, of the Latin Church. The Liturgy of the Hours forms the official set of prayers "marking the hours of each day and sanctifying the day with prayer." The term "Liturgy of the Hours" has been retroactively applied to the practices of saying the canonical hours in both the Christian East and West–particularly within the Latin liturgical rites–prior to the Second Vatican Council, and is the official term for the canonical hours promulgated for usage by the Latin Church in 1971. Before 1971, the official form for the Latin Church was the Breviarium Romanum, first published in 1568 with major editions through 1962.

The Liturgy of the Hours, like many other forms of the canonical hours, consists primarily of psalms supplemented by hymns, readings, and other prayers and antiphons prayed at fixed prayer times. Together with the Mass, it constitutes the public prayer of the church. Christians of both Western and Eastern traditions (including the Latin Catholic, Eastern Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Assyrian, Lutheran, Anglican, and some other Protestant churches) celebrate the canonical hours in various forms and under various names. The chant or recitation of the Divine Office therefore forms the basis of prayer within the consecrated life, with some of the monastic or mendicant orders producing their own permutations of the Liturgy of the Hours and older Roman Breviary.

A breviary (Latin: breviarium) is a liturgical book used in Christianity for praying the canonical hours, usually recited at seven fixed prayer times.

Historically, different breviaries were used in the various parts of Christendom, such as Aberdeen Breviary, Belleville Breviary, Stowe Breviary and Isabella Breviary, although eventually the Roman Breviary became the standard within the Roman Catholic Church (though it was later supplanted with the Liturgy of the Hours); in other Christian denominations such as the Lutheran Churches, different breviaries continue to be used, such as The Brotherhood Prayer Book.

In the practice of Christianity, canonical hours mark the divisions of the day in terms of fixed times of prayer at regular intervals. A book of hours, chiefly a breviary, normally contains a version of, or selection from, such prayers.

In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, canonical hours are also called officium, since it refers to the official prayer of the Church, which is known variously as the officium divinum ("divine service", "divine office", or "divine duty"), and the opus Dei ("work of God"). The current official version of the hours in the Roman Rite is called the Liturgy of the Hours (Latin: liturgia horarum) or divine office.

Making the sign of the cross (Latin: signum crucis), also known as blessing oneself or crossing oneself, is both a prayer and a ritual blessing made by members of some branches of Christianity. It is a very significant prayer because Christians are acknowledging their belief in the triune God, or the Holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. There are three variants of the sign of the cross, including a large sign of the cross made across the body, a small sign of the cross traced on the forehead or objects, as well as a lesser sign of the cross made over the forehead, lips and heart.

The use of the sign of the cross traces back to early Christianity, with the third-century treatise Apostolic Tradition directing that it be used during the minor exorcism of baptism, during ablutions before praying at fixed prayer times, and in times of temptation.

A daily devotional is a religious publication that provides a specific spiritual reading for each calendar day. Many daily devotionals take the form of one year devotional books, with many being tailored specifically for children, teenagers, students, men and women.

Traditionally, daily devotionals came in the format of a book, with one reading passage for each day, and often a reflection and prayer. With the advent of online content, daily devotionals come in multiple formats including apps, blogs, websites, and emails (electronic daily devotional). There continues to be a multitude of devotional books and calendars, in addition to numerous online devotionals, that are tailored to a variety of recipient, religious denomination, or view. Daily devotionals differ from traditional breviaries, which are used by Christians to pray the canonical hours at fixed prayer times every day, in that daily devotionals can be used at leisure.

In Christianity, ablution is a prescribed washing of part or all of the body or possessions, such as clothing or ceremonial objects, with the intent of purification or dedication. In Christianity, both baptism and footwashing are forms of ablution. Prior to praying the canonical hours at seven fixed prayer times, Oriental Orthodox Christians wash their hands and face (cf. Agpeya, Shehimo). In liturgical churches, ablution can refer to purifying fingers or vessels related to the Eucharist. In the New Testament, washing also occurs in reference to rites of Judaism part of the action of a healing by Jesus, the preparation of a body for burial, the washing of nets by fishermen, a person's personal washing of the face to appear in public, the cleansing of an injured person's wounds, Pontius Pilate's washing of his hands as a symbolic claim of innocence and foot washing, which is a rite within the Christian Churches. According to the Gospel of Matthew, Pontius Pilate declared himself innocent of the blood of Jesus by washing his hands. This act of Pilate may not, however, have been borrowed from the custom of the Jews. The same practice was common among the Greeks and Romans.

According to Christian tradition, the Pharisees carried the practice of ablution to great excess. The Gospel of Mark refers to their ceremonial ablutions: "For the Pharisees...wash their hands 'oft'" or, more accurately, "with the fist" (R.V., "diligently"); or, as Theophylact of Bulgaria explains it, "up to the elbow", referring to the actual word used in the Greek New Testament, πυγμή pygmē, which refers to the arm from the elbow to the tips of the fingers. In the Book of Acts, Paul and other men performed ablution before entering the Temple in Jerusalem: "Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them."

The Sisters of the Holy Spirit (Swedish: Helgeandssystrarna) is an Evangelical-Lutheran monastic religious order of nuns of the Church of Sweden, who inhabit Alsike Convent (Swedish: Alsike kloster) in Uppsala County, Sweden. Attached to the convent is Alsike Evangelical Lutheran Church and near the convent is an Evangelical-Lutheran hermitage. The religious habit of The Sisters of the Holy Spirit includes a dove with a cross. The seven canonical hours are prayed daily at Alsike Convent. The nuns are currently three in number. In the Alsike Church, the High Mass is celebrated every Lord's Day (Sunday).