Compline (/ˈkɒmplɪn/ KOM-plin), also known as Complin, Night Prayer, or the Prayers at the End of the Day, is the final prayer liturgy (or office) of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours, which are prayed at fixed prayer times.
The English word is derived from the Latin completorium, as compline is the completion of the waking day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century in the Rule of Saint Benedict (Regula Benedicti; hereafter, RB), in Chapters 16,[1] 17,[2] 18,[3] and 42,[4] and he uses the verb compleo to signify compline: "Omnes ergo in unum positi compleant" ("All having assembled in one place, let them say compline"); "et exeuntes a completorio" ("and, after going out from compline")… (RB, Chap. 42).
Compline liturgies are a part of Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, and certain other Christian liturgical traditions.
In Western Christianity, Compline tends to be a contemplative office that emphasizes spiritual peace. In most monasteries it is the custom to begin the "Great Silence" after compline, during which the whole community, including guests, observes silence throughout the night until after the Terce the next day.[5] Compline comprises the final office in the Liturgy of the Hours.
- ^ [1] Archived January 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [2] Archived January 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [3] Archived January 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [4] Archived January 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Ware, Jordan Haynie (February 1, 2017). The Ultimate Quest: A Geek's Guide to (The Episcopal) Church. Church Publishing Incorporated. p. 30. ISBN 9780819233264.