A PERSONAL ORATORY

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A personal prayer space or oratory is sometimes found useful to help center the mind on God.  If you get a peaceful feeling entering church for worship, you may be a good candidate for a personal oratory, since a similar feeling can be achieved at home by using a regular place for prayer.

    

In Chapter 52 of the Rule of Benedict, St. Benedict says, 

The oratory must be simply a place of prayer, as the name itself implies, and it must not be used for any other activities at all nor as a place for storage of any kind.  At the completion of the Work of God, all must depart in absolute silence which will maintain a spirit of reverence towards the Lord.

Personal oratories were common in the early Church have remained so in the Eastern Church, and in the Hispanic countries of the Western Church.  They are de rigeur in Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Shinto.

In the Abbey Up the Hill, a book of otherwise dubious value, Carol Bonomo, describes her personal oratory:

I forgot all about oratories until I began going on Franciscan retreats.  They had a wonderful spirit about creating prayer space, even in a big nondescript room full of retreatants: a friar’s well-thumbed Bible open to a much-loved reading on a book stand, a small vase of flowers, and a candle, and suddenly you were in a place where you could pray.

When I became an oblate novice and began saying the Divine Office, I erected an “oratory” next to my desk in the library.  I brought a child's chair ... and put a candle on it, plus the Office.  That was all, but I sent my newly widowed mother a needlework cloth that Christmas and asked her to stitch it for my oratory, which she did. 

Later, Ms. Bonomo added a rock from the monastery she was attached to, a picture of her abbot, an image of St. Benedict, and a cross with a Benedict medal in the center. 

When she traveled, all she did was lay out her Daily Office book and her prayer journal.  You don't have to go overboard with this.  Consider the simplicity of the Carmelite oratory shown below.

Carmelite Oratory
malhidecarmelites.com

Father Fraser, rector of St. Paul's, simply has a chair in a quiet spot facing his favorite icons, one of which is John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests.

The oratory at Oak Park's West Suburban Hospital is almost Zen in its appearance.  There is a small wood paneled room with low lighting, a spotlighted table holds a Bible (usually left open to the 23rd Psalm), and underneath there is a small fountain with water trickling from it.

Oratory in the Bedroom of Franz Liszt
lisztmuseum.hu

You do not want anything that will distract you from prayer, but only those things which set you at ease and turn your thoughts to God.

To be effective, oratories should be located in a place that is relatively quiet.  Other common elements include subdued lighting, a Bible and/or Daily Office book, candles, a cross or crucifix, icons, incense, and prayer beads.  If a chair is used, choose one that is comfortable but that keeps the back relatively straight.  A prie dieu may also be used.  There may be other items that have personal significance to you, but be careful that you choose reverently.  It is an Anglican belief that you will become as you do.

In Russian folklore -- and feng shui, for that matter -- it is believed that evil spirits settle in corners, so it is common for personal oratories to be put in corners as a force for good.  These are called "beautiful corners," or since they usually prominently feature icons, "icon corners."  Locating an oratory in a corner also has the effect of eliminating distractions and focusing the attention, since the eye is naturally drawn there.

Traditional Russian Icon Corner
www.therussianshop.com

Corner Oratory in a Polish Home
mypolonia.net