Every parent knows the well rehearsed reasons why it’s important to give a routine for small children as they go to bed. Rest of course is very important for health. Most parents know firsthand what it’s like to deal with a young one the next day when they don’t get enough sleep! And some of the most important life lessons can be taught by ordering the end of the day to give an example of the importance of ritual and discipline. However, underneath all of these is an even deeper theological lesson to be learned when we create a prayer routine for our little ones before they go to bed.

In all things, in every action we do, with every intention of our will, and even with the entirety of our life, none of those things come to completion until they rest in God. Indeed, every night when we intentionally order the completion of our day toward night prayer, we are infusing in the early life of our children the primordial fact that until all things are placed before our Lord, true rest will not come upon us.

The monks and nuns of Saint Benedict have known this well, and the night office of Compline, which they pray every night before retiring to their rest, is a shining instance of this foundational truth. Everything about the order of this office speaks to the human necessity of showing gratitude. We must each one of us, for our own good, give reverence to those from which we have our being, and the end of the day serves as no better time to do so. Furthermore, the confidence that we embrace when, in utter vulnerability, we close our eyes and trust ourselves to rest in someone else’s presence, serves as the root of all human trust. In the psalms they choose to chant, in the blessings conferred by the Abbott or Abbess, or the seasonal hymn sung to the Blessed Mother Mary, every Benedictine monastery demonstrates the truth Our Lord never tires of teaching us, that in order to be welcomed into the kingdom of Heaven, you must become like a little child. Nowhere is that more the case, when the children of Saint Benedict, the many monks and nuns of his order and its related congregations, go to sleep praying the office of Compline as their night prayers.

A Very Little Office of Compline

In our new book, A Very Little Office of Compline, we have attempted to make a very little imitation of those monks and nuns nightly obedience as they pray before sleep. And just as the children of Benedict at their monasteries imitate the spirit of a child, we hope to help others imbibe the same spirit of those who rest in confidence of their Heavenly Father and Mother Mary.

Resplendent with vividly beautiful watercolor illustrations from Gwyneth Thompson-Briggs, not only will little ones have something precious to contemplate as they wind down for sleep, but the evocation of classic children’s books will provide gentle material for the dreams of your little ones. Additionally, the adapted prayers of Compline are rendered in simple and shortened rhymed prayer in the hopes that even pre-literate children can begin to memorize snippets of the centuries old monastic ritual, with the due hope they might be able to take these priceless prayers with them throughout their lives.

There are a few lessons more important than learning to nestle one’s soul in the everlasting arms of our Heavenly Father. Few things are more fruitful than at an early age to call upon the blessing of our Mother Mary as we close our day (and eyes!) to sleep. All of this involves very little, simple, and innocent movements of love, which is the heart of every important routine. Our hope is that a resource such as this book may prove to be that needed little catalyst towards connecting your children’s activities for getting ready to rest in their bed, and for anyone who reads this book to rest in the house of the Lord all their days.

Image: Photo by zhenzhong liu on Unsplash