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{{Short description|Canonical hour in Christian liturgy}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use American English|date = February 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date = July 2017}}
[[File:Vor der Komplet.JPG|thumb|270px|[[Book of hours]] open at compline ([[Porta Westfalica|Eisbergen]] Monastery in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany)]]
'''Compline''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɒ|m|p|l|ɪ|n}} {{respell|KOM|plin}}), also known as '''Complin''', '''Night Prayer''', or the '''Prayers at the End of the Day''', is the final prayer liturgy (or [[Liturgy of the Hours|office]]) of the day in the [[Christianity|Christian]] tradition of [[canonical hours]], which are [[Christian prayer|prayed]] at [[fixed prayer times]].

The English word is derived from the [[Latin]] {{lang|la|'''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,<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch16] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103202915/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch16|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> 17,<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch17] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103202915/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch17|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> 18,<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch18] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103202915/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch18|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> and 42,<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch42] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103202915/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/benedict/rule2/files/rule2.html#ch42|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> 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]], [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]], [[Oriental Orthodox]], [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox]], and certain other Christian [[liturgy|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.<ref name="Ware2017">{{cite book|last=Ware|first=Jordan Haynie|title=The Ultimate Quest: A Geek's Guide to (The Episcopal) Church|date=1 February 2017|publisher=Church Publishing Incorporated|language=en|isbn=9780819233264|page=30}}</ref> Compline comprises the final office in the [[Liturgy of the Hours]].

== Historical development ==
:''This section incorporates information from the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1917. References to [[psalms]] follow the numbering system of the [[Septuagint]], as said in the [[Latin]] of the [[Vulgate]].''
From the time of the [[early Church]], the practice of [[fixed prayer times|seven fixed prayer times]] has been taught; in ''[[Apostolic Tradition]]'', [[Hippolytus of Rome|Hippolytus]] instructed Christians to pray seven times a day "on rising, at the lighting of the evening lamp, at bedtime, at midnight" and "the third, sixth and ninth hours of the day, being hours associated with Christ's Passion."<ref name="DanielouOrigen2016">{{cite book |last1=Danielou |first1=Jean |title=Origen |date=2016 |publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn=978-1-4982-9023-4 |page=29 |language=en |quote=Peterson quotes a passage from the ''Acts of Hipparchus and Philotheus'': "In Hipparchus's house there was a specially decorated room and a cross was painted on the east wall of it. There before the image of the cross, they used to pray seven times a day … with their faces turned to the east." It is easy to see the importance of this passage when you compare it with what Origen says. The custom of turning towards the rising sun when praying had been replaced by the habit of turning towards the east wall. This we find in Origen. From the other passage we see that a cross had been painted on the wall to show which was the east. Hence the origin of the practice of hanging crucifixes on the walls of the private rooms in Christian houses. We know too that signs were put up in the Jewish synagogues to show the direction of Jerusalem, because the Jews turned that way when they said their prayers. The question of the proper way to face for prayer has always been of great importance in the East. It is worth remembering that Mohammedans pray with their faces turned towards Mecca and that one reason for the condemnation of Al Hallaj, the Mohammedan martyr, was that he refused to conform to this practice.}}</ref><ref name="Chadwick1993">{{cite book |author1=Henry Chadwick |author-link=Henry Chadwick (theologian) |title=The Early Church |date=1993 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-101-16042-8 |language=en|quote=Hippolytus in the ''Apostolic Tradition'' directed that Christians should pray seven times a day – on rising, at the lighting of the evening lamp, at bedtime, at midnight, and also, if at home, at the third, sixth and ninth hours of the day, being hours associated with Christ's Passion. Prayers at the third, sixth, and ninth hours are similarly mentioned by Tertullian, Cyprian, Clement of Alexandria and Origen, and must have been very widely practised. These prayers were commonly associated with private Bible reading in the family.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Weitzman |first1=M. P. |title=The Syriac Version of the Old Testament |date=7 July 2005 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-01746-6 |language=en |quote=Clement of Alexandria noted that "some fix hours for prayer, such as the third, sixth and ninth" (Stromata 7:7). Tertullian commends these hours, because of their importance (see below) in the New Testament and because their number recalls the Trinity (De Oratione 25). These hours indeed appear as designated for prayer from the earliest days of the church. Peter prayed at the sixth hour, i.e. at noon (Acts 10:9). The ninth hour is called the "hour of prayer" (Acts 3:1). This was the hour when Cornelius prayed even as a "God-fearer" attached to the Jewish community, i.e. before his conversion to Christianity. it was also the hour of Jesus' final prayer (Matt. 27:46, Mark 15:34, Luke 22:44–46).}}</ref><ref name="Lössl2010">{{cite book |last1=Lössl |first1=Josef |title=The Early Church: History and Memory |date=17 February 2010 |publisher=A&C Black |isbn=978-0-567-16561-9 |page=135 |language=en|quote=Not only the content of early Christian prayer was rooted in Jewish tradition; its daily structure too initially followed a Jewish pattern, with prayer times in the early morning, at noon and in the evening. Later (in the course of the second century), this pattern combined with another one; namely prayer times in the evening, at midnight and in the morning. As a result seven 'hours of prayer' emerged, which later became the monastic 'hours' and are still treated as 'standard' prayer times in many churches today. They are roughly equivalent to midnight, 6 a.m., 9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Prayer positions included prostration, kneeling and standing. … Crosses made of wood or stone, or painted on walls or laid out as mosaics, were also in use, at first not directly as objections of veneration but in order to 'orientate' the direction of prayer (i.e. towards the east, Latin ''oriens'').}}</ref>

The origin of compline has given rise to considerable discussion among liturgists. In the past, general opinion ascribed the origin of this liturgical hour to [[Benedict of Nursia|St. Benedict]], at the beginning of the 6th century. But Jules Pargoire and A. Vandepitte trace its source to Saint [[Basil of Caesarea|Basil]]. Vandepitte states that it was not in [[Caesarea Mazaca|Cæsarea]] in 375, but in his retreat in [[Pontus (region)|Pontus]] (358–362), that Basil established compline, which hour did not exist prior to his time, that is, until shortly after the middle of the 4th century. {{ill|François Plaine|fr}} also traced the source of compline back to the 4th century, finding mention of it in a passage in [[Eusebius]] and in another in [[St. Ambrose]], and also in [[John Cassian]]. These texts bear witness to the private custom of saying a prayer before retiring to rest. If this was not the canonical hour of compline, it was certainly a preliminary step towards it. The same writers reject the opinion of [[Paulin Ladeuze]] and {{ill|Jean-Martial Besse|fr}} who believe that compline had a place in the Rule of [[Pachomius|St. Pachomius]], which would mean that it originated still earlier in the 4th century.<ref name=Cabrol>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04187a.htm|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Compline|website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref>

The [[Catholic Encyclopedia]] argues that, if St. Basil instituted and organized the hour of compline for the [[Eastern Christianity|East]], as [[St. Benedict]] did for the [[Latin Church|West]], there existed as early as the days of [[Cyprian|St. Cyprian]] and [[Clement of Alexandria]] the custom of reciting a prayer before sleep, and that this might be taken as the original source of compline.<ref name=Cabrol/>

==Compline in the Roman Rite==
[[File:In manus tuas, Domine.svg|thumb|Responsory of the compline, ''In manus tuas, Domine'']]
It is generally thought that the Benedictine form of compline is the earliest western order, although some scholars, such as Plaine, have maintained that the hour of compline as found in the [[Roman Breviary]] at his time, antedated the [[Benedictine]] Office. These debates apart, Benedict's arrangement probably invested the hour of compline with the liturgical character and arrangement which were preserved in the [[Benedictine Order]], and largely adopted by the [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Church]]. The original form of the Benedictine Office, lacking even an [[antiphon]] for the psalms, is much simpler than its Roman counterpart, resembling more closely the Minor Hours of the day.<ref name=Cabrol/>

Saint Benedict first gave the Office the basic structure by which it has come to be celebrated in the West: three [[psalm]]s ([[Psalm 4|4]], [[Psalm 91|90]], and [[Psalm 134|133]]) (Vulgate numbering) said without [[antiphon]]s, the [[hymn]], the lesson, the [[versicle]] ''[[Kyrie eleison]]'', the [[benediction]], and the dismissal (RB, Chaps. 17 and 18).

The [[Liturgy of the Hours|Roman Office]] of compline came to be richer and more complex than the simple Benedictine [[psalmody]]. A fourth psalm was added, ''In te Domine speravi'' ([[Psalm 31|Psalm 30 in Vulgate]]). And perhaps at a fairly late date was added the solemn introduction of a benediction with a reading (based perhaps on the spiritual reading which, in the Rule of St. Benedict, precedes compline: RB, Chap. 42), and the confession and absolution of faults. This is absent from parallel forms, such as that of Sarum.

The distinctive character and greater solemnity of the Roman form of compline comes from the responsory,'' In manus tuas, Domine'' ("Into Thy hands, O Lord"), with the evangelical [[canticle]] [[Nunc Dimittis]] and its [[anthem]], which is particularly characteristic.<ref>The Catholic Encyclopedia says: "It would be difficult to understand why St. Benedict, whose liturgical taste favoured solemnity in the Office, would have sacrificed these elements—especially the evangelical canticle—if, as Plaine theorizes, his form of the Office were a later development."</ref>

The hour of compline, such as it appeared in the [[Roman Breviary]] prior to the Second Vatican Council, may be divided into several parts, viz. the beginning or introduction, the [[psalmody]], with its usual accompaniment of [[antiphon]]s, the [[hymn]], the ''[[Chapter (religion)|capitulum]]'', the response, the ''[[Nunc dimittis]]'', the prayer, and the [[benediction]].

By way of liturgical variety, the liturgy of ''initium noctis'' may also be studied in the [[Celtic Rite|Celtic Liturgy]], such as it is read in the [[Antiphonary of Bangor]], its plan being set forth by Warren and by Bishop (see [[#Bibliography|Bibliography]], below).

{{listen 
 | filename     = Choral Compline 29 May 2016.ogg
 | title        = Compline 
 | description  = A service of compline sung by the choir of [[Trinity Church, Boston]] in 2016; <br />
Introit: ''[[Abendlied (Rheinberger)|Abendlied]]'' by [[Josef Rheinberger]]; <br />
Nunc dimittis: [[Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina]]
 | format       = [[ogg]]
}}
In the breviary of 1974 [[Roman Catholic]] [[Liturgy of the Hours]], compline is divided as follows: introduction, an optional [[examination of conscience]] or penitential rite, a [[hymn]], [[psalmody]] with accompanying [[antiphon]]s, [[Bible|scriptural reading]], the responsory, the [[Nunc dimittis|Canticle of Simeon]], concluding prayer, and [[benediction]]. The final [[antiphon]] to the [[Blessed Virgin Mary]] (''[[Salve Regina]]'', etc.) is an essential part of the Office.<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/cdwgilh.htm#Ch%20II-VI General Instruction on the Liturgy of the Hours] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190705220739/http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/cdwgilh.htm#Ch%20II-VI |date=July 5, 2019 }} #92</ref>

==Lutheran usage==
The office of Compline (along with the other daily offices) is included in the various Lutheran hymnals, books of worship and prayer books, such as the [[Lutheran Service Book]] and ''[[For All the Saints: A Prayer Book for and by the Church]]''. There was also a very faithful English Gregorian compline<ref>https://archive.org/details/complinenightpra0000vari/mode/2up</ref> made by Carl Bergen and published in 1962 by the Painchant Society. Carl Bergen wrote organ accompaniment for the whole service. In some Lutheran Churches, compline may be conducted by a layperson with a slight modification to the liturgy.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Maschke|first=Timothy|title=Gathered guests : a guide to worship in the Lutheran Church|date=2009|publisher=Concordia Pub. House|isbn=978-0-7586-1349-3|edition=2nd |location=St. Louis, MO|oclc=225873337}}</ref> In the Lutheran Service Book, used by the [[Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod|Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod]], Compline consists of opening versicles from Psalm 92, confession of sins, psalmody, an office hymn, readings from scripture, [[responsory]], prayer (concluded with the Lord's Prayer), the [[Nunc dimittis|Nunc Dimittis]], and benediction.

==Anglican usage==
[[File:Wiki65 291281751514618 7121735451047624704 n.jpg|thumb|right|The start of compline in the [[Anglo-Catholicism|Anglo-Catholic]] [[Anglican Service Book]] (1991)]]
In the [[Anglican]] tradition, Compline was originally merged with [[Vespers]] to form [[Evening Prayer (Anglican)|Evening Prayer]] in the ''[[Book of Common Prayer]]''. The United States [[Episcopal Church in the United States of America|Episcopal Church]]'s ''Book of Offices'' of 1914, the [[Church of England|Church of England's]] 1928 [[Book of Common Prayer (1928, England)|proposed prayer book]], the [[Scottish Episcopal Church]]'s 1929 [[Scottish Prayer Book (1929)|Scottish Prayer Book]], the [[Anglican Church of Canada]]'s 1959/1962 prayer book, and also the 2004 version of the ''Book of Common Prayer'' for the [[Church of Ireland]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ireland.anglican.org/prayer-worship/book-of-common-prayer/2004-texts|title=2004 Texts|website=anglican.org}}</ref> along with the 2009 ''Daily Prayer'' book of the [[Church in Wales]],<ref>https://churchinwales.contentfiles.net/media/documents/Gweddi_Ddyddiol_-_Daily_Prayer2009.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=August 2022}}</ref> restored a form of compline to Anglican worship. Several contemporary liturgical texts, including the American 1979 ''Book of Common Prayer'', the Anglican Church of Canada's ''[[Book of Alternative Services]]'', and the Church of England's ''[[Common Worship]]'', provide modern forms of the service. A traditional form is provided in the 1991 [[Anglican Service Book]]. The ''Common Worship'' service consists of the opening sentences, the confession of sins, the psalms and other Bible lessons, the canticle of Simeon, and prayers, including a benediction. There are authorized alternatives for the days of the week and the seasons of the Christian year. As a public service of worship, like [[Morning Prayer (Anglican)|Morning Prayer]] and Evening Prayer, compline may be led by a layperson, quite similar to Lutheran use.

==Compline in Byzantine usage==<!-- [[Small Compline]] and [[Great Compline]] redirect here -->
[[File:Monks Praying Compline 2.jpg|thumb|Monks praying compline in [[St Nazianz]], Wisconsin, US]]

Compline is called literally, the '''after-supper''' ([[Mediaeval Greek|Greek]] ([[definite article|''τὸ'']]) ''Ἀπόδειπνον'' {{IPA|grc|apóðipnon|}}, [[Church Slavonic|Slavonic]] ''повечеріе'', Povecheriye), has two distinct forms which are quite different in length '''Small Compline''' and '''Great Compline'''.

Both forms include a [[Canon (hymnography)|canon]], typically those found [[Octoechos (liturgy)|Octoechos]] to the [[Theotokos]], although alternative canons are used on certain [[Afterfeast|forefeasts, afterfeasts]] and days during the [[Paschaltide]]. A further exception is on days when the liturgy to the saint(s) of the day is displaced by, e.g., by a newly canonized or locally venerated saint (or icon), the displaced canon is used and after that are inserted the [[stichera]] prescribed for [[vespers]].

The Office always ends with a mutual asking of forgiveness. In some traditions, most notably among the [[Russian Orthodox Church|Russians]], Evening Prayers (i.e., Prayers Before Sleep) are read at the end of compline. It is an ancient custom, practiced on the [[Mount Athos|Holy Mountain]] and in other monasteries, for everyone present at the end of compline to venerate the [[relics]] and [[icons]] in the church, and receive the priest's blessing.

===Small Compline===
Small compline is prescribed for most nights of the year. It is presided over by a single priest without a deacon.

The liturgy is composed of three Psalms (50, 69, 142), the [[Great Doxology|Small Doxology]], the [[Nicene Creed]], the Canon followed by ''[[Axion Estin]]'',<ref>Certain canons call for ''Axion Estin'' to be replaced by the [[Irmos]] of the Ninth [[Canticle|Ode]].</ref> the [[Trisagion]], [[Troparia]] for the day, ''[[Kyrie eleison]]'' (40 times), the Prayer of the Hours, the Supplicatory Prayer of Paul the Monk, and the Prayer to Jesus Christ of [[Antiochus of Palestine|Antiochus the Monk]].<ref name="NtPray">Here follow the Evening Prayers in places where they are said at compline.</ref> Following these are the mutual forgiveness and final blessing by the priest and the priest's reciting of a [[Ektenia|litany]].

Before an [[all-night vigil]], compline in the Greek tradition precedes great vespers, being read during the great incensing, while in Russian tradition it simply follows little vespers.

===Great Compline===
Great Compline is a penitential daily office which is served on the following occasions:
* Tuesday and Thursday nights of [[Maslenitsa|Cheesefare Week]], the week proceeding [[Great Lent]]
* Monday through Thursday nights of Great Lent<ref>Except for Wednesday of the Fifth Week. The Great Canon of [[Saint Andrew of Crete]] is read the evening before, and so Small Compline is appointed for that Wednesday night.</ref>
* Friday nights of Great Lent<ref>Among the Greeks, Small Compline is served on every Friday evening of Great Lent; the Russians, however, serve Great Compline on Fridays, with some modifications (see n. 7, below). On Friday night of the Fifth Week of Great Lent, the [[Akathist]] to the Theotokos is solemnly chanted, so Small Compline on that night is either read privately or suppressed.</ref>
* Monday and Tuesday of [[Holy Week]]
* Monday through Friday during the lesser Lenten seasons: [[Nativity Fast]], [[Apostles' Fast]], and [[Dormition Fast]]<ref>In some places, Great Compline is only served on the first night of each of the Lesser Fasts.</ref>
* The Eves of certain [[Great Feasts]], as a part of the All-Night Vigil: [[Christmas|Nativity]], [[Theophany]], and [[Annunciation]].

Unlike Small Compline, Great Compline has portions of the liturgy which are chanted by the Choir<ref>Except on Friday night, when most of these parts are read. There are also fewer prostrations on Friday night.</ref> and during Lent the [[Prayer of Saint Ephrem|Prayer of St. Ephraim]] is said with prostrations. During the First Week of Great Lent, the [[Great Canon]] of [[Saint Andrew of Crete]] is divided into four portions and read on Monday through Thursday nights.

Due to the penitential nature of Great Compline, it is not uncommon for the priest to hear [[Confession (religion)#Eastern Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy|Confession]] during or immediately following the liturgy.

Great Compline is composed of three sections, each beginning with the call to prayer, "O come, let us worship…":

'''First Part'''
:Psalms<ref>On Monday through Thursday of the First Week of Great Lent, the service begins with Psalm 69, followed by the appropriate section of the Great Canon (in which case, Psalm 69 is omitted in the Third Part).</ref> 4, 6, and 12; Glory…, etc.; Psalms 24, 30, 90; then the hymn "God is With Us" and troparia, the Creed, the hymn "O Most holy Lady Theotokos", the Trisagion and Troparia of the Day, ''Kyrie eleison'' (40 times), "More honorable than the cherubim…" and the Prayer of [[St. Basil the Great]].

'''Second Part'''
:Psalms 50, 101, and the [[Prayer of Manasseh|Prayer of Manasses]]; the Trisagion, and Troparia of Repentance,<ref>Or, if it is the eve of a Great Feast, the [[Kontakion]] of the day.</ref> ''Kyrie eleison'' (40 times), "More honorable than the cherubim…" and the Prayer of St. Mardarius.

'''Third Part'''
:Psalms 69, 142, and the Small Doxology;<ref>On [[Great Feasts]], the order of Great Compline ends here, and we continue the [[All-Night Vigil]] with the [[Lity (Orthodox Vespers)|Litia]].</ref> then the Canon followed by ''[[Axion Estin]]'', the [[Trisagion]], the hymn "O Lord of Hosts, be with us…", ''Kyrie eleison'' (40 times), the Prayer of the Hours, "More honorable than the cherubim…", the [[Prayer of Saint Ephrem|Prayer of St. Ephraim]], Trisagion (this depends on tradition, it is not always recited here{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}), the Supplicatory Prayer of Paul the Monk to the [[Theotokos]], and the Prayer to Jesus Christ of Antiochus the Monk.<ref name="NtPray"/> Then the mutual forgiveness. Instead of the normal final blessing by the priest, all prostrate themselves while the priest reads a special intercessory prayer. Then the litany and the veneration of icons and relics.

==Oriental Christian usages==
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| footer = The [[Agpeya]] and [[Shehimo]] are breviaries used in Oriental Christianity to pray the canonical hours at [[fixed prayer times|seven fixed times]] of the day in the [[direction of prayer|eastward direction]].<ref name="Richards1908"/>}}

===West Syriac Rite===
In the [[Syriac Orthodox Church]] and the other churches that branched from it such as the [[Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church]] and the [[Mar Thoma Syrian Church]], the office of Compline is also known as '''Soutoro''' and is prayed at 9 pm using the [[Shehimo]] breviary.<ref name="STMOC2020">{{cite web |title=My Life in Heaven & on Earth |url=http://www.stthomassouthflorida.com/uploads/3/7/7/1/37717427/grade12.pdf |publisher=St. Thomas Malankara Orthodox Church |access-date=2 August 2020 |page=31 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Richards1908">{{cite book |last1=Richards |first1=William Joseph |title=The Indian Christians of St. Thomas: Otherwise Called the Syrian Christians of Malabar: a Sketch of Their History and an Account of Their Present Condition as Well as a Discussion of the Legend of St. Thomas |date=1908 |publisher=Bemrose |page=98 |language=en}}</ref>

===Alexandrian Rite===
In the [[Coptic Orthodox Church]], an [[Oriental Orthodox]] denomination, the Compline is [[Christian prayer|prayed]] at 9 pm using the [[Agpeya]] breviary before retiring.<ref>{{cite web |title=Coptic Church Prayers |url=https://www.stabanoub-dallas.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=71:prayers&catid=43:general&Itemid=41 |publisher=St. Abanoub Coptic Orthodox Church |access-date=5 September 2020 |language=en |date=2013}}</ref><ref name="SMCOC2020">{{cite book |title=The Agpeya |publisher=St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church |pages=5, 33, 49, 65, 80, 91, 130}}</ref>

===Armenian Liturgy: Hours of Peace and Rest===
There are two offices in the daily worship of the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]] which are recited between sundown and sleep: the '''Peace Hour''' and the '''Rest Hour'''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.armenianchurch.org/index.jsp?sid=1&id=111&pid=28|title=The Armenian Church - Մայր Աթոռ Սուրբ Էջմիածին|website=www.armenianchurch.org}}</ref> These are two distinct liturgies of communal worship. It is the usage in some localities to combine these two liturgies, with abbreviations, into a single liturgy.

====The Peace Hour====

The Peace Hour (Armenian: Խաղաղական Ժամ ''khaghaghakan zham'') is the office associated with compline in other Christian liturgies.

In the Armenian Book of Hours, or Zhamagirk`, it is stated that the Peace Hour commemorates the Spirit of God, but also the Word of God, “when he was laid in the tomb and descended into Hades, and brought peace to the spirits.”

Outline of the Peace Hour

If the Song of Steps is recited: ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our Father … Amen.''; Psalm 34:1–7: ''I have blessed the Lord at all times ({{transliteration|hy|awrhnets`its` zTēr}})''…; ''Glory to the Father'' (Always with ''Now and always … Amen''.; ''And again in peace let us pray to the Lord…''; ''Blessing and glory to the Father … Amen.''; Song of Steps: Psalm 120:1–3: ''In my distress I cried ({{transliteration|hy|I neghout`ean imoum}})''…; ''Glory to the Father…''

If the Song of Steps is not said: ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our father … Amen''; Psalm 88:1–2 ''God of my salvation ({{transliteration|hy|Astouats p`kkout`ean imoy}})''…; ''Glory to the Father…''; ''And again in peace let us pray to the Lord …''; ''Blessing and glory to the Father … Amen.''; ''Peace with all.''

In either case the liturgy continues here: Psalms 4, 6, 13, 16, 43, 70, 86:16–17; ''Glory to the Father…''; Song: ''Vouchsafe unto us (Shnorhea mez)…''; ''Glory to the Father…''; Acclamation: ''At the approach of darkness (I merdzenal erekoyis)…''; Proclamation: ''And again in peace … Let us give thanks to the Lord ({{transliteration|hy|Gohats`arouk` zTearnē}})…''; Prayer: ''Beneficent Lord (Tēr Barerar)…''; Psalm 27 ''The Lord is my light (Tēr loys im)…''; ''Glory to the Father…''; Song: ''Look down with love (Nayats` sirov)…''; Acclamation: ''Lord, do not turn your face ({{transliteration|hy|Tēr mi dartzouts`aner}})…''; Proclamation: ''And again in peace … Let us beseech almighty God (Aghach`ests`ouk` zamenakal'')…; Prayer: ''Bestowing with grace (Shnorhatou bareats`)''…

On non-fasting days the liturgy ends here with: ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our father … Amen''.

On fasting days continue here: Psalm 119; ''Glory to the Father–''; Hymn: ''We entreat you (I k`ez hayts`emk`)…''

During the Great Fast: Evening Chant (varies); Acclamation: ''To the spirits at rest ({{transliteration|hy|Hogvovn hangouts`elots`}})…''; Proclamation: ''And again in peace … For the repose of the souls (Vasn hangouts`eal)…; Lord, have mercy'' (thrice); Prayer: ''Christ, Son of God ({{transliteration|hy|K`ristos Ordi Astoutsoy}})…; Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our father… Amen.”''

====The Rest Hour====

The Rest Hour (Armenian: Հանգստեան Ժամ {{transliteration|hy|hangstean zham}}) is celebrated after the Peace Hour, and is the last of the offices of the day. It may be considered communal worship before sleep. It bears some resemblance in content to compline in the Roman Rite.

In the Armenian Book of Hours it is stated in many manuscripts that the Rest Hour commemorates God the Father, “that he protect us through the protecting arm of the Onlybegotten in the darkness of night.”

Outline of the Rest Hour: ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our Father … Amen.''; Psalm 43:3–5: ''Lord, send your light and your truth (Arak`ea Tēr)…''; ''Glory to the Father…; And again in peace let us pray to the Lord …; Blessing and glory to the Father … Amen.;'' Psalms 119:41–56, 119:113–120, 119:169–176, 91, 123, 54, Daniel 3:29–34, Luke 2:29–32, Psalms 142:7, 86:16–17, 138:7–8, Luke 1:46–55; ''Glory to the Father…''; Acclamation: ''My soul into your hands ({{transliteration|hy|Andzn im I tzers k`o}})…''; Proclamation: ''And again in peace … Let us beseech almighty God (Aghach`ests`ouk` zamenakaln)…''; Prayer: ''Lord our God (Tēr Astouats mer)…''

''Ending:'' Psalm 4; Pre-gospel sequence; Gospel: John 12:24ff; ''Glory to you, our God''; Proclamation: ''By the holy Cross (Sourb khach`ivs…)…''; Prayer: ''Protect us ({{transliteration|hy|Pahpannea zmez)…}}; ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our Father … Amen.''

Ending during Fasts: Acclamation: ''We fall down before you (Ankanimk` araji k`o)…''; Meditation Twelve of St. Gregory of Narek; Meditation 94 of St. Gregory of Narek; Meditation 41 of St. Gregory of Narek; Prayer: ''In faith I confess (Havatov khostovanim)…'' by St. Nerses the Graceful; Acclamation: ''Through your holy spotless and virgin mother (Vasn srbouhvoy)…''; Proclamation: ''Holy Birthgiver of God (Sourb zAstouatsatsinn), ,''; Prayer: ''Accept, Lord (Unkal, Tēr)…''; ''Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our Father … Amen.''

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* Bäumer, ''Histoire du Bréviaire'', tr. Biron, I, 135, 147–149 ''et passim''
* [[Pierre Batiffol|Batiffol]], ''Histoire du bréviaire romain'', 35
* Besse, ''Les Moines d'Orient antérieurs au concile de Chalcédoine'' (Paris, 1900), 333
* Bishop, ''A Service Book of the Seventh Century'' in ''[[The Church Quarterly Review]]'' (January, 1894), XXXVII, 347
* Butler, ''The Text of St. Benedict's Rule'', in ''Downside Review'', XVII, 223
* Bresard, Luc. ''Monastic Spirituality''. Three vols. (Stanbrook Abbey, Worcester: A.I.M., 1996)
* Cabrol, ''Le Livre de la Prière antique'', 224
* {{catholic|wstitle=Complin}}
* Ladeuze, ''Etude sur le cénobitisme pakhomien pendant le IVe siècle et la première moitié du Ve'' (Louvain, 1898), 288
* Pargoire, ''Prime et complies'' in ''Rev. d'hist. et de littér. relig.'' (1898), III, 281–288, 456–467
* Pargoire and Pétridès in ''Dict. d'arch. et de liturgie'', s. v. Apodeipnon, I, 2579–2589
* Plaine, ''La Génèse historique des Heures'' in ''Rev. Anglo-romaine'', I, 593
* —Idem, "De officii seu cursus Romani origine" in ''Studien u. Mittheilungen'' (1899), X, 364–397
* Vandepitte, ''Saint Basile et l'origine de complies'' in ''Rev. Augustinienne'' (1903), II, 258–264
* Warren, ''The Antiphonary of Bangor: an Early Irish MS.'' (a complete facsimile in collotype, with a transcription, London, 1893)
* —Idem, ''Liturgy and Ritual of the Keltic Church'' (Oxford, 1881)

==External links==
{{Commons category}}

===Roman Rite===
====Liturgy of the Hours====
* [http://www.liturgyhours.org/ Liturgy of the Hours at www.ebreviary.com] (login required)
* [http://www.universalis.com/compline.htm The text of compline for today's date at www.universalis.com] (English)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110722023009/http://www.transitofvenus.nl/LiturgiaHorarum/booklets/LHCompl.pdf Compline of the Liturgy of the Hours, in Latin with Gregorian chants]

===Eastern Orthodox===

* [http://www.saintjonah.org/services/compline.htm Small Compline]
* [http://www.saintjonah.org/services/greatcompline.htm Great Compline]
* [https://antiochianprodsa.blob.core.windows.net/liturgicalinstructions/Great-Compline-LENT.pdf Great Compline as sung during Great Lent in the Antiochian tradition]

===Anglican and Protestant===
* [https://praycompline.org/ Pray Compline]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060925211036/http://www.lcms.org/graphics/assets/media/Worship/02OrdersofService.pdf The Lutheran Service Book with Prayer Offices (LCMS)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20051220105905/http://www.saintgabriels.org/bcp/compline.html An Order for Compline from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer (ECUSA)]
* [http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Anglican_Service_Book/office.html#compline The Order for Compline in traditional language in The Anglican Service Book (1991)]
* [http://oremus.org/cofe.html Night Prayer from Common Worship of the Church of England (Anglican)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041231175518/http://www.saint-luke.org/documents/do-compline2004.pdf An Office for Compline (United Methodist – Order of St Luke)] (PDF)
* [http://www.methodist.org.uk/downloads/me_stewardship_prayer_night1.doc Compline (Methodist Church – Stewardship Prayer Resources)] (Word file)
* [http://www.methodist.org.uk/downloads/me_stewardship_prayers_night.pdf Compline (Methodist Church – Stewardship Prayer Resources)] (PDF – booklet format)

===Sung compline===
* {{CPDL|Category:Compline|description=Free sheet music for compline}}
* [http://www.complinechoir.org Compline Choir of Saint Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, Seattle] See also [[Compline Choir|Wikipedia entry]]
* [http://www.stdave.org/music/compline/ Compline Choir of Saint David's Episcopal Church, Austin] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150616121711/http://www.stdave.org/music/compline/ |date=June 16, 2015 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20111005215524/http://st-louis.org/church.htm Compline Choir of Saint Louis King of France Catholic Church, Austin]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110726104853/http://www.pacem-music.org/compline/ Pacific Academy of Ecclesiastical Music]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20050409183407/http://www.minnesotacompline.org/ Minnesota Compline Choir]}}
* [http://pittsburghcomplinechoir.org/ Pittsburgh Compline Choir]
* [http://www.christchurchnh.org/compline Weekly Compline at Christ Church, New Haven, CT] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106131502/http://www.christchurchnh.org/compline |date=November 6, 2014 }}
* [http://ccasav.org Weekly Compline at Christ Church Anglican in Savannah, GA]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20111127205105/http://www.stmarysarlington.org/stmarysarlington/compline St. Mary's Schola of St. Mary's Church, Arlington, VA]
* [http://thechapelofthecross.org/growing-as-christians/music/compline-choir Compline Choir at The Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, NC]
* [https://earlymusicreview.com/corpus-christi-compline-and-litany-of-the-most-blessed-sacrament-for-the-octave-of-corpus-christi/ Compline and litany of the Most blessed Sacrament for the octave of Corpus Christi in the Corpus Christi Royal College of Valencia]

{{LiturgicalHours}}
{{Anglican liturgy}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Liturgy of the Hours]]
[[Category:Anglican liturgy]]
[[Category:Anglo-Catholicism]]
[[Category:Book of Common Prayer]]
[[Category:Little Hours]]