De l'heure de vêpres et de l'emploi du temps jusques au réfectoire
The Rhythm of Afternoon Devotion
The afternoon is divided between the liturgical observance of Vespers for the older girls and personalized instruction for the youngest.
At four o'clock, the older girls go to Vespers, provided they've earned the privilege.1 During that same time, the youngest children are instructed; even though they're present for everything said in the room to teach them, they don't take any of it in, and unless each of them is spoken to individually, they don't understand a thing.
Preparation for the Evening Meal
The time between Vespers and the evening meal is dedicated to communal reading under supervision, leading into an orderly procession to the refectory.
From the end of Vespers until the refectory, one of the older girls does a reading. Their head mistress should be present for this whenever possible. The reading continues until the bell for the refectory rings, and they proceed there in the same order as they did in the morning.
Read the original Latin
A quatre heures, les plus grandes vont à vêpres, si elles méritent qu'on leur fasse cette grâce.
Pendant ce même temps, on instruit les plus petites enfants ; car encore qu'elles soient présentes à tout ce qu'on dit à la chambre pour les instruire, elles n'y entendent rien ; et si on ne s'adresse à chacune d'elles en particulier, elles n'y comprennent rien.
A la fin de vêpres jusqu'au réfectoire, une des grandes fait une lecture. Il faut, autant que cela se peut, que leur principale maîtresse y soit présente. On fait cette lecture jusques à ce que le réfectoire sonne, où elles vont dans le même ordre que le matin.
Notes
- 1 ↩grâce here is an institutional favor (permission to attend Vespers), not theological grace; rendered as privilege.
Règlement pour les enfants companion
Rule yourself daily, not just on retreat
Chosen Portion turns the mirror into a daily practice — a short reading and examining question each morning before you lead anyone.
Chosen Portion makes the mirror daily: the ruler-formation questions this collection preserves become a two-minute morning examination in the app.
- A daily formation reading drawn from centuries of counsel to those in authority
- One pointed examination question a day — two minutes, before the meetings start
- Track your practice over weeks and watch the examined life become a habit