Perpetual prayer is the Christian

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 practice of continuous prayer carried out by a group.

History

The practice of perpetual prayer was inaugurated by the archimandrite

Archimandrite

The title Archimandrite , primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic churches, originally referred to a superior abbot whom a bishop appointed to supervise...

 Alexander (died about 430), the founder of the monastic Acoemetae

Acoemetae

Acoemetae was an order of monks in the 5th century, who by turns, kept up a divine service day and night. The order was founded about the year 400, by one Alexander, a man of noble birth, who fled from the court of Byzantium to the desert, both from love of solitude and fear of episcopal...

 or "vigil-keepers".

Laus perennis was imported to Western Europe at Agaunum

Agaunum

Roman Agaunum, the modern Saint-Maurice in the canton Valais in southwesternmost Switzerland, was a minor post confined between the Rhône and the mountains along the well-travelled road that led from Roman Genava, modern Geneva, over the Alps by the Great St...

, where it was carried on, day and night, by several choirs, or turmae, who succeeded each other in the recitation of the divine office

Divine Office

Divine Office may refer to:* Liturgy of the Hours, the recitation of certain Christian prayers at fixed hours according to the discipline of the Roman Catholic Church* Canonical hours, the recitation of such prayers in Christianity more generally...

, so that prayer went on without cessation. Called the Akoimetoi ("Sleepless Ones"), these monks prayed "a monastic round of twenty-four offices to fill every hour." The inauguration of laus perennis at Agaunum circa 522 was the occasion of a solemn ceremony, and of a sermon by St. Avitus which survives. The "custom of Agaunum", as it came to be called, spread over Gaul, to Lyons, Châlons, the Abbey of Saint Denis

Saint Denis Basilica

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Denis is a large medieval abbey church in the commune of Saint-Denis, now a northern suburb of Paris. The abbey church was created a cathedral in 1966 and is the seat of the Bishop of Saint-Denis, Pascal Michel Ghislain Delannoy...

, to Luxeuil

Luxeuil Abbey

Luxeuil Abbey was one of the oldest and best-known monasteries in Burgundy, located in the "département" of Haute-Saône in Franche-Comté, France.-Columbanus:...

, Saint-Germain at Paris

Saint-Germain-des-Prés

Saint-Germain-des-Prés is an area of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés....

, Saint Medard at Soissons, to Saint-Riquier, and was taken up by the monks of Remiremont Abbey

Remiremont Abbey

Remiremont Abbey was a Benedictine abbey near Remiremont, Vosges, France.-History:It was founded about 620 by Romaric, a lord at the court of Chlothar II, who, having been converted by Saint Ame, a monk of Luxeuil, took the habit at Luxeuil...

 and Laon Abbey, though the Abbey of Agaunum had ceased to practice it from the beginning of the ninth century.

Perpetual Adoration

The various Roman Catholic orders of nuns dedicated to the perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament may be seen as a modern variation on this theme, because in addition to the usual complete daily liturgical celebration of the Eucharist

Eucharist

The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...

 and Divine Office

Divine Office

Divine Office may refer to:* Liturgy of the Hours, the recitation of certain Christian prayers at fixed hours according to the discipline of the Roman Catholic Church* Canonical hours, the recitation of such prayers in Christianity more generally...

, these monastic communities also observe a perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, which usually involves having at least two members of the monastic community always being present in prayful, silent contemplation of the Blessed Sacrament (i.e., a consecrated Host) exposed to view in a monstrance

Monstrance

A monstrance is the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Anglican churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Created in the medieval period for the public display of relics, the monstrance today is...

 on the altar of the principal chapel. These monastic communities may themselves see their particular vocation as a part of a larger, more traditional monastic order, such as the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration

Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration

The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration are a congregation of nuns within the Benedictine Confederation. The original monastery was founded in 1874 by a group of five nuns, led by Sister Mary Anselma Felber, O.S.B., who came from the young monastery of Maria-Rickenbach in Switzerland...

 in Clyde, Missouri.

Present day

The first known Protestant continuous prayer was the "Hourly Intercession

Intercession

Intercession is the act of interceding between two parties. In both Christian and Islamic religious usage, it is a prayer to God on behalf of others....

" of the Moravian Brethren in Herrnhut

Herrnhut

Herrnhut is a municipality in the district of Görlitz, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.It has access to Bundesstraße 178 between Löbau and Zittau...

, Saxony

Saxony

The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....

. Beginning in 1727, the prayer continued 24 hours a day every day uninterrupted for over 100 years. The Moravian Unity began this continuous prayer vigil anew in 1957 as part of their 500th anniversary observance. Today, perpetual prayer is a common practice in many churches. Often the term 24-7 prayer is used to express that the prayer continues 24 hours 7 days a week. A notable example of current day perpetual prayer is the Jerusalem House of Prayer, International House of Prayer

International House of Prayer

The International House of Prayer is an evangelical charismatic Christian missions organization based in Kansas City and Grandview, Missouri that focuses on prayer, worship, and evangelism....

 in Kansas City as well as other prayer houses such as the Justice House of Prayer

Justice House of Prayer

Justice House of Prayer, commonly referred to as JHOP, is a Neocharismatic Christian organization based in Kansas City, Missouri that focuses on continual prayer. It was founded by Lou Engle in 2004 and now has locations in five U.S. cities. They are in close association with the International...

that were inspired by this ministry. Many churches organize 24-7 prayer weeks that last for one or several weeks.

External links

• www.24-7prayer.com official website of 24-7 Prayer International, a UK registered charity
• www.24-7shorts.com different videos illustrating the 24-7 prayer movement