Our flyer (PDF)

What is the Service of Compline?
As is characteristic of Monastic offices, Compline consists of psalms, short passages from scripture, an office hymn, a canticle (Nunc Dimittis), a litany, collects and additional prayers. In keeping with the earliest practices of the monastic communities, Compline is offered when the work of the day is completed, and the quietness of the evening settles over the hearts and minds of those who have come together in thankfulness for the blessings of the day which has passed and in anticipation of God's gift of a new day.

At first, primarily the monastic communities offered Compline, but as Christian influence spread throughout Europe and the Mediterranean area, the office of Compline found a place in local liturgical settings. By the time of the Reformation in the 16th century, a large number breviaries - books which contained the texts and music - were available.
- Hallock & Crosier, The Office of Compline

Compline at St. Barnabas
Our intention in offering this evening service is to provide for the parish, and the community at large, an opportunity for quiet and unencumbered meditation. As the author, Alan Watts, has observed, "...it simply amazes me that for so many generations the spiritual discipline of millions of ordinary Christians has never, except by chance, involved interior or mystical silence." Silence and time for reflection are often identified as the most powerful and moving characteristics of the Compline service.

It is for this reason that we encourage you to simply sit anywhere in the church and listen, meditate and pray. The Schola choir will sing all of the responses, read and sing the prayers, and offer the passages from scripture. At the conclusion of the service, please feel free to remain for a time in prayer.

We are very grateful for the help given to us by Mr. Carl Crosier, as well as Mr. Peter Hallock, former music director for St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle, for the valuable personal resource and advice provided to this parish. We conclude with the words of Mr. Peter Hallock: "To express musically our concern for the nurture and care of the soul is what we of the Compline Choir are about. We must recognize and respond to the hunger for the numinous and transcendent presence of God in our lives."

It is to this end that we dedicate and offer these services at St. Barnabas.

References & Bibliography:
Night Prayer (Compline) in Traditional Language
The Office of Compline (authors Hallock & Crosier)
Watts, Alan. In My Own Way: An Autobiography, 1915-1965.(Pantheon Books, 1972).