Compline

Fr. Scott Haynes

Compline, the Church’s prayer at the close of day, gathers the labors, joys, and failings of the passing hours into a final offering to God. In its traditional form, an examination of conscience invites us to review the day honestly, giving thanks for the graces we have received and acknowledging the sins by which we have resisted them. After this quiet examen, the Confiteor is sung, giving voice to our repentance as we ask the prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the angels, the saints, and one another. With hearts humbled and renewed in confidence in God’s mercy, we prepare for the night, remembering that every surrender to sleep is also a preparation for the hour when we shall entrust our souls to Him in death.

Near the end of Compline, the Canticle of Simeon expresses this peaceful surrender: “Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, O Lord, according to thy word in peace; because my eyes have seen thy salvation” (Luke 2:29–30). As the aged Simeon rested in the fulfillment of God’s promise upon receiving the Christ Child into his arms, so we rest in the care of the Savior who has accompanied us throughout the day. The concluding Marian antiphon, the Salve Regina during its appointed season, turns our hearts toward Our Lady with the tender greeting, “Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy.” Beneath her maternal gaze, we bring our weariness and hopes to her Son, asking that, after the shadows of this earthly life, she may show us Jesus, the blessed fruit of her womb.