(Greek: εὐκτηρίου) In the canon law of the Catholic Church, an oratory is a place which is set aside by permission of an ordinary for divine worship, for the convenience of some community or group of the faithful who assemble there, but to which other members of the faithful may have access with the consent of the competent superior. The word oratory comes from the Latin verb orare, to pray.
The oratory of the Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew, Dallas, Texas
Oratory of Santa Maria Annunziata in Borgo, Rome
The former Saint Joseph's Prairie Church in Washington Township, Dubuque County, Iowa. The parish ceased being active in 1989, and the parish church was maintained as an oratory until it was deconsecrated and sold in 1994.
The Rule of Saint Benedict is a book of precepts written in Latin c. 530 by St Benedict of Nursia for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot.
The oldest copy of the Rule of Saint Benedict, from the eighth century (Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS. Hatton 48, fols. 6v–7r)
Saint Benedict writing the rules. Painting (1926) by Hermann Nigg (1849–1928).
Saint Benedict delivering his rule to the monks of his order, Monastery of St. Gilles, Nimes, France, 1129
Ora et Labora (Pray and Work). This 1862 painting by John Rogers Herbert depicts monks at work in the fields.