The Office is, when one considers the Latin West at least, the last great relatively unexplored frontier.' This collection goes a long way to opening up that last frontier with its stated intention to 'draw students of the Middle Ages, both scholars and nonspecialists, more deeply into this vast, little explored terrain.' So the Medieval Office 'has been very little studied in our own age, and this in spite of the great explosion of scholarly work on the medieval period in this century. However, as the editors remark in their preface: 'Liturgiologists in this century have not been particularly interested in the Latin Middle Ages, but have tended to concentrate on the early Christian period, finding there the best models for the restoration of public prayer in contemporary churches' (viii). Both the material in the book itself and the work of Steiner are proof positive that there is a very great deal of thinking and research on the subject of the Liturgy of the Hours taking place today. It is not an area where there is a ferment of thinking and research, nor a great outpouring of publications.' This book of essays to honour the scholarly labours of Ruth Steiner is a refutation of his claim.

Recently, George Guiver was asked to address the Union of Monastic Superiors in Britain and Ireland on the subject of the Liturgy of the Hours.] He commented: '.in truth there is not much to say.

Sacred Silence by Donald Cozzens