The Psalter is read extensively in Orthodoxy. They are the prayers of the Church:
The Psalter is so prevalent in Orthodox worship, St. John Chrysostom said that wherever one looks in the Church, he finds the Psalter “first, last, and central.”
- Psalm 50, as an introductory prayer, is said at the beginning of many individual prayer rules as well as at Vespers
- The hymn, “O, Lord I have Cried”, which includes “Set a watch O Lord…”, chanted at the beginning of every Vespers, is composed of Psalms 140, 141, and 129
- Every Friday night before Pascha our parish practices the tradition of reading the Psalter all night long
- The Psalter can be read while people are waiting for Confession
- Every Great Vespers and Orthros we say the 8 or so Psalms designated for each service.
- Before Great Vespers, during 9th hour, we will chant Psalms 83-85
- Any many more examples
Keep in mind, Psalm numbering in Orthodoxy is slightly different from Western canons, not pictured here is the fact that we have a Psalm 151.
In monasteries it is not uncommon for the entire Psalter be read weekly. The first 150 Psalms are divided into 20 kathismata. Each kathisma contains 3 stases. At the parish level we usually say the Kathisma for Great Vespers and Orthros at the beginning of those services.
