Oratory (worship)

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For other uses, see Oratory (disambiguation).

In Christianity, an oratory is a room for prayer. The term is used in the Rule of St Benedict (chapter 52) for the private communal prayer room inside monasteries.

In the Roman Catholic Church, an oratory is also a semi-public place of worship, other than a public church, constructed for the benefit of a group of persons (Code of Canon Law, canon 1223).^[1] Other faithful may attend the church under certain circumstances. An oratory is more private than a church, since in a church everyone has a right to attend. It is, however, more public than a chapel, since only the owners of a chapel have the right of entrance.

The oratory of the Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew, Dallas, Texas.

The oldest extant oratory is the Archiepiscopal Chapel in Ravenna (c. 500). Oratories seem to have found their origin in chapels built in the sanctuaries of martyrs, for the faithful to assemble and pray on the spot. Oratorians are responsible for the construction of many oratories in Great Britain.

Saint Joseph's Oratory is the name of a Roman Catholic basilica in Montreal.

The term "Oratorians" also refers to the congregation of priests founded by St Philip Neri in Rome, Italy in 1575.