Chapter 15: When the Alleluia should be said

From the holy feast of Easter until Pentecost the Alleluia must always be said in the psalms and the responsories. From Pentecost until the beginning of Lent it is said only with the last six psalms in the night office. On every Sunday outside Lent, however, the Alleluia is included in Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext and None.... (From Ch. 15 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry OSB, 1997.)

In his instructions about when to say the Alleluia, St Benedict emphasizes for me the importance of cycles -- liturgical, seasonal, and personal. Moments of awakening can occur at exalted times, and yet, also as the fruit of waiting, seeking, suffering.