There is a story told of a Catholic priest military chaplain from World War II. We know about this story because this chaplain survived his time in the Army. He then eventually told this story in talks he gave after returning home from the war.
The story goes something like this: One day, the priest chaplain heard a solder yelling in a foxhole. The chaplain crawled into the foxhole and gave the soldier the Last Rites of the Church.
The soldier was seriously injured and dying. However, the solder was cussing and swearing about different people in his life. The priest chaplain asked him, “Why are you cussing at those people?” The dying solder replied, “Because they did not teach me how to pray.”
Eventually, the priest taught the dying solder in his final moments how to pray. Unfortunately, the solder eventually died. Fortunately, the solider seemed to die in the state of grace. The soldier was at peace with God, and he reconciled to the people he was angry at in his life.
II
This dramatic story is told to highlight the need not just to pray, but to teach others how to pray. And not only to pray to but to pray constantly. Now, for us 99% of the Catholic Church that don’t live in monasteries or convents, what does this mean for us? How do we pray without ceasing when we have busy lives in the world? Some say even Sunday Mass is a challenge to get to every week.
Well, in today’s Gospel, Jesus’s Apostles asked Jesus these same questions in a way, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Jesus replied with the ever-famous prayer called the Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father.
The Our Father is divided into 7 main parts or petitions. The first 3 petitions have to do with praising God: (1) “hallowed be Thy name” / (2) “Thy Kingdom come” / (3) “Thy will be done…”
Notice: Thy, Thy, Thy (referring to God’s name, God’s kingdom, and God’s will, while the other 4 petitions have to do with us.
(1) “Give us this day…”
(2) “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”
(3) “Lead us not into temptation”
(4) “But deliver us from evil.”
Notice: Us, Us, Us, Us (these present our wants to God: that He would make us nourished, healed, and made victorious over evil)
III
We start off with “Our” instead of “My Father”. When we say “our” Father, it is because WE are his people, and He is our God. It shows that we are praying of one mind and one heart and one soul, united in our common baptism. In a world of divisions, Jesus teaches us to overcome our divisions. The “Our” in “Our Father” means that we exclude no one. God is our Father, Mary is our mother, and Jesus our brother makes us brothers and sisters with each other.
According to Tertullian, the expression God the Father (Abba) “had never been revealed to anyone.” Even Moses heard another name for God. Jesus revealed God as Our Father. And yes it may be hard to experience a father’s love, esp if there is a father-wound, but this is where we are called to a child-like trust of the Father because it is to little children that the mysteries of the Father are revealed.
“Who art in Heaven” does not mean a place or space somewhere, but it is a way of being; it does not mean that God is distant; it means that God is majestic. He is in the hearts of the just, you who are his holy Temple. We profess that we are People of God, already seated with God but longing for Heaven our ultimate true home.
IV
In “Hallowed be Thy name” the word “hallowed” means “holy.” “Holy is your name.” It does not mean that we are causing God’s name to be holy but rather that we are recognizing God’s name as holy. This also means that there is a plan for each of us to be holy, starting with Baptism. St. Peter Chrysologus taught that asking God to hallow or make holy his name means to make all of creation holy. It gives salvation to a lost world.
“Thy Kingdom come” refers to the Kingdom of God in the person of Jesus. The world was originally good. Then it fell into Original Sin and the world was dark. And in this darkness, Jesus, the Light of the World, announces Himself as the Kingdom of God. Ultimately, “Thy kingdom come” refers primarily to the final coming of the reign of God through the Second Coming of Jesus. The Church cries out, “Marantha Tha” (Come, Lord Jesus!)” We see the Kingdom of God in Jesus, in the Church, in the Mass, in our lives, in society where there is justice and peace, but we want to see the final victory of the Kingdom of God at the end of time. St. Cyril of Jerusalem taught that only a pure soul can boldly say “Thy kingdom come.”
“Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” St. John Chrysostom said that Jesus did not say, “thy will be done in me” or “thy will be done in us” but rather “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. We constantly ask for God’s loving plan to be fully realized on earth the way it is already in heaven. That’s how we bring a little piece of Heaven on Earth— by doing God’s will.
V
“Give us this day our daily bread.’ After praising the Father, we show the “trust of children who look to their Father for everything.” Here, God “wants to relieve us from nagging worry and preoccupation” (Catechism 2830). This is the “filial surrender of the children of God.” Jesus said to seek first the Kingdom, and all things shall be added unto you.” At the same time, it calls Christians to responsibility for their hungry neighbors, both materially and spiritually. This ultimately means the Eucharist, the Bread of Life, which gives life to the world.
“And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Trespass means to sin. And the key word “as” connects “Forgive us our sins” “as” “we forgive those who sin against us.” This includes even forgiving enemies. Our sins are indeed forgiven, but that means we must forgive others as well, including those old wounds, those who have hurt or harmed us. With man, it may seem impossible, but with God all things are possible.
“Lead us not into temptation” means that God will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation the Holy Spirit wil0251l provide a way to escape.
“But deliver us from evil” means we ask to be protected from the Evil One, the devil, who is not an abstract idea, but the devil is a real person, a fallen angel, who hates you! We ask God to protect us from all evil, past, present and future. The Church brings to the Father all of the distress of the world and desires victory over the devil.
Amen means “So be it.” We ratify and agree with the prayer.
VI
To close, I knew a veteran soldier who could not remember longer prayers when he was sick and dying but did pray the Our Father repeatedly. And unlike the story of the solider who died in the foxhole, this veteran soldier recovered. I was also the first on the scene of an accident where a teenager was hit by a car. All I could think of was praying the Our Father for her. Thankfully, she survived. We can teach it to others. We can pray it every day. We can meditate on the words of the Lord’s Prayer and even see miracles happen.
Prayer, according to St. Therese, is a look to Heaven. St. John Vianney said, “God looks at me, and I look at God.” The Lord’s Prayer is a “summary of the whole Gospel” (Catechism 2761). St. Thomas Aquinas called it the most perfect of prayers because it teaches us the right order to pray for things.
Like the parable of the persistent asker in today’s Gospel, let us persistently pray, especially the Lord’s Prayer.
We pray, at the Savior’s command, and formed by divine teaching, we dare – we have the audacity – to pray it in and out of Mass.
Let us pray and meditate this prayer, while we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ.
For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory now and forever.
Amen.
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