The Lord’s prayer

JESUS was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name, your Kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us, and do not subject us to the final test.”

REFLECTION WHEN YOU PRAY. Several momentous events in Jesus’ public ministry are grounded in prayer, when Jesus communes with the heavenly Father. He chooses the Twelve (Apostles) from among his disciples after a night of prayer on the mountain (cf Lk 6:12-13). His transfiguration up a high mountain happens while he is praying (cf Lk 9:29). Now, the “Lord’s Prayer” is given after Jesus has finished praying, when one of his disciples, inspired by Jesus’ constancy in prayer, asks him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”

The Lord’s Prayer, also known as the “Our Father” (from Matthew’s version), is important not so much as a prayer formula as the disposition it teaches when one prays to God. In Luke, this is taught to a community that is both Jewish and Gentile. When Gentiles pray, they tend to babble, thinking that they will be heard because of their many words (cf Mt 6:7). Now that they have left behind their pagan deities to serve the living and true God, they should address God who is their “Father” in heaven, as Jesus has taught. Hence, in praying, they must pray with trust and confidence. And they do not need to babble.

After the actual words of prayer, Jesus will give the parable of a friend who comes at midnight (cf Lk 11:5-8) to show that the heavenly Father knows what we need and is ready to give it. We only need to approach the Father with confidence.