The Lord's Prayer

T

hree Points on the Lord’s Prayer

1. Have you ever wondered why it is called the Lord's Prayer? The Catechism of the Catholic Church helps us:

CCC 2765: “The traditional expression ‘the Lord’s Prayer’ (oratio Dominica) means that the prayer to our Father is taught and given to us by the Lord Jesus. The prayer that comes to us from Jesus is truly unique: it is of the Lord. On the one hand, in the words of this prayer, the only Son gives us the words the Father gave him: he is the master of our prayer. On the other, as Word Incarnate, he knows in his human heart the needs of his human brothers and sisters and reveals them to us: he is the model of our prayer.”

The Lord’s Prayer is the most perfect—not only because in it we ask for all the things we can rightly desire, and in the order they should be desired—but because of its very title. It is the Lord’s Prayer; it is Jesus’s prayer, and only he could teach this to us. No one else could.

2. The Lord’s Prayer is found at the heart of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus did a lot of talking—big talk, as we’ve seen in the past days. Perhaps the most shocking was yesterday’s, and I appreciate Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase in The Message:

The World Is Not a Stage 

“Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don’t make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won’t be applauding. 

“When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to yourself... ‘Playactors’ I call them—treating prayer meetings and street corners alike as a stage... They get applause, true, but that’s all they get. 

“And when you come before God, don’t turn that into a theatrical production either... Find a quiet, secluded place... Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.”

These are the big words Jesus spoke before teaching the Lord’s Prayer. His message was clear: “Do the words I pray match the life I live?” That’s the crux of the Sermon on the Mount. You can say many words in prayer—but unless those words match your actions, you risk becoming like the Pharisees: all talk, no authority. Jesus walked his talk. “For I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:20).

3. Lastly, Jesus prayed—and he taught at the same time. His praying and teaching matched. That’s what gave his words authority—unlike the Pharisees. The Lord’s Prayer is not only the perfect prayer, it is the most authoritative prayer. Why? Because Jesus matched each word with his life.

Go line by line, petition by petition, in the Lord’s Prayer—and you will see how Jesus fulfilled every one of them:

"Abba Father" – Jesus constantly revealed the Father—calling God “Abba” and inviting us into that same intimate relationship (cf. Jn 14:9, Mk 14:36).

“Hallowed be thy name” – Jesus lived to glorify the Father’s name (Jn 17:4, Jn 12:28). Through his words and actions, he revealed the holiness of God.

"Thy kingdom come" – His entire mission was the proclamation and embodiment of the Kingdom of God—in healing the sick, forgiving sins, and gathering the lost (Lk 4:43, Mt 12:28).

“Thy will be done” – in Gethsemane, he surrendered.

“Give us this day our daily bread” – he fed the hungry and became Bread himself.

“Forgive us…” – He forgave from the Cross.

“And lead us not into temptation” – In the desert and throughout his life, Jesus resisted the tempter (Mt 4:1–11, Heb 4:15), showing us how to depend on the Father and Scripture in times of trial.

“But deliver us from evil” – By his death and resurrection, Jesus conquered sin and death. He is the Deliverer who breaks the chains of evil and opens the way to life (Col 1:13–14, Jn 16:33).

If we want to be like Jesus, we can start by praying the Our Father—and meaning it. Amen. Fr JM Manzano SJ