How many of you know the Lord\u2019s Prayer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By heart?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is the traditional language and cadence that we use in the Episcopal Church, which is so very familiar: \u201cOur Father, who art in heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And there is the contemporary language: \u201cOur Father in heaven, holy be your name.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is controversy over some fine points: Are we forgiven \u201csins\u201d or \u201cdebts\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And how does the prayer end? \u201cLead us not into temptation, and deliver us from evil\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or \u201cThe kingdom, the power and the glory are yours, now and forever\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are a number of versions of this prayer used by Protestants and Catholics in contemporary services and in more traditional worship. The important thing is that we pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But what are we praying? What are we praying for<\/em>? And where did this prayer come from, what does it mean, how are we to use it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is clear that prayer is important to Jesus. We hear of him praying, we hear of him calling his followers to prayer, and we hear the lessons he offers about prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Luke\u2019s gospel alone, Jesus is at prayer at his baptism; before choosing his 12 disciples; before the first prediction of his passion, at the Transfiguration. Prayer seems to be important to Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And prayer was clearly important to Luke \u2013 after all, he collected and presented several stories attributed to Jesus right here in a rather small section of his gospel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Presumably, then, prayer will also be important to us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s take a closer look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What we read today begins with \u201cJesus was praying.\u201d And when he was finished, one of the disciples asked him to teach them to pray \u201cas John had taught his disciples.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We learn a couple of things in this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One, that prayer is something one learns, something that can be taught. There goes the excuse of \u201cBut I don\u2019t know how to pray!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And we also learn that there are forms of prayer that teachers pass on. It was usual in Jesus\u2019 time, and still is today, for teachers to instruct their disciples in how to pray and give them a formula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is essentially what the disciples were asking for. Rabbis, teachers, taught their students, their followers, their disciples, how to do things. In this case, it was John who had taught his disciples how to pray, and the disciples of Jesus asked for the same thing. They asked to be taught. So Jesus told them, \u201cWhen you pray, say this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here we get to a potential stumbling block in understanding what we traditionally call \u201cThe Lord\u2019s Prayer.\u201d It wasn\u2019t his<\/em> prayer, was it? It isn\u2019t what he<\/em> prayed. It was his response to a disciple\u2019s request to be given a formula for praying, to be given some instruction, a method. How often have we introduced this prayer in worship, saying, \u201cAnd now, as our savior taught us<\/em>, we are bold to say\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, is it the Lord\u2019s<\/em> Prayer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, yes. And no. He didn\u2019t teach us his prayer, but a way<\/em> to pray, and what to pray for.<\/em> He gave it to his disciples as a way to formulate prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is another point about this prayer that is sometimes missed: This is a community prayer, not a private prayer. It is a prayer that first praises God, and then makes three petitions for the ones praying. The language of \u201cus,\u201d \u201cwe,\u201d assumes that the community shares the longing for final coming of the kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This puts a bit of an eschatological thrust on the prayer. The people who formed the early church believed with all their hearts and hoped that Jesus was coming back to lift them out of oppression, any day. They expected that the kingdom would be established in their lifetime, and that they would live with God. Hence, the community<\/em> prayed in the way that Jesus instructed them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another point: The \u201cdaily bread\u201d piece in Luke more accurately reads \u201cday by day give us,\u201d or \u201ccontinue giving us,\u201d or \u201ceach day give us.\u201d It seems that Luke wasn\u2019t looking to a glorified bread in an eventual kingdom, but sustenance for the day, food for those who were encouraged to take up the cross daily, and who were expected to travel on missionary journeys with only what is needed for the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is as much a request as it is a demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Luke, the one praying asks for God\u2019s forgiveness of sins \u2013 not debts \u2013 while promising to forgive others their debts. This may be a reflection of Luke\u2019s concern that possessions not get in the way of community relationships. It may also be a reminder that God is the only one able to forgive sins, and that we are always in debt one to another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ultimately, the importance of the Lord\u2019s Prayer is not only that Jesus gave it to his disciples, but that it was picked up by early Christian worshippers and incorporated into their understanding of how God shall be praised and what is right to ask for. And it is especially important that it has been handed down through generations to bind our community together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How does Jesus teach his disciples to pray? Boldly. Courageously. Expectantly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Praise God. Place your needs before God. This prayer begins in boldness<\/em>. It is a prayer of great courage, both praising God and placing demands upon God\u2019s goodness, God\u2019s justice. It is the prayer of community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We hear a lot these days about Jesus as \u201cpersonal savior,\u201d and it is common to hear the question \u201cHave you been saved?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n But that would have been a foreign notion to the Jewish community, and out of character with Jesus\u2019 teachings. It is all<\/em> about community, not you and me individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pray in boldness, my friends. Stand strong. Lift your head. Raise your voice. Never mistake that our God is a strong God, ready to hear us. And pray together, for the community. That is what Jesus taught.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How many of you know the Lord\u2019s Prayer? By heart? There is the traditional language and cadence that we use in the Episcopal Church, which is so very familiar: \u201cOur Father, who art in heaven.\u201d And there is the contemporary language: \u201cOur Father in heaven, holy be your name.\u201d There is controversy over some fine…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":201212,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[43,52,33,3],"tags":[334],"class_list":["post-512208","sermon","type-sermon","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sermons","category-sermons-that-work","category-the-season-after-pentecost","category-worship-and-prayer-menu","tag-proper-12c"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":43,"label":"Sermons"},{"value":52,"label":"Sermons That Work"},{"value":33,"label":"The Season After Pentecost"},{"value":3,"label":"worship_and_prayer_menu"}],"post_tag":[{"value":334,"label":"Proper 12C"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":[],"comment_info":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sermon\/512208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sermon"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/sermon"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sermon\/512208\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3485539,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sermon\/512208\/revisions\/3485539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=512208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=512208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=512208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}