Is the Lord's Prayer Too Archaic? Editor's Postlude
The question came to me, “Why do we still use the Lord’s Prayer when the language is archaic and we don’t believe what it says?”
Indeed, the words may not express exactly what we believe. “Our Father who art in heaven…” In my daily prayers, I often change this to “Our Father and Mother, hallowed be thy name…” and leave out the “in heaven” part, because I believe that God is with us, not sitting somewhere out there on a throne and that God is more than a father.
“Thy kingdom come.” I’m okay with the “thy” language, but “kingdom” not so much. “Lead us not into temptation” also trips me up. Do I believe that God leads us into temptation? I do think that the Spirit challenges us, but I don’t think God puts every temptation in front of me.
“Give us this day our daily bread” is another phrase I wonder about. Do I believe that God provides my food while not providing food for others? However, the prayer is about “us” not “me.” I am actually praying for a just sharing and provision of food for everyone, not just myself.
Part of the problem is that many of us are stuck praying the King James English prayer rather than more recent translations. For others, the issue may be that we repeat the words without thinking about them.
Yet, I think that the power is not in the particular words but in the action of sharing them, and in sharing a prayer that has been repeated by generations of Christians for 2,000 years, a prayer with its roots in Judaism.
When we pray the Lord’s Prayer together in church, I am always amazed that the number of voices I experience is much greater than can be accounted for by the number of people in worship. For me, it is the communion of saints joining us, the voices of many generations adding their energy to ours in this prayer of Jesus.
There is something powerful about praying a prayer that has been prayed by so many, in so many different languages and locations. That’s why I often pray the daily prayers from my father’s Ukrainian Orthodox prayer book. Much of it does not express what I believe, but there is such comfort in leaning into words that my father, my grandparents, my great-grandparents, and generations before have prayed and cherished.
We are not a prayer book people in the United Church. We use new prayers each week. The Lord’s Prayer is the one prayer we hold in common. At occasions such as funerals, people may not know the hymns, but they often know the Lord’s Prayer. It is one piece that we can share together, and there is power in that sharing!
I have worshipped across Canada, in the Netherlands, in France, in Jamaica, in Sweden, and in Spain. Whether or not I know the language of worship, I recognize the reciting of the Lord’s Prayer by its rhythm and by the devotion with which the community offers the words, whether spoken, sung, or signed. Through this prayer, I am connected in a beautiful way with those with whom I am worshipping.
I can’t imagine Christian worship without the Lord’s Prayer.
It roots us and grounds us in the realm to which Jesus called us. Each time I pray the words, I am reminded of what God dreams for the world: justice and bread for all, forgiveness and reconciliation among people, and the power of the holy delivering all from evil. As I pray, I remember that God’s power at work within us can accomplish more than we can imagine.
It is profound to lean into this prayer, which is recorded in the gospels of Matthew and Luke and which the early Christian instruction book, the Didache, instructs us to pray three times a day. That’s how important this prayer was deemed to be. Rooting ourselves in the power of this ancient prayer deepens our relationship with the Divine and daily renews our commitment to the realm and Way of Jesus.
Susan Lukey, Editor
