Gerald O'collins

The Lord's Prayer Gerald O'collins

When he saw Jesus praying, one of his followers asked him to teach them how to pray. Jesus instructed them in the right words to use. When we say the words of the Our Father, we pray not only as Jesus taught us but also (in part) we pray in the same way Jesus himself prayed. We are bonded to him in prayer. The prayer that Jesus taught us sums up much of what he did and taught. We are fully justified in praying it "with Jesus and consciously feeling in our prayer his intentions, words, and actions."

In THE LORD'S PRAYER, one of the world's leading theologians and biblical scholars explains what the prayer meant to Jesus himself and to his first followers, and he also describes what the Our Father has continued to mean over the centuries and what it means today. Like the story of his birth, death, and resurrection, the prayer Jesus shared with his disciples has gone out to all nations and cultures. The Lord's Prayer summarizes the message of the kingdom and of the Gospel. We can do nothing less than treasure it with deep thanks and say it or sing it with quiet devotion.