Unpacking the Lord's Prayer (Part 2)
Ezekiel 36:22-27; Luke 11:1-4
Last Sunday I began a seven-part sermon series on the Lord’s Prayer. I want to thank those of you who have offered me your experiences in praying this prayer. I asked you to pray it each day between now and August 16th when we finish the series. Several of you told me that you already pray the prayer daily and what it means to you. Last week, I said that in the opening line Jesus teaches us that the God to whom we pray is as close and intimate as a loving parent but also greater than anything our minds can conceive. Some of you said that it was important and freeing to be able to address God as “Mother” as well as “Father.” Others said that, while you didn’t believe that God was in essence “male,” you didn’t see anything wrong with restricting the terms of address to “Father” and using masculine pronouns to refer to God. One of you said you substituted “God” for “Father” when you pray the prayer to avoid the gender issue altogether.
I hope you will continue to pray the prayer each day at least until the end of the series, that you will make notes for incorporation into your prayers during the week, and that you will share your experiences and questions in praying on my sermon blog. The Internet address is in the bulletin.
One of the problems in praying this prayer is that it uses some words that we do not use very often. Today’s petition has one of them: “Hallowed be thy name.” How many times this past week did you use the word “hallow”? Do you know what it means? Two kids were discussing the prayer in a Sunday School class. One boy said he thought it meant that God’s name was “Howard” – as in “Howard be thy name.” A girl corrected him saying that it meant, “Our Father in Heaven, How did you know my name?” The fact is that neither our children nor we use “hallow” often in our conversation. The Greek word behind the English “hallow” is agiadzo and it means, “to make holy,” “to dedicate or consecrate,” or to “treat with reverence.” This petition is for God to be honored as God, the Holy One.
In the Old Testament, when the people of Israel were being held in captivity in Babylon, the prophet Ezekiel anticipated a day when the name of God would not be profaned but would be honored by the nations. The prophet made clear that the reason why God’s name had been profaned was not because of the other nations, but because of the failure of God’s own people. The word of God through the prophet was that God’s name will be honored before all the nations “when through you I display my holiness before their eyes” (36:23). So also in the Lord’s Prayer the petition is "Let your name be hallowed, or let your name be set apart from all other names by those you have created." For us to pray this petition is to acknowledge God's nature as nurturing parent as well as to accept this God's claim on our lives; it also means that we are praying for the day when God’s name will be recognized and honored by everyone everywhere.
At this point, we could have a conversation about whether or not God’s name is “hallowed” by having “in God we trust” on our money, by having the Ten Commandments on public buildings, or by having prayer in public schools. We will have that conversation, but not today. The prophet Ezekiel was not concerned about whether others “hallowed” the name of God; it was the people of God he was concerned about. And his conclusion was that it was they who profaned it. Jesus, too, was concerned about his followers hallowing the name of God, not anyone else. As people who want to see ourselves as people of God, we need to assume full responsibility in our homes and in the church to “hallow” God’s name in prayer?
How, then, does this prayer help us? “Hallowed be thy name,” is a reminder that prayer is God-centered. Prayer is not, as some suppose, having a laundry list of concerns to present as though God were a glorified bellhop. At heart, prayer is simply paying attention to God, and in paying attention we “hallow” God’s name.
Some of our Greek forefathers and foremothers in the faith in the second and third centuries believed that the starting point and the final achievement of a life of prayer was to be absolutely silent before God. In this state all the faculties of the body were completely at peace, perfectly alert yet free of any turmoil or agitation. They often used a "pond" as an image for God and the human spirit. As long as the wind is blowing and there are ripples on the water, we can't see beneath the surface. Or, when the water of the pond has been stirred, mud from the bottom makes it impossible to see. Our spirits are like the pond, they said, rippled and muddied by daily concerns and anxieties. We need to be able to relax and allow the ripples to dissipate and the sediment to settle. In such silence and stillness we are ushered into the presence of God.[1]
Some folks treasure silence and stillness. Others are terrified by it. The Meyers Briggs Personality Typing has been a means of differentiating personality types, our differing needs and strengths. Not surprisingly, there are also different spiritual types, with different needs and strengths. Some folks desire quiet and solitude and are renewed by it. Others find their renewal in interaction with others and are uncomfortable with silence and solitude. I was powerfully reminded of this one Sunday when, in a church I once served, we received Holy Communion in silence, as someone had requested. After the service, I received a barrage of complaints from folks who didn’t like the idea of silence during communion at all. Now, that didn't mean that they didn't want to pray or to pay attention to God. It meant that they were used to and more comfortable doing it in another way. We don’t all have to pray the same way.
Nicolas Herman was born to a family in Lorraine, France in the early part of the seventeenth century (about 1611). In his youth he became a soldier but was forced to abandon that career when he got a wound that really made him unsuitable as a soldier. By most accounts, he was a simple and uneducated man. For a while he served as a footman for a carriage driver. Because he had been brought up in an actively Christian family, he eventually entered a monastery and became a Carmelite monk.
That seemed to be a good decision. His heart was full of faith. Because of his lack of education, he was not assigned to work in the scriptorium (the large room where other monks meticulously copied old manuscripts of scripture and other ancient texts). He was not assigned to work in the choir because he had no training in music and his voice was not outstanding. He was in fact given what was considered one of the most menial of jobs in the monastery, and that was in the kitchen. He was a cook's helper. Day after day, year after year, he cut vegetables and washed pots. He didn't complain. In fact, those tasks suited him perfectly. He loved his work in the kitchen and he loved the time everyday when he got to go there for his work.
What he didn't relish, however, were the seven times during the day and night when the monks gathered for "the liturgy of the hours." In these times of structured prayer he found himself unable to pray effectively. He fidgeted through the readings, the chants, and the prayers. Since in the eyes of many, this kind of prayer was what monks were supposed to do, his disposition seemed just another indication that he didn't fit into the usual monastic life.
That experience didn't dim Nicholas' faith. In fact, it seemed to push him in another direction. When he would go to his tasks in the kitchen -- cutting the vegetables or scrubbing the floor -- he began to practice placing himself in God's presence as he did his tasks. As his practice became habit, he found that the distinction between time designated for "work" and time designated for "prayer" became blurred. In fact, Nicholas claimed "he was more united to God in his ordinary activities than when he devoted himself to religious activities which left him with a profound spiritual dryness."[2]
It was out of this utterly ordinary set of circumstances that came a life of profound holiness, making the mundane activities of daily life avenues into the presence of God. Of course, we don't remember him as Nicholas Herman, but as Brother Lawrence.[3] His little book, The Practice of the Presence of God, is actually no more than four transcribed conversations and letters. But that little book, from a person with a heart so full of faith and devotion, became a spiritual classic that has captivated Protestants and Catholics alike for over three centuries. So short that it can -- but never should -- be read in a single setting, this friar offered a deceptively simple form of prayer called "practicing the presence of God."
What Brother Lawrence recognized was that we can pray or "pay attention to God" anytime: while we are changing the baby's diapers, while we are doing accounts, while we are doing our homework, or whatever. The effort of thinking of God frequently throughout the day may at first appear easy. It is not, and it may even feel laborious and artificial. If it is to become a habit, it is something for which we have to train ourselves. And Brother Lawrence's way is doubtless not suitable for everybody. Some may need more structure -- a place, a time, and a form. Some need silence, away from the banging of pots and pans. Brother Lawrence was concerned that the desire to be in the presence of God not be a cause for anxiety. He was convinced that sincere efforts on our part are eventually met by gracious invitations from God. If we struggle to approach God, he said, God comes running to us, and what began as a deliberate act of the will on our part ends as an effortless delight.
Whether in times of quiet and solitude, or in the very midst of our daily tasks, when our attitude of prayer is to practice the presence of God, the Spirit will work through us to hallow God’s name. We will be anticipating the time when all people hallow the name of God. And when at home or at church we teach our children to do the same, we do not have to worry about what anyone else or any other institution does. Keep on praying!
[1] Anthony Bloom From Living Prayer, quoted in Rueben P. Job and Norman Shawchuck's A Guide to Prayer (Nashville: The Upper Room, 1983) pp. 308-309.
Last Sunday I began a seven-part sermon series on the Lord’s Prayer. I want to thank those of you who have offered me your experiences in praying this prayer. I asked you to pray it each day between now and August 16th when we finish the series. Several of you told me that you already pray the prayer daily and what it means to you. Last week, I said that in the opening line Jesus teaches us that the God to whom we pray is as close and intimate as a loving parent but also greater than anything our minds can conceive. Some of you said that it was important and freeing to be able to address God as “Mother” as well as “Father.” Others said that, while you didn’t believe that God was in essence “male,” you didn’t see anything wrong with restricting the terms of address to “Father” and using masculine pronouns to refer to God. One of you said you substituted “God” for “Father” when you pray the prayer to avoid the gender issue altogether.
I hope you will continue to pray the prayer each day at least until the end of the series, that you will make notes for incorporation into your prayers during the week, and that you will share your experiences and questions in praying on my sermon blog. The Internet address is in the bulletin.
One of the problems in praying this prayer is that it uses some words that we do not use very often. Today’s petition has one of them: “Hallowed be thy name.” How many times this past week did you use the word “hallow”? Do you know what it means? Two kids were discussing the prayer in a Sunday School class. One boy said he thought it meant that God’s name was “Howard” – as in “Howard be thy name.” A girl corrected him saying that it meant, “Our Father in Heaven, How did you know my name?” The fact is that neither our children nor we use “hallow” often in our conversation. The Greek word behind the English “hallow” is agiadzo and it means, “to make holy,” “to dedicate or consecrate,” or to “treat with reverence.” This petition is for God to be honored as God, the Holy One.
In the Old Testament, when the people of Israel were being held in captivity in Babylon, the prophet Ezekiel anticipated a day when the name of God would not be profaned but would be honored by the nations. The prophet made clear that the reason why God’s name had been profaned was not because of the other nations, but because of the failure of God’s own people. The word of God through the prophet was that God’s name will be honored before all the nations “when through you I display my holiness before their eyes” (36:23). So also in the Lord’s Prayer the petition is "Let your name be hallowed, or let your name be set apart from all other names by those you have created." For us to pray this petition is to acknowledge God's nature as nurturing parent as well as to accept this God's claim on our lives; it also means that we are praying for the day when God’s name will be recognized and honored by everyone everywhere.
At this point, we could have a conversation about whether or not God’s name is “hallowed” by having “in God we trust” on our money, by having the Ten Commandments on public buildings, or by having prayer in public schools. We will have that conversation, but not today. The prophet Ezekiel was not concerned about whether others “hallowed” the name of God; it was the people of God he was concerned about. And his conclusion was that it was they who profaned it. Jesus, too, was concerned about his followers hallowing the name of God, not anyone else. As people who want to see ourselves as people of God, we need to assume full responsibility in our homes and in the church to “hallow” God’s name in prayer?
How, then, does this prayer help us? “Hallowed be thy name,” is a reminder that prayer is God-centered. Prayer is not, as some suppose, having a laundry list of concerns to present as though God were a glorified bellhop. At heart, prayer is simply paying attention to God, and in paying attention we “hallow” God’s name.
Some of our Greek forefathers and foremothers in the faith in the second and third centuries believed that the starting point and the final achievement of a life of prayer was to be absolutely silent before God. In this state all the faculties of the body were completely at peace, perfectly alert yet free of any turmoil or agitation. They often used a "pond" as an image for God and the human spirit. As long as the wind is blowing and there are ripples on the water, we can't see beneath the surface. Or, when the water of the pond has been stirred, mud from the bottom makes it impossible to see. Our spirits are like the pond, they said, rippled and muddied by daily concerns and anxieties. We need to be able to relax and allow the ripples to dissipate and the sediment to settle. In such silence and stillness we are ushered into the presence of God.[1]
Some folks treasure silence and stillness. Others are terrified by it. The Meyers Briggs Personality Typing has been a means of differentiating personality types, our differing needs and strengths. Not surprisingly, there are also different spiritual types, with different needs and strengths. Some folks desire quiet and solitude and are renewed by it. Others find their renewal in interaction with others and are uncomfortable with silence and solitude. I was powerfully reminded of this one Sunday when, in a church I once served, we received Holy Communion in silence, as someone had requested. After the service, I received a barrage of complaints from folks who didn’t like the idea of silence during communion at all. Now, that didn't mean that they didn't want to pray or to pay attention to God. It meant that they were used to and more comfortable doing it in another way. We don’t all have to pray the same way.
Nicolas Herman was born to a family in Lorraine, France in the early part of the seventeenth century (about 1611). In his youth he became a soldier but was forced to abandon that career when he got a wound that really made him unsuitable as a soldier. By most accounts, he was a simple and uneducated man. For a while he served as a footman for a carriage driver. Because he had been brought up in an actively Christian family, he eventually entered a monastery and became a Carmelite monk.
That seemed to be a good decision. His heart was full of faith. Because of his lack of education, he was not assigned to work in the scriptorium (the large room where other monks meticulously copied old manuscripts of scripture and other ancient texts). He was not assigned to work in the choir because he had no training in music and his voice was not outstanding. He was in fact given what was considered one of the most menial of jobs in the monastery, and that was in the kitchen. He was a cook's helper. Day after day, year after year, he cut vegetables and washed pots. He didn't complain. In fact, those tasks suited him perfectly. He loved his work in the kitchen and he loved the time everyday when he got to go there for his work.
What he didn't relish, however, were the seven times during the day and night when the monks gathered for "the liturgy of the hours." In these times of structured prayer he found himself unable to pray effectively. He fidgeted through the readings, the chants, and the prayers. Since in the eyes of many, this kind of prayer was what monks were supposed to do, his disposition seemed just another indication that he didn't fit into the usual monastic life.
That experience didn't dim Nicholas' faith. In fact, it seemed to push him in another direction. When he would go to his tasks in the kitchen -- cutting the vegetables or scrubbing the floor -- he began to practice placing himself in God's presence as he did his tasks. As his practice became habit, he found that the distinction between time designated for "work" and time designated for "prayer" became blurred. In fact, Nicholas claimed "he was more united to God in his ordinary activities than when he devoted himself to religious activities which left him with a profound spiritual dryness."[2]
It was out of this utterly ordinary set of circumstances that came a life of profound holiness, making the mundane activities of daily life avenues into the presence of God. Of course, we don't remember him as Nicholas Herman, but as Brother Lawrence.[3] His little book, The Practice of the Presence of God, is actually no more than four transcribed conversations and letters. But that little book, from a person with a heart so full of faith and devotion, became a spiritual classic that has captivated Protestants and Catholics alike for over three centuries. So short that it can -- but never should -- be read in a single setting, this friar offered a deceptively simple form of prayer called "practicing the presence of God."
What Brother Lawrence recognized was that we can pray or "pay attention to God" anytime: while we are changing the baby's diapers, while we are doing accounts, while we are doing our homework, or whatever. The effort of thinking of God frequently throughout the day may at first appear easy. It is not, and it may even feel laborious and artificial. If it is to become a habit, it is something for which we have to train ourselves. And Brother Lawrence's way is doubtless not suitable for everybody. Some may need more structure -- a place, a time, and a form. Some need silence, away from the banging of pots and pans. Brother Lawrence was concerned that the desire to be in the presence of God not be a cause for anxiety. He was convinced that sincere efforts on our part are eventually met by gracious invitations from God. If we struggle to approach God, he said, God comes running to us, and what began as a deliberate act of the will on our part ends as an effortless delight.
Whether in times of quiet and solitude, or in the very midst of our daily tasks, when our attitude of prayer is to practice the presence of God, the Spirit will work through us to hallow God’s name. We will be anticipating the time when all people hallow the name of God. And when at home or at church we teach our children to do the same, we do not have to worry about what anyone else or any other institution does. Keep on praying!
[1] Anthony Bloom From Living Prayer, quoted in Rueben P. Job and Norman Shawchuck's A Guide to Prayer (Nashville: The Upper Room, 1983) pp. 308-309.
[3] Robin Maas and Gavriel O'Donnell, eds, Spiritual Traditions for the Contemporary Church, (Nashville:Abingdon Press, 1990), p. 260.
8 comments:
Pastor Milo,
I so appreciate your sermons and your perspective. You are such an accomplished speaker and we are blessed to have you with us!
I love the idea that you can pray and be close to God while working! It's something to practice and perfect!
Love and Prayers,
Robin Bassett
Dear Milo,
OK, you asked for it!
We have become intrigued after your challenge to pray The Lord's Prayer every day and to think about it as well.
We say prayers with our children every night. My son, after many years of "Now I lay me down to sleep", chose to say The Lord's Prayer instead. We have been talking about it every night with the kids as we put them to bed. After slogging through the "thy" and "thine" and "hallowed", the kids decided to create what they called a "Kid-Friendly" version. (Also known as The Lord's Prayer for Dummies)
Here it is.
Our God (Or Father or Mother)
Who is in Heaven
Your name is holy.
Your kingdom is coming,
It will be the same on Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us today our physical and spiritual food,
And forgive us our sins
As we forgive those who sin against us.
And lead us out of temptation, but deliver us from evil,
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.
Now, my daughter has a question for you, which could be an entire sermon...Just what does "Amen" mean, anyway?
Back to you.
Donna N.
Donna,
Thanks for the comment with the "Kid-Friendly" version of the Lord's Prayer.
Tell Aurora that "Amen" is a Hebrew word that means "truly" or "so be it." When we conclude our prayers with "Amen" we are saying something like "I really mean it." It is a way of dedicating ourselves to God and all that we have prayed for.
Maybe I'll talk about this in the final sermon in the series when we talk about "For Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory."
Keep on praying!
Milo
Milo, your talks on the Lord's Prayer has me thinking about my grandson and how he has at 6 already decided that God is a he and lives in heaven which is above his head somewhere.
Do you think it's worth correcting this concept he has adopted to a more inclusive one, i.e., God can be masc, neuter or feminine and is with us and all around us at all times.
Or is he too young. Maybe it is a sign of his age that he has this conception of God. I don't know.
Jan W
Jan,
Your grandson needs models of adults who refer to God in other than masculine terms. In this culture, he has many models who talk about God exclusively as male.
I think you can also engage your grandson in conversation about this, not by telling him that he is wrong, but by saying that God is greater than anything we can imagine, and that God may well be "Mother" as well as "Father."
This is not a quick fix. The ideal time to begin talking about this is four. Be prepared to continue conversations about this for the next several years.
Because six-year-olds are so spacially oriented, I don't worry much about him locating Heaven above him. But you can remind him that God is greater than we can imagine and that God is as close to us as our own breath. Tell him that it is a mystery that he will better understand as he grows older, but that it will always be a mystery.
The important thing is not to make him think he's said something wrong and is being corrected. Encourage him to expand his thinking.
There may be readers who've had experience with their six-year-olds that we should hear from. What about it? Let us hear from you.
Keep praying!
Milo
I like the inclusive nature of the Lord’s Prayer, and this passage (hallowed be thy name) emphasizes that aspect. The word “name” refers back to our Father or our God who art in heaven. The prayer was spoken by Christ before the Christianity split from Judaism, before the split of Christianity into Roman and Eastern Catholic branches, and before the Roman Catholic branch split further in Catholic and Protestant branches. So, people in all of those religions pray to our God in heaven. And even though the prayer is not considered a Jewish prayer, Jesus was a Jew when he spoke it; he was praying to his Jewish God, Jehovah or Yahweh. So, the Lord’s Prayer is really inclusive.
Milo and All,
I have enjoyed reading the posts with everyone's perspective. It makes you think about the sermon all week long.
I've been thinking about the opening of this prayer and there is one thing that I keep thinking about. The prayer starts where our hearts should be - focused on God, not on us. It reminds me of the Purpose Driven Life which reminds us "It's not about you!"
I am taking my entire life to figure this out!
Learning to eat humble pie,
Robin :)
PS: I have 2 suggestions:
1. Send this web site to everyone on the UMCC email list
2. Place a link to this site on our church web site
God Male/Female:
Savannah (age 9): I really can't think of God as a girl. [why?] because the Bible say "He" everywhere about God (she tried using "She" instead and again proclaimed) It's just hard for me!
Julia (age 7): Sure, I can think of God as a boy or a girl - or BOTH! [why?] Because he's God - he can do anything (note: this one's really been paying attention in church!)
Love and Prayers,
Robin Bassett :)
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