Concluding Thoughts

Tertullian. How many prophetic, evangelical, and apostolic sayings, how many words of the Lord Himself, His parables and commandments, does the Lord’s Prayer touch upon in so few words? And how many duties does it show us to be fulfilling at the same time? That we honor God—in the words “Our Father”; that we bear witness to faith by our deeds—in “hallowed be Your name”; that we offer Him submission—in “Your will be done”; that we seek life in Him—in “give us our bread”; that we confess our sins—in asking forgiveness of debts; that we guard ourselves from temptations—in seeking protection and shelter from above—God alone could teach us how He desires us to pray. Therefore this devout prayer, established by Him, being moved by His Spirit in our hearts and proceeding as it were from His own mouth—just as it did when it was first given—by virtue of this privilege, ascends to heaven and presents to the Father’s goodwill what the Son has taught. However, since the Lord, who foreknows human needs, after giving this rule of prayer, separately commanded: “seek and you shall find” (Luke 11:9), and since there is much about which each person, according to their own circumstances, having offered this prayer appointed by rule as a foundation, needs to pray further—it is permitted to add other petitions to those of this prayer in accordance with the current needs of life, on condition, however, of remembering and fulfilling the commandments, so that to the degree we are far from the commandments, our petitions may not be equally far from God’s ears. The keeping of the commandments prepares the way to heaven for our prayer, and the chief among them is this—not to approach the altar of the Lord without first making peace with brothers with whom one has fallen into discord and disagreement (Matt. 5:23). For how indeed can one approach the God of peace without being at peace with one’s brother—seeking forgiveness of one’s own debts while withholding it from a brother’s? And how will one who is angry with a brother be pleasing to the Father?

St. Cyprian of Carthage. It is no wonder, most beloved brothers, that such is the prayer given to us by God, who in His teaching expressed all our prayer in brief but saving words. Long before this was foretold by the prophet Isaiah; speaking of the greatness and love of God, he, filled with the Holy Spirit, said: “A word… accomplishing and cutting short in righteousness, for a shortened word will the Lord make over the whole earth” (Isa. 10:23). Therefore, when our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God, came for all people, and gathering the learned and the unlearned expounded saving commandments for every sex and age, He also enclosed His commandments in concise speech, so as not to burden the memory of those learning heavenly things, and so that what is necessary for simple faith could be learned quickly.

But the Lord taught us to pray not only by words but also by deeds: He Himself frequently offered prayers and supplications to God, showing by His own example what we ought to do. Scripture says: “But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray” (Luke 5:16). And again: “He went up on the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12). If He prayed—He who was sinless—how much more must sinners pray? If He, keeping vigil through the whole night, offered unceasing prayers, how much more ought we to keep watch through the night in frequent prayer? The Lord prayed and interceded not for Himself, for what should the innocent ask for on His own behalf? He prayed for our sins, as He Himself explains, saying to Peter: “Simon, Simon, Satan has demanded to sift you all like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:31–32). Then He prayed to the Father also for all, saying: “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word, that they may all be one, just as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, so that they also may be in Us” (John 17:20–21). How great is the goodness and love of the Lord in the ordering of our salvation! Not content with having redeemed us by His Blood, He also interceded for us! And in His intercession, see what His desire was: that we too might abide in that very unity in which the Father and the Son are one. From this we can understand how greatly they sin who destroy unity and peace, who destroy that for which the Lord prayed, He who desired His people to be saved while living in peace, knowing that enmity has no place in the Kingdom of God.

When we stand in prayer, we must be watchful and attend to prayer with all our heart. Let every fleshly and worldly thought depart from us, and let the spirit think only of what it asks. And the priest, having prefaced the prayer with an introduction, prepares the minds of the faithful by calling out: “Lift up your hearts”; and the people, in their response, “They are lifted up to the Lord”—receive a reminder that they must think of nothing but the Lord. Let the heart be closed to the adversary; let it be open to God alone and not permit the enemy of God to enter during prayer! But he often forces his way in, and with subtle deception diverts our prayers from God, making us hold one thing in the heart while expressing another with the voice, whereas the Lord must be prayed to with sincere attention, and implored not by the sound of the voice but with heart and feeling. What negligence is this—during the offering of prayer to the Lord, to absent oneself and be carried away by foolish and unworthy thoughts, as if you had something more important to think about than the fact that you are conversing with God? And how do you expect God to hear you when you do not hear yourself? How do you want God to remember you during your prayer when you yourself do not remember yourself? This means not guarding against the enemy at all. This means, while praying to God, insulting the divine majesty by negligence in prayer. This means watching with the eyes while sleeping in the heart, whereas a Christian must be awake in heart even when asleep with the eyes. In Scripture, in the Song of Songs, these words are spoken in the voice of the Church: “I sleep, but my heart is awake” (Song 5:2). That is why the apostle with such care and diligence exhorts us, saying: “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it” (Col. 4:2). By this he teaches and shows that only those receive from God what they ask whom God sees as watchful in prayer.

Moreover, those who pray must not come before God with barren and empty prayers. Ineffectual is that petition which is expressed in prayer unaccompanied by deed. If every tree that does not bear fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire, then surely a word that bears no fruit cannot be pleasing to God, being devoid of all good work. That is why Holy Scripture says for our instruction: “Prayer is good with fasting and almsgiving” (Tob. 12:8). The Lord, who on the day of judgment will render reward for deeds and mercies, also now graciously hears the one who comes with good works. So Cornelius the centurion prayed—and was found worthy to be heard. He gave much alms to the people and always prayed to God. To him, at about the ninth hour, during prayer, an angel appeared and, bearing witness to his works, said: “Cornelius!.. Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God” (Acts 10:3–4). Prayers swiftly ascend to God when they are made precious before Him by our deeds. The Lord enjoins and commands the same through Isaiah: “Loose,” He says, “the bonds of wickedness, undo the straps of the yoke, let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke; share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, cover him, and do not hide yourself from your own kin. Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you, and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry, and He will say: ‘Here I am!’” (Isa. 58:6–9). God promises to appear, saying that He will hear and protect those who, loosing in their heart the bonds of wickedness and by His commandment giving alms to the members of God’s household, merit to be heard by God, since they themselves also obey God’s commandments. The blessed apostle Paul, having received aid from the brothers in his need, called the good work they did a sacrifice to God. “I am filled,” he says, “having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God” (Phil. 4:18).

St. John Cassian. So then, see what a form of prayer has been offered to us by the very Judge whom we must beseech with it. Here there is no petition and not even any mention of wealth, honors, power and strength, or bodily health or temporal life. The Creator of eternity does not want us to ask of Him anything vain, trivial, or temporal. Therefore, the one who, scorning these eternally good petitions, would seek to beseech Him for something fleeting and perishable inflicts the greatest insult on His majesty and goodness; such a person will sooner draw upon himself the indignation of his Judge by the pettiness of his petitions than attract His good favor.

Although the prayer set forth, having been spoken or established by the Lord Himself, appears to contain within itself all the fullness of perfection, yet for those nearest to God it serves as a guide to that most exalted state we spoke of earlier—to that fiery prayer, known and experienced by very few or, more precisely, to that unspeakable prayer which, surpassing all human understanding, cannot be expressed by sounds of the voice, nor by movements of the lips, nor by any combination of words, but which the mind, illumined by the radiance of the Heavenly light, utters not in the feeble speech of man, but from the fullness of feeling pours forth spontaneously from itself as from an abundantly flowing spring, and sends up to the Lord in a manner beyond words. In that brief moment our mind is so filled with such impressions that even turning in upon itself it can neither utter nor survey them.

Blessed Augustine. We must also take note of what distinction exists among these seven petitions. Since our temporal life is passing now and eternal life is awaited, and since the eternal takes precedence in dignity, though one arrives at it after first completing temporal things—what is asked in the first three petitions, though it has its beginning in this life lived in this age, comes to its fulfillment in the life to come, where all three will abide in full power and perfection. There the name of God will be hallowed without ceasing, and His kingdom will have no end, and His will shall be seen as wholly working and fulfilled in all things. Therefore, these three will come to full perfection and will appear in inseparable union in that life which is promised to us. The remaining four petitions belong, it seems to me, to this temporal life. The first of them is: “Give us this day our daily bread.” But the very fact that this bread is here called daily shows that it belongs to the present time, indicated by the word “day,” whether we understand by it spiritual bread—intellectual (the word of God) or sacramental (the body and blood of the Lord) or material: not because (I say this) spiritual nourishment is not eternal, but because the spiritual nourishment that is called daily is imparted to the soul through the Scriptures, or through articulate speech, or under various temporal signs—all of which will be no more when all are taught by God (Isa. 54:13; John 6:45), and draw the unspeakable light of truth directly with a pure mind. And sins are forgiven us only here, just as we here also forgive our debtors; there there will be no place for the forgiveness of sins. Likewise, this temporal life alone is filled with temptations; but then, when what is written is fulfilled: “You hide them in the shelter of Your presence” (Ps. 30:21), there will be no more of them. And finally, the evil from which you desire to be delivered, and the very deliverance from it, likewise belong to this same life.

It seems to me that the sevenfold number of petitions has a correspondence with the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and with the Beatitudes that correspond to them.

The Fear of God is that by means of which one becomes among the “poor in spirit—blessed…, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matt. 5:3); and this is why we ask that “Your name be hallowed” among men, through the power of the pure “fear of the Lord, enduring forever” (Ps. 18:10).

Piety is that by means of which one becomes among the “meek—blessed…, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:3); and this is why we pray that “Your kingdom come”—either here, within us ourselves, that we may be tamed and cease to resist Him, or at the Lord’s second glorious coming, at which we shall rejoice and glory, when He says: “Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 25:34). For “in the Lord,” says the prophet, “my soul will make its boast; the humble will hear it and be glad” (Ps. 33:3).

Knowledge is that by means of which one becomes among the “those who mourn—blessed…, for they shall be comforted” (Matt. 5:4); and this is why we pray “that the will of God be done on earth as it is in heaven”: for when the body, as earth, is in all things in harmony with the spirit, as heaven, we shall no longer mourn; because nothing that occurs in this age is more worthy of mourning than this: that these two parts of us—body and spirit—war against each other, compelling us to say, “I see in my members another law warring against the law of my mind,” and to voice our grief over it with such lament: “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Rom. 7:23–24).

Fortitude (the Power of Courage) is that by which “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed, for they shall be satisfied” (Matt. 5:6); and this is why we pray that “our daily bread be given to us this day,” so that, being sustained and supported by it, we may be able to attain that fullest satisfaction.

Counsel is that by which “the merciful are blessed, for they shall receive mercy” (Matt. 5:7); and this is why, forgiving our debtors, we pray that our own debts may be forgiven.

Understanding is that by means of which one becomes among the “pure in heart—blessed…, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8); and this is why we pray that we may not be led into temptation, so as not to have a divided heart, but seeking the one good to which we would refer all that we do, not chasing after earthly and temporal things as well.

Wisdom is that by which “the peacemakers are blessed, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9); and this is why we pray that “we may be delivered from the evil one”: for that deliverance will make us free, that is, sons of God, so that in the spirit of adoption we may cry out: “Abba, Father!” (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6).

We must not overlook this either: that of all the petitions with which the Lord commanded us to address God in prayer, He saw fit to give special emphasis to the one in which forgiveness of sins is asked. He desires to make us merciful, pointing to this as the only means of receiving mercy ourselves and being freed from our greatest burden—the weight of sins. That is why we present no other petition to God in such terms, as if entering into a condition and covenant with Him, as in this one: for we say, “forgive us… as we also forgive.” If we prove false in this covenant, then no fruit comes from the whole prayer. For the Lord says: “If you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matt. 6:14–15).

Whatever other words we may speak—which the person praying either selects in advance to express his prayerful movement of heart, or adds afterward to heighten that feeling—we can say nothing that is not already contained in the Lord’s Prayer, if we pray rightly and as we ought. For instance, whoever says: “As before them (the nations) You revealed Your holiness in us, so before us reveal Your greatness in them” (Sir. 36:4), what else is he saying but “hallowed be Your name”? Whoever says: “O God of hosts, restore us; let Your face shine, and we shall be saved!” (Ps. 79:8), what else is he saying but “Your kingdom come”? Whoever says: “Establish my steps in Your word, and let no iniquity have dominion over me” (Ps. 118:133), what else is he saying but “Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”? Whoever says: “Give me neither poverty nor riches, feed me with the bread that is needful for me” (Prov. 30:8), what else is he saying but “give us this day our daily bread”? Whoever says: “Remember, O Lord, David and all his gentleness” (Ps. 131:1), or: “O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is iniquity in my hands, if I have repaid my friend with evil…” (Ps. 7:4–5), what else is he saying but “forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors”? Whoever says: “Let not the desires of the belly and sensuality get hold of me, and do not hand me over to a shameless soul” (Sir. 23:5), what else is he saying but “lead us not into temptation”? Whoever says: “Deliver me from my enemies, O my God! protect me from those who rise up against me” (Ps. 58:2), what else is he saying but “deliver us from the evil one”? And if you survey all the words of holy prayers, I think you will find nothing in them that is not contained in the Lord’s Prayer. Therefore you are free to express the same thing in prayer in these or other words; but you must not have the freedom to express something else. Whoever, for instance, says in prayer: Lord, increase my wealth, or give me as much as You gave to so-and-so; or increase my honors and make me powerful and renowned in this age—or anything else of such a kind—and says this coveting such things as goods for himself alone, not aiming to use them to bring good to others according to God; such a person, I think, will find nothing in the Lord’s Prayer by which to justify such yearnings. Therefore let them be ashamed at least to ask for what they are not ashamed to desire. But if this too is recognized as shameful, yet one lacks the strength to conquer such desire, then what is more fitting in that case than to pray for deliverance from this evil craving to the One to whom we say: “deliver us from the evil one”?

You thus have reliable guidance on what to pray for—not from me, but from the One who has been pleased to teach us all. The blessed life must be sought by asking for it from the Lord God. What it is to be blessed has been pondered by many and resolved in many ways; but what need have we to go to these many for this? In the word of God it is stated briefly but with perfect clarity: “Blessed is the people whose God is the Lord” (Ps. 143:15). That we too may be among these people and be granted to live with them forever, “the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Tim. 1:5). On these three rests a sound hope. Thus faith, hope, and love bring the one who prays to God, who, by believing, hoping, and desiring, learns from the Lord’s Prayer what he is to ask of the Lord. Fasting and abstinence from other fleshly pleasures, and especially almsgiving, greatly assist prayer.

There is also something else about which a question may arise in you, namely: why did the apostle say, “for we do not know what to pray for as we ought” (Rom. 8:26)? For it is quite inconceivable that he and those to whom he wrote this did not know the Lord’s Prayer. Why then did he speak this way—and he spoke it, we must suppose, not unwisely and not untruthfully? For no other reason than this: that temporal afflictions and tribulations are very greatly beneficial to our souls—sometimes by curing proud arrogance, sometimes by testing patience and giving it exercise, and for patience thus tested and trained by experience the most glorious and abundant reward is prepared, sometimes by punishing and purifying sins. But we, not knowing exactly what benefit they bring, pray to be freed from all affliction. Of this ignorance the apostle does not exempt himself, as is evident from the fact that, when a thorn was given him in the flesh—an angel of Satan—to harass him, lest he be exalted by the surpassing greatness of the revelations, he three times implored the Lord to remove it from him, not knowing, of course, what he was praying for as he ought. In answer to why the prayer was not heard, when such a man was praying, and why hearing it was not beneficial, we hear: “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:7–9).

So in these afflictions, which can bring both benefit and harm, we do not know what to pray for as we ought; and yet, since they are painful and heavy, we pray, out of common human weakness, that they be taken from us. But in this we must at least show that submission to the Lord our God so that, if He does not take them from us, we do not think our prayer is scorned, but rather clothe ourselves in good-tempered patience in evil, awaiting greater blessings in return; for in this way God’s power is made perfect in weakness. However, to some who were impatient the Lord God did yield to what they asked—in anger—whereas by contrast He refused the apostle in good favor. So we read in the book of Numbers (Num 11) what the Israelites asked and how they received it, but when their craving was satisfied, a heavy punishment followed their impatience. He also gave a king to those who asked, according to their own heart and not His, as is written (1 Sam. 8:5–7). He even gave what the devil asked, for the glorification of His proven servant (Job 1:12-2:6). He also heard the unclean spirits when, at their request, He sent their whole legion into the swine (Luke 8:32). This is written so that no one should think themselves something great when they are heard, for perhaps in their impatience they have asked for what it would have been far more beneficial not to receive; and if one is not heard, so that one does not lose heart and despair of God’s mercy toward oneself, for perhaps one was asking for something that, upon receiving, would have led to bitter suffering, or to utter ruin and misery. These are the cases in which “we do not know what to pray for as we ought.” Therefore if something happens contrary to our petitions, we must bear it patiently and give thanks for all things, in the firm conviction that it is without doubt more saving for us that God’s will be done in all things rather than our own. For our Mediator has given us an example of this kind as well, when He said: “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me,” and then, subordinating His human will to the Father’s will, added: “nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matt. 26:39). Hence: “by the obedience of one many will be made righteous” (Rom. 5:19).

Whoever asks this one thing from the Lord and seeks this one thing (Ps. 26:4)—that all may be according to His will—asks for a sure and safe good, and need not fear that what is asked might prove harmful when received. Without this will there is no profit in whatever one might obtain through one’s earnest prayer. In surrendering oneself to God’s will lies the one true and blessed life. Whoever has this will receive whatever they seek, for they will no longer seek anything that is not pleasing to God’s will.

Whoever is such, the Lord will multiply His mercy upon them, and they “find rest in the shadow of His wings, are satisfied with the abundance of His house, and are given drink from the river of His delights; for with Him is the fountain of life, and in His light we shall see light” (Ps. 35:8–10).