The Lord's Prayer is also called the Lord's Prayer, because Christ Himself gave it to His disciples in response to: "teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1).
Christians say this prayer every day in the morning and evening rules, read it before meals, say it in churches, moreover, during the service, all parishioners sing it out loud. But, unfortunately, often repeating the words of a prayer, we do not always comprehend, but what exactly is behind her words? We have compiled 10 basic questions about the prayer "Our Father" and tried to answer them.
1. DO WE CALL GOD THE FATHER BECAUSE HE CREATED US ALL?
No, for this reason we can call Him the Creator, or the Creator. The conversion of the Father presupposes a very definite personal relationship between the children and the Father, which must be expressed primarily in likeness to the Father. God is Love, therefore our whole life should also become an expression of love for God and for the people around us. If this does not happen, then we risk becoming like those about whom Jesus Christ said: Your father is the devil; and you want to do the lusts of your father (John 8:44). The Jews of the Old Testament lost the right to call God the Father. The prophet Jeremiah speaks of this with bitterness: And I said: ... you will call me your father and you will not depart from me. But verily, as a wife treacherously betrays her friend, so ye house of Israel have dealt treacherously with me, says the Lord. …Return, rebellious children: I will heal your disobedience (Jer 3:20-22). However, the return of the rebellious children took place only with the coming of Christ. Through Him, God again adopted all who are ready to live according to the commandments of the gospel.
Saint Cyril of Alexandria: “Only God himself can allow people to call God the Father. He gave this right to people, making them sons of God. And despite the fact that they departed from Him and were in extreme anger against Him, He granted the forgetfulness of insults and the communion of grace.
2. WHY "OUR FATHER" AND NOT "MY"? WHAT COULD BE A MORE PERSONAL MATTER FOR A PERSON THAN APPEAL TO GOD?
The most important and most personal thing for a Christian is love for other people. Therefore, we are called to ask God for mercy not only for ourselves, but for all people living on Earth.
St. John Chrysostom: “... He does not say: My Father, Who art in Heaven,” but - Our Father, and thus commands prayers for the whole human race and never have in mind your own benefits, but always try for the benefits of your neighbor. And in this way it destroys enmity, and overthrows pride, and destroys envy, and introduces love - the mother of all good things; destroys the inequality of human affairs and shows complete equality between the king and the poor, since we all have an equal share in the highest and most necessary affairs.
3. WHY "IN HEAVEN" IF THE CHURCH TEACHES THAT GOD IS OVERVIEW?
God is truly omnipresent. But a person is always in a certain place, and not only with his body. Our thoughts also always have a certain direction. The mention of Heaven in prayer helps to divert our mind from the earthly and direct it to the Heavenly.
St. John Chrysostom: “When the lord of Heaven speaks,” then with this word he does not imprison God in heaven, but distracts the prayer from the earth.
"Hallowed be thy name"
4. WHY SPECIFICALLY ASK FOR THIS IF GOD IS ALWAYS HOLY?
Yes, God is always holy, but we ourselves are far from always holy, although we call Him Father. But can children not be like the Father? “Hallowed be Thy name” is a request that God help us live righteously, that is, so that His name is hallowed through our lives.
Saint John Chrysostom: “Let him be hallowed means let him be glorified. God has his own glory, full of all majesty and never changing. But the Savior commands the one who prays to ask that God be glorified by our life. Of this He said before: Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16). ... Vouchsafe us, - as if the Savior teaches us to pray in such a way, - to live so purely, so that through us all glorify You.
"Thy kingdom come"
5. WHAT KINGDOM IS WE TALKING ABOUT? WE ASK GOD TO BECOME THE WORLD KING?
Kingdom of God - words that simultaneously mean two concepts here:
1. The state of the renewed world after the end of the world and the Last Judgment, in which the people transformed by grace who inherited this Kingdom will live.
2. The state of a person who, by fulfilling the commandments of the Gospel, overcame the action of the passions, and through this allowed the grace of the Holy Spirit to act in himself, which every Christian receives in the sacrament of Baptism.
Saint Theophan the Recluse: “This kingdom is the future kingdom of heaven, which will open after the end of the world and the terrible judgment of God. But in order to sincerely desire the coming of this kingdom, we must be sure that we will be honored with it along with those to whom it will be said: come, bless my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34). Worthy of this is the one in whom, during this still life, the kingdom of sin, passions and the devil has been cut short. The suppression of this kingdom is accomplished by the action of grace through faith in the Lord Savior. The believer commits himself to the Lord, promising Him to live holy and blameless. For this, in the Sacrament of Baptism, the grace of the Holy Spirit is given, reviving him to a new life; from that moment it is no longer sin that reigns in him, but grace, teaching every good thing and strengthening him to do it. This is the kingdom of grace, of which the Lord said: The kingdom of God is within you. The future kingdom is the kingdom of glory, but this one is spiritual, it is the kingdom of grace. The prayer "Our Father" jointly encompasses both kingdoms. Otherwise, he who desires the speedy coming of the future kingdom, but who has not become a son of the kingdom of grace, will desire the end of the world to come soon, and the Last Judgment, at which he will inevitably be on the side of those who will hear: get away from Me curse into eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his aggel."
"Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth"
6. DOES NOT GOD WORK WITHOUT SUCH OUR PLEASE IMPLEMENTING HIS WILL ON EARTH?
The will of God is carried out on earth not only by His direct action, but also through us Christians. If we live according to the commandments of the Gospel, then we are fulfilling the will of God. If not, then this will will remain unfulfilled in the place where we did not fulfill it. And then - through us - evil enters the world. Therefore, with the words thy will be done, we ask God to save us from such a disaster, and direct our lives towards the fulfillment of His good will.
Blessed Augustine: “Let Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth. Angels serve You in heaven, and we serve You on earth. The angels in heaven do not offend you, nor do we offend you on earth. How they do Your will; so do we. - And here what do we pray for, if not to be kind to us? For the will of God is then in us when we do it; and that is what it means to be kind.”
"Give us our daily bread today"
7. WHAT DO THE DAILY BREAD AND DAILY BREAD MEAN?
"Essential" means necessary for our existence; "today" means today. Thus, this is a petition for what we most need at this moment, for today. The holy fathers understood the word "bread" here in two meanings: bread as food; and bread as the Eucharist.
St. Simeon of Thessalonica: “Although we ask for heavenly things, we are mortal and, like people, we also ask for bread to support our being, knowing that it is also from You. Asking only for bread, we do not ask for anything superfluous, but only what is necessary for us for this day, since we have been taught not to worry about tomorrow either, because You care for us today, and you will be baked tomorrow and always.
But give us another daily bread, our daily bread - living, heavenly bread, the all-holy body of the living Word. This is daily bread: because it strengthens and sanctifies soul and body, and whoever does not eat it will not have life in himself, but whoever eats it will live forever (Jn 6:51-54).
“And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”
8. GOD FORGIVES SINS ONLY TO THOSE WHO FORGIVE THEIR OFFENDERS HIMSELF? WHY SHOULD HE NOT FORGIVE EVERYONE AT ALL?
God is not inherent in resentment and revenge. At any moment He is ready to accept and forgive everyone who turns to Him. But remission of sins is possible only where a person has renounced sin, seen all its destructive abomination and hated it for the misfortunes that sin has brought into his life and into the lives of other people. And forgiveness of offenders is a direct commandment of Christ! And if, knowing this commandment, we still do not fulfill it, then we are sinning, and this sin is so pleasant and important for us that we do not want to refuse it even for the sake of Christ's commandment. With such a burden on the soul, it is impossible to enter the Kingdom of God. Only God is not to blame for this, but we ourselves.
St. John Chrysostom: “This absolution initially depends on us, and the judgment pronounced against us lies in our power. So that none of the foolish, being condemned for a great or small crime, has reason to complain about the court, the Savior makes you, the most guilty, a judge over himself and, as it were, says: what kind of judgment you yourself will pronounce about yourself, the same judgment and I I will speak about you; if you forgive your brother, you will receive the same benefit from me.”
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one"
9. DOES GOD tempt or lead anyone into temptation?
God, of course, does not tempt anyone. But we cannot overcome temptations without His help. If, however, while receiving this grace-filled help, we suddenly decide that we can live virtuously without Him, then God takes His grace away from us. But He does this not for the sake of revenge, but so that we can be convinced by bitter experience of our own powerlessness before sin, and again turn to Him for help.
St. Tikhon of Zadonsk: “With this word: “lead us not into temptation,” we pray to God that He save us by His grace from the temptation of the world, the flesh and the devil. And although we fall into temptations, we ask that you do not allow us to be defeated by them, but that you help us overcome and defeat them. This shows that without God's help we are powerless and weak. If we ourselves could resist temptation, we would not be commanded to ask for help in this. By this we learn, as soon as we feel the temptation that comes upon us, to immediately pray to God and ask Him for help. We learn from this not to rely on ourselves and our strength, but on God.
10. WHO IS THE EVIL? OR - EVIL? HOW TO UNDERSTAND THIS WORD IN THE CONTEXT OF PRAYER CORRECTLY?
The word crafty is the opposite in meaning to the word straight. A bow (as a weapon), a river bend, the famous Pushkin Lukomorie - all these are words related to the word crafty in the sense that they denote a certain curvature, something indirect, curved. In the Lord's Prayer, the devil is called evil, who was originally created by a bright angel, but by his falling away from God distorted his own nature, distorted its natural movements. Any of his actions also became distorted, that is, crafty, indirect, wrong.
St. John Chrysostom: “Here Christ calls the devil evil, commanding us to wage irreconcilable warfare against him, and showing that he is not such by nature. Evil does not depend on nature, but on freedom. And that the devil is predominantly called evil, this is because of the extraordinary amount of evil that is in him, and because he, not being offended by anything from us, wages an irreconcilable battle against us. Therefore, the Savior did not say: Deliver us “from the evil ones, but: from the stupid one,” and thereby teaches us never to be angry with our neighbors for the insults that we sometimes endure from them, but to turn all our enmity against the devil, as the culprit of all angry."
Our Father, who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth. Give us our daily bread today; and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
People, Public DomainAccording to the Gospel, Jesus Christ gave it to his disciples in response to a request to teach them how to pray. Quoted in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke:
“Our Father who art in heaven! hallowed be thy name; let your kingdom come; may Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us our daily bread this day; and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen". (Matthew 6:9-13)
“Our Father who art in heaven! hallowed be thy name; let your kingdom come; may Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us our daily bread for every day; and forgive us our sins, for we also forgive every debtor of ours; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Luke 11:2-4)
Slavic translations (Old Church Slavonic and Church Slavonic)
| Archangel Gospel (1092) | Ostroh Bible (1581) | Elizabethan Bible (1751) | Elizabethan Bible (1751) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Our eyes are already on nbs̃kh. let it be thy name. may your kingdom come. yes bow your will ꙗ. ꙗko on nb̃si and on the earth. our daily bread give us a day. (give us every day). and leave us our debts (sins). ꙗko and we leave our liar. and do not lead us into attack. u deliver us ѿ hostility. ꙗko yours is the kingdom. and power and glory ots̃a and sña and st̃go dh̃a forever. amen. | Ѡtche ours izhє єsi on nbsѣ, let it be your name, let Thy kingdom come, let your will be done, ѧko in Nbsi and in ꙁєmli. Give us our daily bread and leave us our debts, ѧko and mі i leave our debtor and don't lead us into misfortune but also ꙁbawi on Ѡt loukavago. | Thou art ours in heaven, let your name shine, let your kingdom come, let your will be done, ko in heaven and on earth, give us our daily bread today, and leave us our debts, ko and we will leave our debtor, and do not lead us into misfortune, but deliver us from the evil one. | Our Father, who art in heaven! Hallowed be thy name, let your kingdom come, let your will be done like in heaven and on earth. Give us our daily bread today; and leave us our debts, as we also leave our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. |
Russian translations
| Synodal translation (1860) | Synodal translation (in post-reform spelling) | good news (translated by RBO, 2001) |
|---|---|---|
Our Father, who art in heaven! | Our Father who art in heaven! | Our Father in Heaven |
Story
The Lord's Prayer is given in the Gospels in two versions, a longer one in and a shorter one in the Gospel of Luke. The circumstances under which Jesus pronounces the text of the prayer are also different. In the Gospel of Matthew, the Our Father is part of the Sermon on the Mount, while in Luke Jesus grants this prayer to the disciples in response to a direct request to “teach them to pray.”
A variant of the Gospel of Matthew has gained general currency in the Christian world as the main Christian prayer, and the use of the Lord's Prayer as a prayer dates back to the earliest Christian times. The text of Matthew is reproduced in the Didache, the oldest monument of Christian writing of a catechetical nature (end of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd century), and in the Didache instructions are given to say a prayer three times a day.
Biblical scholars agree that the original version of the prayer in the Gospel of Luke was significantly shorter, subsequent scribes supplemented the text at the expense of the Gospel of Matthew, and as a result, the differences were gradually erased. Mostly, these changes in the text of Luke took place in the period after the Edict of Milan, when church books were massively rewritten due to the destruction of a significant part of Christian literature during the persecution of Diocletian. The medieval Textus Receptus contains almost identical text in the two Gospels.
One of the important differences in the texts of Matthew and Luke is the final text of Matthew's doxology - “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen,” which Luke lacks. Most of the best and oldest manuscripts of the Gospel of Matthew do not have this phrase, and biblical scholars do not consider it part of the original text of Matthew, but the addition of doxology was made very early, which proves the presence of a similar phrase (without mentioning the Kingdom) in the Didache. This doxology has been used since early Christian times in the liturgy and has Old Testament roots (cf. 1 Chronicles 29:11-13).
Differences in the texts of the Lord's Prayer sometimes arose because of the desire of translators to emphasize different aspects of polysemantic concepts. So in the Vulgate, the Greek ἐπιούσιος (Ts.-Slav. and Russian. "Daily") in the Gospel of Luke is translated into Latin as "cotidianum" (everyday), and in the Gospel of Matthew "supersubstantialem" (over-essential), which indicates directly on Jesus as the Bread of Life.
Theological interpretation of prayer
Many theologians have addressed the interpretation of the prayer "Our Father". The interpretations of John Chrysostom, Cyril of Jerusalem, Ephraim the Syrian, Maximus the Confessor, John Cassian and others are known. General works based on the interpretations of the theologians of antiquity were also written (for example, the work of Ignatius (Bryanchaninov)).
Orthodox theologians
A lengthy Orthodox catechism writes "The Lord's Prayer is such a prayer that our Lord Jesus Christ taught the apostles and which they passed on to all believers." He singles out in it: invocation, seven petitions and doxology.
- Invocation - "Our Father who art in heaven!"
Calling God the Father gives Christians faith in Jesus Christ and the grace of the rebirth of man through the sacrifice of the Cross. Cyril of Jerusalem writes:
“Only God himself can allow people to call God the Father. He gave this right to people, making them sons of God. And despite the fact that they departed from Him and were in extreme malice against Him, He granted the forgetfulness of insults and the communion of grace.
- Petitions
The indication “who is in heaven” is necessary in order to, starting to pray, “leave everything earthly and corruptible and lift up the mind and heart to the Heavenly, Eternal and Divine.” It also points to the seat of God.
According to St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov), “The petitions that make up the Lord's Prayer are petitions for spiritual gifts acquired by redemption for humanity. There is no word in prayer for the carnal, temporal needs of man.”
- “Hallowed be thy name” John Chrysostom writes that these words mean that believers should first of all ask for “the glory of the Heavenly Father.” The Orthodox catechism points out: "The Name of God is holy and, without a doubt, holy in itself" and at the same time can "still be holy in people, that is, His eternal holiness can appear in them." Maximus the Confessor points out: “we sanctify the name of our heavenly Father by grace, when we put to death the lust attached to matter and are cleansed of the corrupting passions.”
- “Thy Kingdom Come” The Orthodox catechism notes that the Kingdom of God “comes in secret and inwardly. The Kingdom of God will not come with obedience (in a conspicuous way)." As an effect of the feeling of the Kingdom of God on a person, St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) writes: “He who feels the Kingdom of God in himself becomes alien to the world hostile to God. He who has felt the Kingdom of God in himself can desire, out of true love for his neighbors, that the Kingdom of God be opened in all of them.
- “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” By this, the believer expresses that he asks God that everything that happens in his life does not happen according to his own desire, but as it pleases God.
- “give us our daily bread for this day” In the Orthodox Catechism, “daily bread” is “this is the bread necessary in order to exist or live,” but “daily bread for the soul” is “the word of God and the Body and Blood Christ's." In Maximus the Confessor, the word "today" (this day) is interpreted as the present age, that is, the earthly life of a person.
- “forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.” Debts in this petition are understood as human sins. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) explains the need to forgive others their “debts” by the fact that “Leaving their sins before us, their debts to our neighbors is our own need: without doing this, we will never acquire a mood capable of accepting redemption.”
- “Lead us not into temptation” In this petition, believers ask God how to prevent their temptation, and if, by the will of God, they should be tested and cleansed through temptation, then God would not give them over to temptation completely and would not allow them to fall.
- “deliver us from the evil one” In this petition, the believer asks God to deliver him from all evil and especially “from the evil of sin and from the evil suggestions and slander of the spirit of malice - the devil.”
- Doxology - “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."
The doxology at the end of the Lord's Prayer is contained so that the believer, after all the petitions contained in it, would give God due reverence.
Everything about religion and faith - "in what cases the prayer of our father is read" with a detailed description and photographs.
So who says to God in prayer: let your kingdom come but he does not know how this kingdom comes, and does not know, does not prepare to receive it, and does nothing that is required of him to receive it, is it possible for this kingdom to come to him? Of what use is it that he says in prayer: let your kingdom come? The Lord says in the Holy Gospel: repent, draw near for the kingdom of God. So, do you want this kingdom to come to you? Repent. If you do not repent, no matter how much you say: let your kingdom come it won't come to you.
The Kingdom of God is in us when God is with us in unity, by the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Why do we say: Our Father, who art in heaven(Matthew 6:9)? Then, after the fall of the forefathers, the Lord, so to speak, departed from earth to heaven, because the temple and the seat of God on earth is the human heart, the heart is pure, and it did not exist after the fall: the earth is filled with evil deeds(Gen. 6:11). The Lord from heaven look down on the sons of men, to see if there is understanding, or they sought God. All deviating ... indecent bysh ... to one(Compare: Ps. 13, 2-3).
Then we say: hallowed be thy name- so that it is holy, and not dishonored by people, their lies, iniquities; let your kingdom come- so that the Kingdom of God, having departed from the earth for the sake of human injustices, would come again; Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth(Matt. 6:10) - so that the Kingdom of God will be opened on earth by fulfillment on earth good will of God(Compare: Romans 12:2).
Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth(Matthew 6:9-10). Do you, sinner, sincerely desire holiness, are you jealous, possessed by the enemy, the destroyer-devil, of the peaceful Kingdom of God, firstly in yourself, and then in all people; do you sincerely want to fulfill the will of God, righteous, all-good, and do you wish and pray to God that all people know and do the will of our Heavenly Father? Every day we say these words of the Lord's Prayer without a deep understanding of their meaning, and we throw them as if into the wind, and therefore there is no good change in us...
If you truly call God your Father, then trust in Him as in the only Father, all-good, all-powerful, all-wise, unchanging in His love and in all perfections.
Read "Our Father", but do not lie: Leave us our debts, as we leave….
... One should pray about this:
First, with pure intent - let your will be done, for I, heartily desiring to follow it disinterestedly, not for the sake of a reward or the acquisition of anything, and not because You, Lord, enriched me with Your bounties and protected me from my adversaries, as Satan reproached the righteous Job before God for this (Job 1:9-10), and not out of fear of the eternal torments of Gehenna, but in the simplicity of my heart I follow Your will, I desire what You desire, only because You want it, that such is Your will, my God!
Second, pray with love: let your will be done! - I am looking for one thing here and I think one thing, so that Thy will be done in everything, Lord! May the majesty of Your name, O my God, spread and be glorified through me, Your indecent servant. I consider this alone to be the greatest honor and reward for me, so that I am worthy to please You, my Creator, Who gave me reason and free will as a guarantee of closest communication with You, my Creator and Savior.
Saint John, Metropolitan of Tobolsk († 1715).
First part, preface: Our Father, Who art in heaven! teaches the following.
1) The one who prays must come to God not only as His creation, but also as His son by grace.
2) He must be a son of the Orthodox Church.
3) Should not doubt in receiving what is asked from the Most Merciful Father.
4) Since God is the Father of all, we must also live as brothers.
5) The word "in heaven" instructs us to raise our mind from the earthly to heaven. In addition, it must be said that although God is present everywhere, His grace especially shines in heaven, saturating the righteous, and the wealth of His wondrous deeds.
The second part is petitions, of which there are seven:
1. May your name be hallowed.
In this petition, we implore, firstly, for the granting of a pious and virtuous life to us, so that everyone, looking at it, glorifies the name of God; secondly, that the ignorant would turn to the Orthodox faith and glorify the Heavenly Father with us; and, thirdly, that those who bear the name of a Christian, but who spend their lives in evil and abominations, lag behind their vices, which slander our faith and our God.
2. May your kingdom come.
By this we ask that not sin, but God Himself reign in all of us with His grace, truth and goodness. In addition, the petition contains the thought that a person, being under the grace of God and feeling heavenly joy, despises the world and desires to receive God's kingdom. Finally, here we also pray that His Second Coming may be hastened.
3. May Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth.
We implore here that God will not allow us to spend our life according to our will, but that he will manage it as He pleases, and that we will not resist His will, but that we will obey Him in everything. In addition, here we have in mind the idea that without the permission of the will of God, nothing can come to us, from anyone and never, if only we live according to His will.
4. Give us our daily bread today. We ask here, firstly, that God not deprive us of the preaching and knowledge of His holy word, for the word of God is spiritual bread, without which a person perishes; secondly, that He may vouchsafe us the communion of the Body and Blood of Christ; and thirdly, to give us everything necessary for life and to keep all this in this world in abundance, but without excess. The word "today" means the time of our present life, for in the age to come we will enjoy the sight of God.
5. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Here we ask God to grant us the forgiveness of sins, for debt here refers to sins. This petition teaches us that we ourselves should forgive the debts of our debtors, that is, that we forgive those who have angered and embittered us all their crimes. Whoever does not forgive his neighbor, he makes this prayer in vain, for then sins are not forgiven him and God, and even his prayer itself is a sin.
6. And lead us not into temptation.
By this we ask, first, that we be free from the temptations that come from the world, the flesh, and the devil, and move us to sin, and from heretics, who persecute the Church, and deceive our souls with false teachings and in other ways; and, secondly, that in the event of suffering for Christ, God would strengthen us with His grace to endure torment even to the end, so that we would accept the end of torment and not allow us to suffer beyond our strength.
7. But deliver us from the evil one.
Here we implore, first, that God would keep us from every sin and from the devil, who excites us to sin; secondly, that He will deliver us in this life from all kinds of disasters; thirdly, that at the time of death He would drive away from us the enemy who wants to devour our souls, and send us an Angel who guards us.
Third part or conclusion: For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
This conclusion is in accordance with the preface, for just as the preface teaches that we will receive what we ask from the Most Merciful Father, so this conclusion shows that we will receive what is required from Him. For His is all the world, His is the power, and His is the glory, for which we must ask. the word is Amen means: "So be it", or "Hey, her." This conclusion can be spoken even by a commoner in private, without a priest.
When we pray, let the Father know the words of His Son. Dwelling within us, in the heart, let it be in speech. Since He is the intercessor with the Father for our sins, then, praying for our sins, we sinners will also use the words of our Intercessor. He says that whatever we ask the Father in His name, He will give us (John 16:23); therefore, shall we not more surely receive what we ask in the name of Christ, if we ask by the prayer of Christ?
First of all, the Teacher of the World and the Instructor of Unity did not want prayer to be performed separately and privately, so that the prayer would pray only for himself. In fact, we do not say: My Father ...
A new man, reborn and restored by his God, by His grace, first of all says: Father, because he has already become His son ... Oh, what condescension towards us, what an abundance of favor and goodness of the Lord, when He allowed us to pray in front of To call God the Father of God, and to call ourselves the sons of God, just as Christ is the Son of God! None of us would have dared to use this name in prayer if He Himself had not allowed us to pray like that. Calling God the Father, we must remember and know, most beloved brethren, that it is fitting for us to act as the sons of God, so that just as we ourselves rejoice in God the Father, so He rejoices over us...
... After this, we say: hallowed be thy name, - not in the sense that we wish God that he be hallowed by our prayers; but we ask Him that His name be hallowed in us ... Then in prayer it follows: Thy Kingdom come. We ask for the coming of the Kingdom of God to us in the same sense in which we pray to God that His name be hallowed in us ...
Further, we add the following words: Thy will be done, as in heaven, and on earth - not so that God, as a result of our prayer, does what He wants, but so that we can do what pleases Him ... Having a body from the earth, and a spirit from heaven , being ourselves earth and heaven, we pray that it be in both, that is, in the body and in the spirit, the will of God ...
Continuing the prayer, we make the following petition: give us our daily bread today. This can be understood both in a spiritual and in a simple sense, because both of them, by divine gift, are equally conducive to salvation. Christ is the bread of life, and this bread is not for everyone, but only ours...
This can also be understood in the following way: having renounced this age and, by faith of spiritual grace, having renounced its riches and honors, remembering the instruction of the Lord, Who says: My disciple cannot be unless he renounces all his possessions (Lk. 14:33), we we only ask for food and sustenance. Whoever has become a disciple of Christ, he, according to the word of the Teacher, renounces everything, and should ask only for daily food and in prayer not to extend beyond his desires, bearing in mind the commandment of the Lord, who said: do not feast on mornings, for mornings are baked by themselves: the day is sufficient his care (Matt. 6:34)…
After this, we also pray for our sins, saying: forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. By asking for food, forgiveness of sins is asked for, so that a person, nourished by God, lives in God, and cares not only for temporal, but also for eternal life - and it can be achieved if sins are forgiven, which the Lord in His Gospel calls debts ... To this the Lord clearly added and added a law that limits us to a certain condition and vow, according to which we must ask that debts be left to us just as we leave to our debtors, knowing that remission of sins cannot be received by us if we do not Let us do the same for our debtors...
Further, the Lord gives us as a necessary instruction to say in prayer: and lead us not into temptation. This shows that the enemy has no power over us, unless there is a prior permission of God. That is why all our fear, all reverence and attention must be directed to God, since the evil one cannot tempt us unless power is given to him from above...
In the end, we say: but deliver us from the evil one, meaning by that all sorts of troubles that the enemy is plotting against us in this world and against which we will have a faithful and strong defense, if God delivers us from them ... Having received such protection, we are already safe and protected from all the wiles of the devil and the world. Indeed, what is there to fear from the side of the world for someone who has God as his protector in this world?
May your name be hallowed... For this we pray that the name of God be sanctified in us: not because, as if, not having been holy, it begins to be holy, but because it becomes holy in us when we ourselves are sanctified and we make it worthy of holiness.
Let Your Kingdom Come… Who purifies himself by deed, and thought, and word, he can say to God: let your kingdom come.
May Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth. Divine and blessed Angels of God do the will of God, as David, singing, said: bless the Lord, all his angels, mighty in strength, who do his word(Ps. 103:20). Therefore, when you pray, you say this in the following sense: as your will is in the angels, so be it on earth in me, Master!
Give us our daily bread today. Our common bread is not daily. But this Holy Bread is the daily bread: instead of saying: arranged for the essence of the soul. This bread is not the womb enters, a swindle comes(Matt. 15:17), but it is divided into all your composition, for the benefit of the body and soul ...
And leave us our debts, just as we leave our debtors. For many of us have sins...
And lead us not into temptation(God)! Is this what the Lord teaches us to pray, so that we will not be tempted at all? And as it says in one place: the husband is not tempted, not skillful to eat(Sir. 34:10; Rom. 1:28)? And in another: have every joy, my brethren, whenever you fall into temptations,(James 1:2)? But to enter into temptation does not mean to be swallowed up by temptation.
But deliver us from the evil one. If it were: lead us not into temptation, the same meant that not to be tempted at all, he would not give: but deliver us from the evil one. The evil one is a resisting demon, from which we pray to get rid. When you have completed your prayer, you say, “Amen.” Imprinting through “amen”, which means “let there be everything”, that is contained in this God-given prayer.
Saint Cyril, Archbishop of Jerusalem († 386).
To tell: Our Father Only those who, by a miraculous birth in Divine Baptism, by a new and extraordinary law of gestation, have the right to show in themselves that they are true sons. And say: hallowed be thy name, are those who do nothing worthy of condemnation. And this: let your kingdom come, - those who avoid everything that gives pleasure to the tormentor. And this: let your will be done, - those who show it with their actions. And this: give us our daily bread today, - those who refuse luxury and extravagance. And this: forgive us our debts, those who forgive those who sin against them. And this: lead us not into temptation, - those who neither themselves nor others plunge into it. And this: deliver us from the evil one, are those who wage irreconcilable warfare with Satan. And this: for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory those who tremble at the words of God and show them in their very deeds. For the knowledge of prayer is as successful as the disposition and life of the one who prays.
You can mark fragments of text that are interesting to you, which will be available via a unique link in the browser's address bar.
In what cases do they read the prayer of our father
When is the Lord's Prayer read?
The phenomenon of prayer today is increasingly regarded not as a religious and mystical attribute. Various systems of auto-training, meditations, psychohygienic exercises have come into fashion. But for centuries on our earth, the functions of regulation and self-regulation of the psyche were performed by church rites and prayers.
And when we destroyed the ancient systems of mental hygiene during the years of the total “attack on religious dope”, moral degradation began, the fruits of which we are reaping today.
We are rightly carried away by the phenomena that the yogis of India or the monks of Tibetan monasteries demonstrate to us, we are surprised at the mysterious abilities of the priests of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. And at the same time, we do not think about the fact that our ancestors could do no less. The difference is that some peoples managed to preserve these values, while we destroyed ours. Therefore, we need to turn to ourselves, to our history, to carefully study everything that previous generations have left us as a legacy. Believe me, they were no less knowledgeable than we are, and certainly.
Our Father, Who art in heaven!
May your name be hallowed,
let your kingdom come,
let your will be done
as in heaven and on earth.
Give us our daily bread today;
and leave us our debts,
like we also leave our debtor;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Explanation of the Lord's Prayer by Metropolitan Benjamin (Fedchenkov)
Foreword
The reason for the daring attempt to write an interpretation of the Lord's Prayer was an accidental circumstance. One person, even of a non-Orthodox confession (but deeply sympathizing with Holy Orthodoxy), observing the modern “Christian” society of different confessions, came to a sad and terrifying fact: people hardly pray! The whole world is entangled in insoluble questions of various kinds. Everyone is anxious and expecting even worse disasters. Everyone is looking for permission.
Prayer Our Father
synodal translation of the prayer
Interpretation of the prayer Our Father
Complete interpretation of the prayer. Parsing each phrase
Prayer Our Father in Russian
Modern translation of the prayer into Russian
Church Pater Noster
This church contains prayers in all languages of the world.
In the synodal translation of the Bible, Our Father, the text of the prayer is as follows:
Let your kingdom come; may Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;
Give us our daily bread for this day;
and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Our Father who art in heaven! hallowed be thy name;
let your kingdom come; may Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;
give us our daily bread for every day;
and forgive us our sins, for we also.
For me, as for any Orthodox Christian, the main prayer is the Our Father, which everyone should know by heart. The basis of any prayer is humility and acceptance. This is communication with God, this is our constant spiritual connection, children with the Heavenly Father. For a believer, prayer is both food and air for life on earth, in joy and sorrow.
Christian prayer teaches compassion, love for one's neighbor, forgiveness. The Orthodox prayer "Our Father" is read before starting any business, before treatment, before worship, before going to bed and during the day. Thousands of people turn to the Savior. Because “Our Father” is a prayer that the Lord Jesus Christ himself gave us and therefore it has great power.
How to read the Orthodox prayer Our Father
The text of the Orthodox prayer begins with an appeal, an appeal to God the Father: "Our Father." Any person can communicate directly with the Creator, because everyone is equal before him. And everyone can call him their Heavenly Father. “Father.
Our Father, Who art in heaven!
May your name be hallowed;
let your kingdom come;
Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth;
give us our daily bread today;
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one;
for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Many Christians think that they are of great benefit to the soul when they read the psalms of David with troparia and perform other prescribed prayers, thereby reading them ... Only those prayers are intelligible to God, which, when the prayer says, understands what he says and feels ...
So, whoever says to God in prayer: Thy kingdom come, but does not know how this kingdom comes, does not know, does not prepare to receive it and does nothing that is required of him to receive it, is it possible for it to come this kingdom to him? What is the use, therefore, that he says in prayer, Thy kingdom come? Lord.
What is the Our Father Prayer? What is its essence and interpretation? It is on this topical topic that I would like to talk to you, dear reader.
Millions of Christians around the world practice this prayer daily. Unfortunately, for many, these are just memorized phrases, a stamp, a kind of form. The deep meaning of the prayer “Our Father” for many remains outside the scope of their consciousness. And this is a big minus, because a prayer realized in the heart could bring much more wonderful things in their daily lives. Yes, of course, this prayer helps, saves in extreme situations, but, meaningful to the end, creates a strong rope that connects a person with his Creator.
I myself was repeatedly pulled out of various critical situations by God thanks to this prayer, when I was still in search of Him. You can read about this in the articles “The power of the prayer “Our Father”, “Guardian Angel” under the heading “Miracles of God's protection” on my blog.
All about the main prayer of Christians "Our Father".
Researchers of human nature have long noted the fact that man, sometimes quite unconsciously, feels the need for prayer. Even atheists and agnostics resort to prayer at critical moments in their lives.
A person remembers the prayer “Our Father” when he feels the need to communicate with the only all-forgiving and all-understanding Friend.
“Our Father” (other names are “The Lord’s Prayer”, “Prayer of the Faithful”) is considered a universal prayer that is appropriate to read in any life circumstances, regardless of the time of day and place of prayer. Basically, this prayer
- helps a person to realize both his individual needs and reality,
- leads to repentance and gives a sense of forgiveness,
- awakens faith and hope,
- helps to overcome fear, tension, anger,
- helps to understand the prospects for overcoming problems,
- defines goals and helps to focus on achieving them,
- restores the psycho-emotional state,
- produces a general therapeutic effect.
Prayer "Our Father who art thou" in Old Church Slavonic, with an accent. Prayer "Our Father who art thou" translated into Russian in full: words, text
The liturgical tradition of the Church preserves the text of the Evangelist Matthew (MT. 6:9-13).
Below is the Church Slavonic text of the prayer and its modern spelling.
Prayer "Our Father": Old Slavonic text in modern orthography with accents Important: The Church Slavonic language was specially created for the worship of Orthodox Slavs. There is no "Yo" in this language. All words are read as they are written. During prayer, one should also carefully monitor the stresses.
You will find the interpretation of Church Slavonic expressions in the table.
"The Lord's Prayer" in modern Russian is as follows:
"Our Father" in modern Russian Prayer "Our Father who art": interpretation, power of prayer
Prayer is divided into several parts:
- call,
- seven requests;
- vocabulary.
call: with the words of the call, believers turn to the Lord and ask to listen to their requests.
The call in the prayer "Our Father" First request: about helping to live in accordance with the commandments of true Christians.
The first request in the prayer "Our Father" Second request a: to honor believers with the kingdom of God in their earthly existence.
The second request in the prayer "Our Father" Third Request emphasizes the readiness of a person to accept any of His will absolutely resignedly and submissively.
The third request in the prayer "Our Father" Fourth Request: about daily bread. In this case, the concept of "bread" includes everything necessary for human life on earth: food, clothing, a roof over one's head. And also the Sacrament of Holy Communion (without it there is no salvation and no eternal life).
The fourth request in the prayer "Our Father" Fifth Request: about the forgiveness of sins. True believers know that He gave people enough strength and talents to do good, and people often turn these gifts into evil. And if a person does not forgive those who offended him, then he may not receive forgiveness for his mistakes.
Fifth request in the Lord's Prayer Sixth Request: in protection from temptation. After all, a person is weak enough and cannot avoid temptation.
The sixth request in the prayer "Our Father" Seventh Request protection from all evil in this world.
The Seventh Request in the Lord's Prayer At the end of the prayer, a phrase may be read.
When and how correctly and how many times should the prayer “Our Father” be read?
The first and most important rule is to pray sincerely.
Home prayer:
- It is read in the morning (after waking up) and in the evening (before going to bed), as well as before meals. Minimum - in the morning and in the evening;
- if there are icons at home, pray in front of them,
- before praying, be sure to ask for forgiveness for your sins,
- be sure to listen to the words you pronounce, be aware of them,
- never pray for material gain or punishment for another person. Such a prayer will not be heard.
Prayer in the church:
- you can come at any time when the temple is open, or you can pray during the service.
Why is it necessary to read the prayer "Our Father" forty times?
Repeated repetition of prayer serves as the strongest shield against all troubles and misfortunes, incl. fatal.
How the prayer "Our Father" helps in life: examples
Unfortunately, it is easier for a person to believe in the bad than in the good. In the case of prayer, things are even more complicated: often we don’t even know when exactly prayer helped us.
And even in this case, you can find many examples of how sincere prayer helps fight physical ailments.
How the Our Father prayer helps in life How the Our Father prayer helps in lifeAnd this case occurred in 2016, when a plane bound for the Dominican Republic was forced to make an emergency landing.
How the prayer "Our Father" helps in life Who left the prayer "Our Father" to people?
What is the power of the Lord's Prayer? And why do we resort to it in difficult life circumstances? Perhaps because this prayer was given to us by Jesus himself. In form, it is similar to traditional Jewish prayers and is a kind of generalization of the Sermon on the Mount.
Video: Prayer "Our Father". Full interpretation. Part I
In Orthodox culture, there are many different canons and customs, which for many unbaptized people may seem very unusual. However, the prayer "Our Father" is the same religious appeal, the words in which are familiar to everyone and everyone firsthand.
"Our Father" in Church Slavonic with accents
Our Father, Thou art in heaven!
Hallowed be thy name,
let your kingdom come,
let thy will be done,
like in heaven and on earth.
Give us our daily bread today;
and leave us our debts,
as we also leave our debtors;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
Prayer "Our Father" in Russian in full
Our Father who art in heaven!
May your name be hallowed;
Let your kingdom come;
may Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;
Give us our daily bread for this day;
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Interpretation of the prayer "Our Father"
The origin of "Who art in heaven" has a long, centuries-old history. The Bible mentions that the author of the Lord's Prayer is Jesus Christ himself. It was given to them when he was still alive.
During the existence of Our Father, many clergy have expressed and continue to express their opinion about the main meaning that is set forth in this prayer. Their interpretations are comparatively different from each other. And first of all, this is due to the fact that the content of this sacred and thoughtful text contains a very subtle, but at the same time important philosophical message, which can be perceived by each person in completely different ways. At the same time, the prayer itself, in comparison with others, is quite short. So everyone can learn it!
The prayer "Our Father" is composed in such a way that its entire text has a special structure in which sentences are divided into several semantic parts.
- The first part deals with the glorification of God. During its pronunciation, people turn to the Almighty with all recognition and respect, thinking that this is the main savior of the entire human race.
- The second part implies individual requests and wishes of people directed to God.
- A conclusion that concludes the prayer and conversion of the faithful.
Having analyzed the entire text of the prayer, an interesting feature will be the fact that during the time of pronouncing all its parts, people will have to turn seven times with their requests and wishes to God.
And in order for God to hear requests for help and be able to help, it would not hurt each person to study detailed information with a detailed analysis of all three parts of the prayer.
"Our Father"
This phrase makes it clear to the Orthodox that God is the main ruler of the Kingdom of Heaven, to whom the soul must be treated in the same way as one's own father. That is, with all the warmth and love.
Jesus Christ, when he taught his disciples to pray correctly, spoke about the need to love the Father God.
"Who is in heaven"
In the interpretation of many clergy, the phrase "He who is in heaven" is understood in a figurative sense. So, for example, John Chrysostom in his reflections presented it as a comparative turnover.
Other interpretations say that "He who is in heaven" has a figurative expression, where the sky is the personification of any human soul. In other words, God's power is present in everyone who sincerely believes in it. And since it is customary to call the soul the human consciousness, which does not have a material form, but at the same time it (consciousness) exists, then, accordingly, the entire inner world of the believer in this interpretation appears as a heavenly appearance, where God's grace also exists.
"Hallowed be thy name"
It means that people should glorify the name of the Lord God by doing good and noble deeds, without violating all the commandments of the Old Testament. The phrase "Hallowed be thy name" is original and has not been changed in the translation of the prayer.
"Let your kingdom come"
The biblical legends say that during the life of Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God helped people overcome suffering, cast out evil spirits, in that power of demons, heal a sick body from all kinds of diseases, creating conditions for a beautiful and happy life on earth.
But over time, a huge number of people still turned out to be unable to protect themselves from dirty temptations, discrediting and denigrating their weak-willed souls with artificial temptations. Ultimately, the lack of humility and the impeccable following of one's own natural instinct turned most of society into wild beasts. I must say that these words up to the present time have not lost their originality.
"Thy will be done"
The point is that there is no need to be afraid of the power of God, since he knows better how the fate of each person should develop: through labor or pain, joy or sadness. No matter how unpleasant circumstances our path is filled with, it is important that with God's help it always makes sense. These are perhaps the most powerful words.
"Our Bread"
These words are full of mystery and complexity. The opinions of many clergy agreed that the meaning of this phrase is due to the constancy of God. That is, he must protect people not only in the most difficult moments, but also in other cases, always remaining with them. It is very important to learn these words by heart.
"And leave us debts"
You need to learn to forgive the sins of loved ones and strangers. Because only then will all your own vices be forgiven.
"And lead us not into temptation"
This means that people ask God to create on the path of life those difficulties and obstacles that we can overcome. For everything beyond the control is capable of breaking the human soul and losing his faith, exposing every person to temptation.
"But deliver us from the evil one"
Everything is clear here. We ask God for help in the fight against evil.
The Lord's Prayer can be printed on paper before going to church.
It is important to note that all the words presented above are stated in modern Russian, which are a translation from the ancient church.
At home, the prayer "Our Father" is read in the morning and at night before going to bed. And in the temple you can turn to God at any time.
