The Commented Our Father: A Guide to Prayer

Hallowed be thy name

To sanctify means to recognize the primacy of God in our lives. Jesus, our Master, said: "Father, I have made your name known to men, I have not made it known by words, I have made it known with my life because I have always obeyed your will".

This is how our inner disposition in prayer must be to sanctify the Father's name.

Thy kingdom come

In Jesus' preaching, the call to the kingdom of God was a constant: "the kingdom of God is like..., the kingdom of God is like..., the kingdom of God is in your midst". And again: "Repent and believe in the gospel".

From his words we can understand that the kingdom of God among men is Jesus. And to realize this kingdom, the radiant presence of Jesus in our hearts is necessary, and then, to follow in his footsteps and shape ourselves on his model. Furthermore, the gospel must inspire our actions and our thoughts; only then will it be possible to realize the kingdom of God and sanctify his name, otherwise we do not sanctify the name of God, but we sanctify our own name.

Thy will be done

To sanctify the name of God and bring about his kingdom, there is only one necessary condition: to live according to the will of God. In fact, Jesus said: "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself". And again: "I seek not my own will, but the will of him who sent me".

With these sublime teachings we understand that we must seek to submit our will to the will of Jesus at all times. It is a decisional act that unleashes an intimate struggle, but through this suffering we become praying beings, because we seek the praise of God, we submit to Him, we surrender to Him. This is the prayer that the Lord wants: not of words alone, but an action inspired by Jesus and His Gospel.

Give us this day our daily bread

It is the relationship with the things necessary for our life. Jesus taught us: "Do not worry about what you will eat, drink, or wear... because your Father knows what you need before you ask him". Which means: do not worry about anything you need to live in this world.

Father, help us to trust in you in our today, remove from us the temptation of tomorrow, give us the certainty (not material certainty) that you will always be present and will give us today what we need, the necessary. Yes, we must learn to entrust ourselves with confidence to the action of God, because He is ready to give us what is necessary. Trust is demanding, as is surrender, but without the presence of God, man loses all hope.

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us

This is an awesome and powerful thing. Jesus tells us: "If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you". This is the type of human relationship to establish: to forgive in order to be forgiven.

Forgiveness is understood in the essence of God. And God is love, and only Love can communicate the vital force of life, because we must be continually living. Forgiveness means that God gives you a gift, and this gift is the breath of life not only to make you live on earth, but also in eternal life.

Evil is not answered with evil, but with forgiveness. And to forgive, for man, does not simply mean to make peace, but to reject death to design life. To forgive is to communicate the force of God, which is love. To love the enemy does not mean to love that man, but to adapt your behavior before that man, as Jesus taught.

Lead us not into temptation

Jesus knows that whoever sets out on the spiritual path, the Devil will assault them; therefore, the believer must build a structure capable of resisting temptation. And temptation is resisted with the Spirit of Truth, who gives us the gift of discernment.

Therefore, "lead us not into temptation" means: give us discernment. That is, send us your Spirit so that we know how to distinguish what is in accordance with your will from what is the temptation of the devil.

But deliver us from evil

Jesus would never have said "evil", he would have said "the evil one". Thus, "deliver us from the evil one" means: give us the strength to drive him away.

In conclusion, it can be said that: we must do the will of God, we must seek his kingdom, we must sanctify his name, we must free ourselves from the Devil, we must be trusting for our daily bread, we must know how to forgive. Because through this praying style we can say with our lives, as Jesus said: "Get behind me, Satan".

This is the true way of praying, this is the inner struggle, this is the famous secret, the famous room in which you must close yourself because there must be only you and the Father. Then praying is simply your state, your being a praying person. Man needs Jesus and his Gospel because He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, who frees all those who are under the yoke of Satan.