'Hallowed be thy name'

October 29, 2020

In our journey of rediscovering the “Our Father”, today we shall delve deeper into the first of his seven invocations, namely, “hallowed be thy name.”

There are seven requests in the “Our Father”, easily divisible into two subgroups. The first three have at the center ‘Thou/You’ addressed to God the Father; the other four have at the center ‘us’ and our human needs. In the first part Jesus lets us enter his wishes, everyone turning to the Father: “hallowed by thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done”; in the second it is He who enters us and becomes the interpreter of our needs: daily bread, forgiveness of sins, help in temptation and liberation from evil.

Herein lies the matrix of every Christian prayer I would say of every human prayer which is always done, on the one hand, as a contemplation of God, of his mystery, of his beauty and goodness, and on the other, as a sincere and courageous request for what we need for life, and to live properly. Thus, in its simplicity and in its essentiality, the “Our Father” teaches those who pray it not to multiply empty words, because as Jesus himself says “your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Mt 6:8).

Source: Pope Francis’ catecheses on the Lord’s Prayer, given during general audiences between Dec. 5, 2018 and May 22, 2019.

Message from Msgr. Pablo Navarro

St. John Neumann Church

Jesus’ command to love God and neighbor is not a “feeling.” Let’s face it there are times when we find it hard to pray and to place God first.. and there are times when we would want the neighbor to disappear. The love command is not a feeling… but a commitment. For God it means devotion and wholehearted commitment. For neighbor, it means commitment to their good, and seeking to help them when they need it.

*When loving is difficult do I seek God’s help?

Take time to refresh the life of the Spirit that has been given you. Then witness your faith like disciples and believers throughout the ages. Be assured of my prayers for you and for your dear ones. May the good Lord bless you with wisdom, health and peace. Please pray for me.

In Christ,
Msgr. Pablo A. Navarro