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The Lord and His Prayer

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If you come to this book expecting to find another brilliant historical theological treatment, as in NTPG & JVG, you may be somewhat disappointed, but you will find some very suggestive material and some of his unusually excellent analogies or twist of phrases. Though the book is a popular treatment, which began as a series of sermons, Wright does approach the prayer as understood in its historical context, and sees it as a lens through which to view Jesus himself and understand his vocation. He deals with six of the prayer's key phrases pertaining to: the Father, Kingdom, Daily Bread, Forgiveness, Deliverance, and Power & Glory.

He acknowledges that, in some sense, the use of the word "Abba" (Father) may indicate a boldness of addressing God as "Daddy" and a deep sense of personal intimacy with God [as Jeremias claims]. This, however, he argues, was not the most important thing about Jesus' use of the word. For Jesus, based on its O.T. background, it primarily was a word used in God's freeing Israel to be his sons and calling her to be his own people with a unique mission of salvation for the world. Thus, to pray to God as Father means to acknowledge our liberation and the boldness to carry on the Kingdom mission.

As in his other works, Wright stresses that prayer for the Kingdom to come is to acknowledge that it is a "this-worldly" ("on earth") reality, an event that happens within history, through Jesus. As his followers, who have been captivated by his music and cured by his medicine, we are to sing his song and apply his medicine to a world that is offbeat and sick.

The prayer for daily bread, he claims, must be understood in the context of the Messianic banquet and the festive meals Jesus shared as a deliberate sign of the Kingdom's presence. It is equivalent to saying: "Let the party begin" [or should we rather say, continue]. He also stresses, again, as in his other works, the "physical" reality of our existence, and that this prayer is a request to our Father to continue to provide us with daily sustanence for our lives in the Kingdom.

Prayer for forgiveness is not, he tells us, simply a request for forgiveness of trivial matters that daily occur, but rather, that we remain within the life of the new exodus--the liberation of the sons of God. And, as the second clause reminds us, we are only to expect forgiveness if we are ourselves forgiving others. The two are mutually dependent.

There are three levels of meaning to the request to be delivered from Evil: 1) escape from the great tribulation and dealing with Evil itself [this was a bit confusing; apparently Jesus has already deal with Evil itself, so we don't have to, at least not in the same way]; 2) it is a request not to face temptations we are unable to bear, and 3) it is a petition to pass safely through the testing of our faith.

In the final chapter, on the power and glory, Wright shows how Luke's Gospel contrasts two kingdoms throughout his work: that of Augustus, Roman Emperor, and the young Prince of Peace, born in an obscure province fifteen hundred miles away in a little town that just happened to be the one mentioned in prophecy about the coming of Messiah. The real power and glory rightly belong, not to the rule that had to establish itself by killing plenty of people and even more to maintain itself, but to the rule of the one who brought peace to all, without harm to anyone, through the cross. We are all left with the question to answer for ourselves: Which rule is the reality, and which the parody?

I am in the process of preparing a series of retreat talks on the Lord's Prayer, so I have read more than a dozen books on the topic in quick succession. Of all of these, I have decided to use Wright's book as the book for those on the retreat to read because it is a wonderful mix of scholarship and devotion, offering the intelligent reader a lot to chew on but speaking on a non-technical level. (This mix is harder to achieve than most people think, as I well know.) If you are going to read only one book on the Lord's Prayer, I suggest that you make it this one.

Elsewhere, Wright has provided the most exaustive and compelling historical treatment of the historical Jesus available. In this brief work, he shows what this historical understanding means for those who would pray this prayer.

I took this book as my lent book this year. I decided that I needed to improve my prayer life. I still do: I doubt I shall ever not need to pray, "Lord, teach me how to pray." Yet, this book achieved the invaluable service of bringing alive the prayer I have known by heart since before I can remember. Could one hope for more?

The Lord's Prayer has been with me from childhood. In my language (Norwegian) we have a hymn with some very powerful words that sound about as follows: "With the Lord's prayer in covenant, thou shalt never shudder". - All the same it may be difficult sometimes to really appreciate what Jesus meant with the different parts of the prayer he taught us. For instance, what does "thy kingdom come" really mean? And why should God potentially "lead us into temptation"? Those and many other questions have come to me throughout the years.

Tom Wright's book answers many such questions. Based on a thorough study of the culture in Palestine at the time of Jesus and Jesus' native language (Aramaic), the author explains what he believes Jesus really meant, and he also manages to make Jesus' message alive to us in such a way that it may change the lives of many people.

I really hope many of you will read and contemplate on "The LORD and His Prayer" by Tom Wright. It is a book that should be read slowly - maybe a chapter a week or so.

In spite of so many other commentaries on the Lord's Prayer, Wright manages to refresh our view of the greatest of prayers. In this small book, you get the benefits of the insights of a first-rate scholar without having to plow through his much longer works (although the longer works are indeed worth plowing through with determination). Wright emphasizes two themes that we tend to forget. The first theme is that the Lord's Prayer is about asking God to transform this earth and our earthly desires, not about pie in the sky. Secondly, the Pater Noster is about our "signing on" to the Kingdom, a Kingdom full of unpredictable transformations and exoduses. Wright reminds us that in the Our Father we put our entire selves, with all our earthly desires and concerns, in the hands of the Father. The book is more than worth the small expenditure of time it takes to read it.

This little book is well worth the money. Wright has brought out the Lord's prayer and put it both in its original context and has shown its application for today. The already/not yet aspect of praying for the Kindom to come. Wright correctly states that the Kindom is the rule of God that has come about in Jesus and that will be consumated at his coming. Every aspect of this prayer has powerful meaning for us today and Wright in no way trivializes the prayer into some nebulous Kingdom idea. I highly recommend this book for every Christian.

This book has had a profound impact on my prayer life and understanding of prayer. I have an academic background in theology and biblical studies, but my experience with and attitude towards prayer has always been deficient. Faith for me was overly intellectual, not personal. Troubling events in life have driven me to take prayer seriously and make it meaningful. This book helped make that happen.

This is a challenging book written in graceful prose. He digs deeper into faith, prayer, and the Kingdom, than our conventional teachings have offered. After I finished reading this book, I immediately turned to the first page and read it again, taking notes. I expect to be reading it again soon.

Bishop Wright breathes fresh wind upon old ground that is dusty and worn. Let's face it. Praying the Lord's Prayer for most of us becomes a recitation in ritual and the perfunctory. How does one approach the most well-known prayer in the history of the Church and breathe fresh air upon it? Allow the Reverend Doctor Wright to do just that. I was amazed how much I did not understand this gift of prayer to the Church. You will too. Read this book, then use it to meditate upon as you rediscover the Lord's Prayer all over again. Thank you Dr. Wright!

This small book is unique in that it seeks to look at what not only what Jesus said but what Jesus meant by the Lord's prayer. Wright seeks to create for the reader the Jewish mindset on Jesus' day and how this prayer would be understood by them. Another major theme of this book is that the Lord's Prayer is not merely a prayer to be prayed, but an outline of how a disciple of Christ is to live out a life in obedience. How does the Lord's Prayer teach us to imitate Christ? Wright answers this by considering the major themes of the Lord's Prayer: the sovereignty of God, the Lord's provision; the importance of mercy; and the problem of evil; and finally, the glory of God. Each of these vital topics is then looked at by briefly exploring how Christ expressed each of them in His own life.

This is truly a book to meditate and ponder upon, especially in how we should live out the words of this ancient prayer. I agree with much of Wright's views on this matter, as Christians need to be more concerned about helping the poor, the distraught, and those who suffer. This book reminds us that we need to be not only praying for such a fulfillment of God's will on earth, but that we are also the very instruments that God will use to build the Kingdom itself.

This small book is exceptional. I love the way it takes you through the prayer Our Lord taught us.