Overview:

The Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

A Reflection for the Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
“Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”
He said to them, “When you pray, say:

Father, hallowed be your name,
your Kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test.” (Lk 11:1-4)

Find today’s readings here.

Each Sunday at Mass, we say this prayer (albeit a longer version) that Jesus teaches his disciples. And in repeating it week after week, we can easily lose sight of its wonder and depth. I thought it might be helpful to bring us back to the basics and break down the prayer line by line—its simplicity carries surprising significance, and it is worth deeply paying attention to.

Father, hallowed be your name, your Kingdom come.

Addressing God as “Father” draws us near to God. Instead of thinking of God as being up in the clouds—or, as a former theology professor used to joke, thinking of God as “Sky Dad”—calling God our “Father” brings us intimately into a familial relationship. God isn’t our manager, peering over the desk. God isn’t judging the perfection of our prayer from above. No, God is near, and God is love. “Hallowed be your name” indicates that God’s name should be revered, but “Father” bridges any gap between the God that loves abundantly and any image of a distant God. “Your Kingdom come” pulls us out of ourselves and reorients our prayer to focus on God’s reign instead. Jesus, in being fully human, knows that we have a natural tendency to focus on ourselves. This line, intentionally placed at the beginning, sets us on the right track as we continue to pray.

Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our sins…

“Daily” and “bread” are crucial here. We rely on God every single day, and every single day God is attendant to our needs. God’s capacity for love is infinitely greater than we could ever imagine, and Jesus, in this prayer, calls us to recognize the generosity of God offering that love. “Bread” reminds us that it is God’s love which most fundamentally sustains us. When we accept that we must rely on God, we are well-positioned to ask for forgiveness, because being reliant on another being for sustenance inherently humbles our egos. We then do not approach God arrogantly but subserviently, remembering the abundance of God’s love and forgiveness. 

…for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us, and do not subject us to the final test.

The first part brings to mind the Christian commitment to reconciliation, both with God and with others. Attending to, questioning and reconciling with those whose actions distract us in our journey toward imitating God’s love are each an act of reverence toward God. “Do not subject us to the final test” ends the prayer in humility—just in case we were still clinging onto our individual human desires. 

The simplicity of this prayer might come as a surprise. It’s only six lines, after all. But in those six lines, Jesus teaches some of the most profound truths of the Christian faith. Think about each of the individual words the next time you say them at Mass. Allow yourself to speak slowly and deliberately. You might just feel God’s closeness in a new way.

Molly Wysocki is an O'Hare Fellow at America Media.