Twenty First Sunday in Ordinary Time (22nd August 2021)

Reflection

A reflection on the Our Father

As Pope Francis called all Christians to pray the Lord's prayer today here is a reflection on the prayer Jesus taught us written by Raymond Friel

Our Father

Our Father
Not a frightening God
But the loving father of all humanity

Who art in heaven
Not far away but very close
Heaven is where we find the presence of God

Hallowed be thy name
We place your name above all other names
We praise you, we honour you, we thank you

Thy kingdom come
May the world look like the kind of place
God wants it to be, just and compassionate

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven
We all want different things
But it’s what you want for us and the whole world that matters

Give us this day our daily bread
Give everybody what they need to live, physically and spiritually,
Give us the grace to help them

And forgive our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us
If we don’t forgive other people
We won’t be able to feel forgiven

And lead us not into temptation
Protect us from the glamorous path
The world sets before us

But deliver us from evil
Spare us from the terrible things human beings are capable of and help us to stand against evil in our world when we can

Amen.
Let all this be so.