Reading 1
Is 55:10-11
Thus says the LORD:
Just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
And do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
Giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.
Ps 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19
Responsorial PsalmR. (18b)
From all their distress God rescues the just.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Gospel
Mt 6:7-15
Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is how you are to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
Meditation: Matthew 6:7-15
“This is how you are to pray.” (Matthew 6:9)
Just where did Jesus come up with the Lord’s Prayer? Did it drop from heaven and tumble out of his mouth one day? Not exactly. As with everything else that Jesus said and did, this prayer passed through his humanity. It was the result of his experiences in the world coupled with his pure, uninterrupted union with his Father. We might say, in fact, that this is the only prayer that could come from the heart of someone who lived fully in this world and fully in the presence of God.
On the human level, we can imagine the influence that Mary and Joseph had in the development of this prayer. Who better to teach Jesus to pray, “Thy will be done” than the woman who said, “May it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38)? Who better to teach Jesus to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread” than the carpenter who trusted in God’s provision enough to uproot his family first to flee to Egypt and then to settle in Nazareth? Surely all that back-and-forthing was not good for business!
These observations can remain interesting bits of historical speculation, but there’s more here than history. God wants us to see that just as Jesus’ prayer was rooted in his daily life, so can our prayer come from our hearts. He wants to show us his love and presence in our everyday lives so that we will spontaneously cry out the same words of petition and praise that Jesus said.
The Lord’s Prayer shows us that God wants to transform our lives, but it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s miraculous, not magical. Transformation comes as we take our human efforts and mix them with faith in God’s mighty power. Today, try looking for two or three opportunities to exercise radical faith in God, the kind of faith that Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had. Then check and see what kinds of prayers arise from your heart. No doubt, they will sound like the Our Father. And that means that God is at work, making you into Jesus’ own image and likeness.
“Jesus, thank you for teaching me to pray as you did. Teach me also to live as you did, so that my heart can become a mirror image of yours!”
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