St. Margaret of Cortona Parish

The Our Father, or Lord's Prayer, Explained

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The question of, “How do we pray?” is one that is often asked and one that was posed thousands of years ago by the disciples. In Luke 11:1-4, when one of Jesus’ disciples ask Him, “Lord, teach us to pray,” Jesus replied by giving us the prayer that we recite countless times throughout our lifetime — the Our Father, also known as The Lord’s Prayer.

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Jesus instructed His disciples and us to: "Pray, then, in this way"

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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.

Amen.

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This short prayer takes a mere 15-20 seconds to say, yet is filled with incredible meaning. If ever there was a prayer that summarized our faith and what’s expressed in the Gospels, the Our Father is it. On his reflection on this prayer, St. Cyprian of Carthage, a third century bishop wrote, “My dear friends, the Lord’s Prayer contains many great mysteries of our faith. In these few words there is great spiritual strength, for this summary of divine teaching contains all of our prayers and petitions.”

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If you’ve been a practicing Catholic since you were little, you’ve been reciting this prayer more times than you can count. Like anything we do repeatedly, saying this prayer silently or out loud becomes second nature. It’s important to remind ourselves to stop and reflect on the words we are saying. With the help of religious scholars and clergy, let’s take a closer look at what each line means, and how we can apply this prayer to our lives. Because as Pope Benedict XVI wrote, “The meaning of the Our Father goes much further than the mere provision of a prayer text. It aims to form our being, to train us in the inner attitude of Jesus.”

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1. Our Father, Who art in heaven

We start this prayer by professing our core religious belief that God is our heavenly Father—the one who is all knowing and all powerful. Notice that Jesus didn’t instruct us to say, “My Father” but stressed “Our Father.” Scripture scholar John Meier explains that in God’s kingdom, we don’t live as isolated individuals but “we experience God’s fatherhood as members of the church, the family of Jesus the Son.” This reminds us that we recognize all those around us as children of God and treat them accordingly. Today, amid family strains from remote work or digital isolation, “Our Father” calls us to see all people as God’s children. This echoes Pope Francis’s 2024 Synod on Synodality, urging unity across divides.

 

2. Hallowed be Thy Name

Hallowed is another word for holy or sanctified. When we say “hallowed be Thy name,” we are not only telling God “I recognize that you are holy,” but more importantly, we’re asking that His name be recognized by everyone throughout the world as being the ultimate holy power—that one day (sooner rather than later) all will know Him to be righteous, powerful, and everyone’s one true God. In a secular age driven by AI and social media, this line challenges us to honor God’s holiness online and offline. As the Untied States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) noted in 2024, reverence starts with mindful digital habits.

 

3. Thy Kingdom come

This petition has a two-fold meaning. First, we are asking that God’s kingdom (where there’s only goodness, honesty, and love for one another) surround us in our everyday life. Secondly, we are praying for the fulfillment of the Lord’s promise that He will return at the end of time and grant us eternal life. Today, praying for God’s kingdom invites us to foster peace in polarized communities. This aligns with the Vatican’s 2024 call for dialogue amid global tensions.

 

4. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven

We pray these words asking for God’s grace to move us to do His will throughout our life. That means doing all the things that will please our Father — even the difficult things, whether it’s something big such as moving an elderly parent into our home or volunteering our time once a week at the soup kitchen, to something as small as giving up a parking space or not calling a best friend to spread some juicy gossip. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops says, “In committing ourselves to [Christ], we can become one spirit with him, and thereby accomplish his will…” Amid the fast-paced world, this line urges us to prioritize God’s will over convenience, like volunteering locally despite busy schedules, as encouraged by recent United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) service initiatives.

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5. Give us this day our daily bread

Here we’re recognizing that all things we need come to us from God. We’re asking that God continue to give us not only the food (and temporal needs) we need for today, but also the Bread of Life, the Eucharist. With rising costs straining U.S. families in 2025, this line reminds us to trust God’s provision, both physical and spiritual. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) 2024 economic justice teachings echo this reliance on God.

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6. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us

This is a tough one. It may be easy for us to ask God to forgive us our “trespasses” or sins, but God in his infinite wisdom teaches us that in order for Him to forgive our wrongdoings, we must first forgive those who’ve hurt us. God isn’t being difficult, rather He’s teaching us that when there is bitterness and anger in our hearts, there’s no room for His love to fill our hearts. How can we ask God to be merciful and forgive our sins, if we’re holding a grudge or refuse to forgive someone who’s wronged us? Forgiving someone is often easier said than done. Only God can give us the strength to do it through prayer. Today with social divisions amplified online, this line calls us to forgive as a path to healing. Pope Francis’s 2024 writings on mercy inspire us to let go of grudges.

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7. And lead us not into temptation

Temptation and sin go hand in hand. When we come face to face with temptation, it can sometimes be difficult to resist. That’s why we need our Father to set up the road blocks and lead us far from the path of temptation. In an era of deep fakes and digital overload, this plea seeks God’s guidance to avoid modern temptations like misinformation, as highlighted in the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) 2024 digital ethics guidelines.

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8. But deliver us from evil

Evil is an unfortunate reality in our world. The devil is always trying to tempt us and makes it his full-time job to look for ways to steer us from the right path and onto the wrong one. The devil has no power over God and when we pray to God for protection against all that is evil, He will shield us — always. Today as we face global challenges like climate crises, this line reminds us to seek God’s protection against despair and division, trusting in His ultimate power.

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Conclusion

There are many moving prayers that we can say, but when it comes to one prayer that takes the main aspects of

our faith and summarizes them in several short lines, the Our Father is the perfect prayer.

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