Today as we pray the Our Father, let the insights of St. Cyprian guide our reflection on The Lord’s Prayer.

 From a treatise on the Lord’s Prayer by St. Cyprian, bishop & martyr “… the commands of the Gospel are nothing else than God’s lessons, the foundations on which to build up hope, the supports for strengthening faith, the food that nourishes the heart.

They are the rudder for keeping us on the right course, the protection that keeps our salvation secure. As they instruct the receptive minds of believers on earth, they lead safely to the kingdom of heaven….

What prayer could be more a prayer in the spirit than the one given us by Christ, by whom the Holy Spirit was sent upon us?

What prayer could be more a prayer in the truth than the one spoken by the lips of the Son, who is truth himself?”

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.”

And so we pray, “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.”

Reflect on what Mother Teresa said, "Prayer must come from the heart and must be able to touch the heart of God."

Jesus gave us the Our Father to do just that, and if we get no further than “Our Father ... thy will be done ...." our heart will touch God’s heart.

May God Be Praised!