In the Our Father we learned to pray: “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” A better translation would be: Do not subject us to the test. I have yet to find a single person on the face of the earth who likes to take tests, and...
There are circumstances in which, in our prayer of petition, we can be as confident and as daring as Abraham was (bordering on impudence) as he haggled with God on behalf of people dear to him. (cf. Genesis 18:20-32) But, in his Letter to the...
The term your Father (Πατρί σου in Greek) in the Matthean Gospel is replete with deep wisdom on who is Our Father in Heaven. Thus, in Matthew 5:16 Our Father receives His glory from you and me whenever we commit good works in front of...
This is the recent change made by Pope Francis to the Italian translation of the Lord’s Prayer. A similar alteration has also been made in French: ‘Do not let us fall into temptation’. On the face of it, both changes remove an uncomfortable...
The most frightening words in all of Scripture are the ones most of us repeat every day: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” It’s all too easy to rattle off these words without thinking of their implication. And...
To choose a favorite biblical passage is a difficult task, perhaps even a fool’s errand. A few dozen candidates spring immediately to mind, each with a powerful supporting argument for selecting it. So it is perfectly understandable to say, “There...
