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Lord's Prayer

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The Lord's Prayer (sometimes known by its first two Latin words as the Pater Noster, or the English equivalent Our Father) is probably the most well-known prayer in the Christian religion. The Lord's Prayer is excerpted from Matt. 6:9-13 during the Sermon on the Mount. (A similar prayer is found on Luke 11:2-4.)

It is called the "Lord's Prayer" because it was a prayer given by Jesus Christ (ie. the "Lord") as response to a request from the Apostles for guidance on how to pray. Most Christian theologians point out that Jesus Christ would have never used this prayer himself, for it specifically asks for forgiveness of sins, and in most schools of Christian thought, Christ never sinned.

Although numerous variations exist, this version, from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, is a fairly well known example:

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.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

When the Lord's Prayer is recited in the Roman Catholic mass (according to the 1969 Roman Missal), an additional section, recited by the Priest alone, is inserted before the final doxology ("For thine is the kingdom", etc.):

All.

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.

Priest.

Deliver us, Lord, from every evil,

and grant us peace in our day.

In your mercy keep us free from sin

and protect us from all anxiety

as we wait in joyful hope

for the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

All.

For the kingdom,

the power,

and the glory are yours

now and for ever.

Catholics, when reciting the Lord's prayer, omit the doxology, since in the Mass it is separated from the rest of the prayer by the additional section.

When Eastern Orthodox Christians pray the Lord's prayer, the priest says the doxology alone if one is present:

All.

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.

Priest.

For the kingdom,

the power,

and the glory are yours

now and for ever.

All

Amen.

If a priest is not present, a different doxology is typically substituted and said by those present, such as Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.

The doxology was probably not present in the original version of the prayer, but rather was added to the Gospels as a result of its use in the liturgy of the early church.

Here is a version of the Pater Noster in Aramaic:

Abwoon d'bwashmaya,

Nethqadash shmakh,

Teytey malkuthakh.

Nehwey tzevyanach aykanna d'bwashmaya aph b'arha.

Hawvlan lachma d'sunqanan yaomana.

Washboqlan khaubayn (wakhtahayn)

aykana daph khnan shbwoqan l'khayyabayn.

Wela tahlan l'nesyuna.

Ela patzan min bisha.

Metol dilakhie malkutha wahayla wateshbukhta l'ahlam almin.

Amen.

Gothic bishop Ulfilas wrote down the "Atta Unsar" or "Lord's Prayer" in circa 350 AD. Here is one version :

Atta unsar thu in himinam,

weihnai namo thein,

quimai thiudinassus theins,

wairthai wilja theins,

swe in himina jah ana airthai.

hlaif unsarana thana sinteinan gib uns himma daga,

jah aflet uns thatei skulans sijaima,

swaswe jah weis afletam thaim skulam unsaraim,

jah ni briggais uns in fraistubnjai,

ak lausei uns af thamma ubilin;

unte theina ist thiudangardi

jah mahts jah wulthus in aiwins.

Amen.

Older English versions of the Lord's Prayer
Dated 1611 AD.

Our father which art in heauen,

hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth as it is in heauen.

Giue us this day our daily bread.

And forgiue us our debts as we forgiue our debters.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliuer us from euill.

Amen.

Dated 1384 AD.

Oure fadir þat art in heuenes halwid be þi name;

þi reume or kyngdom come to be.

Be þi wille don in herþe as it is doun in heuene.

yeue to us today oure eche dayes bred.

And foryeue to us oure dettis þat is oure synnys as we foryeuen to oure dettouris þat is to men þat han synned in us.

And lede us not into temptacion but delyuere us from euyl.

Dated circa 1000 AD.

Fæder ure þu þe eart on heofonum si þin nama gehalgod tobecume þin rice gewurþe þin willa on eorðan swa swa on heofonum urne gedæghwamlican hlaf syle us to dæg and forgyf us ure gyltas swa swa we forgyfað urum gyltendum and ne gelæd þu us on costnunge ac alys us of yfele soþlice.