Whose Father/

A guest post by Steven St. Thomas

Our Father… Not Yours?

Jesus spent a lot of time praying, according to the Gospels.
Ironically, when he instructed his disciples about how to pray, he
told them to keep it short. “And when you pray, do not keep on
babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of
their many words,” Matthew quotes the Master in Chap. 6, verse 7-8.
“Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you
ask him.”

So, Jesus said, pray like this – and he launched into what millennia
of Christians have called The Lord’s Prayer. It begins, “Our Father
who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” I’m sure you’ve prayed it
often – maybe even daily. And we all have a pretty good idea of who
Our Father is. Lately, however, I’m wondering if we really understand
who Our Father is.

Who’s included in your “Our”? Are there some people who are not God’s
children? Did Christ die for some people and not others? When you say
“Give us this day our daily bread,” are you praying only for your
immediate family? Your community? Your country? Tribe? Are there
people you think shouldn’t be given their daily bread?

When we pray, “Forgive us our trespasses,” who’s included in “our”?
Everyone? Or are there people we think shouldn’t be forgiven? “Deliver
us from evil”… who’s included in “us”? Are we asking God to deliver
only some people and not everyone?

This past week, as we’ve witnessed the latest chapter in the
Arab-Israeli War, I’ve seen a lot of people declaring which side they
are on. I stand with Israel! I stand with the Palestinians! Stop the
terrorism, stop the genocide! All of these stands are good… if we’re
standing up for us. Everyone. The God I read about in the Gospels
loves everyone and wants to bless all people. The last thing God wants
us to pray is “Our Father… Not Yours!”

I asked Steve to write a guest post after a preacher at a church I have often attended asked us to pray for Israel and didn’t mention the Palestinians. And as this preacher is, I think, not a ChristianNationalist, I found myself distressed.

love to you all,

Ken