Hope and the Lord's Prayer
What is hope?
Hope is an infused and supernatural virtue by which we await, with firm trust, the grace of salvation and eternal life.
How can we learn to hope and pray correctly?
We can learn to hope and pray correctly through the Lord’s Prayer, which Jesus Christ, our Lord and Master, taught us and prescribed with His sacred mouth.
Recite the Lord’s Prayer, indicating the different parts it consists of.
First request. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Second request. Thy kingdom come.
Third request. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Fourth request. Give us this day our daily bread.
Fifth request. Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Sixth request. Lead us not into temptation.
Seventh request. But deliver us from evil. Amen.
What do the first words of this prayer “Our Father” mean?
These first words: Our Father, serve as a preamble and remind us of the immense blessing of God the Father, who has chosen us as His adopted children and heirs through Jesus Christ. This sweet name of Father invites us to return love for love and to pray to Him with great confidence.
What does the first request: Hallowed be Thy name mean?
The first request: Hallowed be Thy name, expresses the wish that well-born children naturally form: they ask that the knowledge, fear, respect, love, and honor of the Eternal Majesty always and everywhere grow in their hearts and in the hearts of all men; in a word, they desire everything that can contribute to the glory of their Father, whose greatness and goodness are infinite.
What do we ask by these words: Thy kingdom come?
By these words: Thy kingdom come, we ask for the glory of the heavenly kingdom and eternal happiness, so that we may be granted to reign without delay and forever with Jesus Christ.
What do we ask by these words: Thy will be done?
By these words: Thy will be done, we ask for the help of divine grace, so that we may accomplish on earth the will of our Heavenly Father, as the blessed do in heaven, with fidelity, joy, and constancy.
What do we ask by these words: Give us this day our daily bread?
By these words: Give us this day our daily bread, we ask for everything necessary and useful to sustain the life of our body and soul, such as food and clothing, the word of God, and the sacraments of the Church.
What do we ask by these words: Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive?
By these words: Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive, we ask for forgiveness and remission of our sins, and we declare ourselves ready to forgive others everything they have done against us.
What do we ask by these words: Lead us not into temptation?
By these words: Lead us not into temptation, we pray to God to support our weakness in this life, and to defend us with His power against the world, the flesh, and the devil; so that we never, in any way, fall into temptation and consent to sin.
What do we ask by these last words: Deliver us from evil. Amen?
By these words: Deliver us from evil, we ask God’s goodness to deliver us and preserve us from the evils of the soul and body, both in this life, as far as it is useful for our salvation, and in the next.
We conclude with these words: Amen, to express the hope and desire we have to receive all that is contained in the seven requests of this prayer.
What is the summary of the first requests of the Lord’s Prayer?
The first four requests of the Lord’s Prayer point to the goods that we must hope for and ask for here below: the first, and the one that outweighs all the others, is the honor and glory of the divine Majesty; the second is our own happiness; the third is the obedience we owe to God; finally, the fourth contains what is necessary for the life of our body and soul.
What is the summary of the other requests?
The last three requests of the Lord’s Prayer indicate the evils from which we must pray our Heavenly Father to protect us. First, the sins that close the entrance to the kingdom of God; then, the temptations that naturally lead us to sin, unless we are protected by divine assistance; finally, the misfortunes of this life and the next. Thus, the Lord’s Prayer teaches us to pray to God to grant us the goods and preserve us from the evils.
Recite the Angelic Salutation in honor of the Blessed Virgin, Mother of God.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
What is the origin of this Salutation in honor of the Blessed Virgin?
The origin of the Angelic Salutation is first the example of the Angel Gabriel and Saint Elizabeth; then, the usage and consent of the Catholic Church.
What is the fruit of this Salutation?
The fruit of the Angelic Salutation is to remind us of the sweet and salutary memory of the Blessed Virgin and the incarnation of Our Lord; then, to invite us to seek the favor of this Virgin full of grace and her intercession with God.
What does the Angelic Salutation teach us?
The Angelic Salutation teaches us about the marvelous prerogatives and glory of this incomparable Virgin: the excellence of the graces and virtues with which she was filled, her virginity and motherhood, the blessings with which she was honored among all women of all ages; finally, the honor she has of being the mother of the King of kings, Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, and of having given us grace and life.