“Pray this way: Our Father… hallowed be thy name…

 thy kingdom come” (Mt. 6:7-15)

How many times have we heard this Gospel about the Lord’s Prayer? Maybe a lot. But what will these days of Lent say to those of us who go through it trying to convert our lives, preparing ourselves for the joy of Easter?

Perhaps we lack understanding the dimension of calling the Father father. A Father who not only provides nourishment, love, but also sets limits, educates, corrects. A Father who is mine and also everyone’s, and who, if I say our Father, I am calling my brothers brothers brothers and sisters and that is how I must feel about them and care for them; a brother and sister whom I must help carry their daily burden, someone who belongs to me (I do not own him or her, but I must think of a debt of love we owe to the other), for whom I must be concerned, someone who is a gift to me, and who is the face of Jesus himself.

We ask God to deliver us from temptations, but we must make an effort not to seek them.