Until three years ago I had never heard of the Eighteen Benedictions. They are the eighteen blessings and petitions prayed by faithful Jews three times daily, since before the birth of Christ. In
Judaism they are known as Tephilla, simply “the prayer.”
For Christians
the Our Father is of course the perfect prayer. (Coming from the lips of Christ, how could it be anything but?) The Didache, the earliest Christian document outside of the New
Testament (c.70 - 120 A.D.), and the Church’s first manual of discipline,
directed Christians to pray the Our Father three times a day. The Catechism
of the Catholic Church comes right out and says that it was prayed “in place of the ‘Eighteen Benedictions’ customary in Jewish piety”
(CCC 2767).
Does the Our Father, the perfect prayer, in
fact encompass the Eighteen Benedictions?
I assert that it does. This is how I align them:
The Our
Father
|
The
Eighteen Benedictions
"Blessed be the Lord ..."
|
Our Father Who art in
heaven, hallowed be Thy name
|
1) ... the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our shield through the ages.
3) ... the
only God.
15) ... who hears our prayers.
17) ... whom it is right
to thank. Thank you for the mercy,
kindness, and goodness you have shown to us, and our fathers and mothers
before us.
|
Thy kingdom come
|
2) ... who raises the
dead.
12) ...who humbles the arrogant, the heretics. Remove them from among your people.
14)...who rebuilt Jerusalem. Restore the kingdom of David, your anointed
one.
|
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven
|
11) ... who loves justice.
Give us wise judges and leaders, as we had in times past.
18) ... who creates peace.
Give your peace to your people Israel.
|
Give us this day our daily
bread
|
4) ... who gives
knowledge. Give us understanding of
your Law.
8) ... who heals the
sick. Heal the pain in our hearts.
9) ... who blesses the
yearly harvest. Send our lands all
they need to be fruitful.
13) ... who shelters the
righteous. Shower goodness upon
converts and reward all who do your will.
16) ... who allows us to
worship in his sanctuary. May he
always dwell in Jerusalem.
|
Forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those we trespass against us
|
6) ... who forgives. Forgive us our sins against you.
|
Lead us not into temptation
|
5) ... who loves
repentance. Make us turn back to you.
10) ... who gathers the
exiles of Israel. Bring them back.
|
But deliver us from
evil.
|
7) ... who has redeemed
Israel. Save us from our enemies.
|
What do you think?
I like it. I'm studying Jewish faith thru Chabad and tying it to my Christian faith. Until I started with Chabad I did not understand Jesus's teaching in terms of his culture. What an eye opener, it makes so much more sense now. Funny how we are brought up as Christians but are not really taught the relevance of Judaism.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! Hope that you and your family are having a joyous Christmas
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