Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer

by Parker J. Palmer

Heavenly Father, heavenly Mother,
Holy and blessed is your true name.
We pray for your reign of peace to come,
We pray that your good will be done,
Let heaven and earth become one.
Give us this day the bread we need,
Give it to those who have none.
Let forgiveness flow like a river between us,
From each one to each one.
Lead us to holy innocence
Beyond the evil of our days —
Come swiftly Mother, Father, come.
For yours is the power and the glory and the mercy:
Forever your name is All in One.

Because words like these can’t be worn out in a week—or a lifetime—I hope you will savor this interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer as I do. This version comes from Quaker writer/educator/speaker/etc. Parker J. Palmer, author of (among other things) Let Your Life Speak and The Courage to Teach, which have been useful and inspirational books in my life.

This interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer appears in Peace Prayers: Meditations, Affirmations, Invocations, Poems, and Prayers for Peace (1991, ed. Carrie Leadingham, Joann E. Moschella, Hilary M. Vartanian).

Alissa Goudswaard lives in Lafayette, Indiana, where she is completing her MA in rhetoric and composition, baking all the cupcakes, and attempting to teach herself guitar. Find this Calvin-grad-turned-stark-raving-Episcopalian online at episcotheque.wordpress.com and on Twitter as @episcotheque.