9. “In this manner therefore shall you pray: “Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy Name” (Mt 6:9).
This is our immeasurable Treasure that to each of us belongs Our Eternal Father Who is Being, Who exists in perfect happiness, and Who continues to call us into being and to sustain us in being. Jesus tells us to begin our prayer this way because Our Father is our origin and goal and there is nothing that we could pray for or receive that would not be His Gift. Also due to the intellectual density caused in us by original sin and its consequences, we often forget where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going. Addressing Our Father by Name in this way helps to reorient us back to Reality. As St. John Paul II explained this, “The key for interpreting reality is that original sin attempts to abolish fatherhood” (Crossing the Threshold of Hope, pg. 228). Once we realize that our battle lies in maintaining, protecting, and growing in our relationship with Our Father in Heaven, it becomes easier to stop fretting about the thousands of other things which strive to occupy our attention.
