Our Father

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the Our Father ?is truly the summary of the whole Gospel? (no. 2761). Catholics pray the Lord's Prayer whenever they worship at Mass and say the Rosary, and other Christians pray it frequently as well. Join Scott Hahn (accompanied by St. Cyprian, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Augustine) as he unlocks the riches of the Lord's Prayer.

"Jesus taught us the most beautiful prayer. When we pray to God, we can say with confidence: "Our Father, who art in heaven..."" --Page 4 of cover.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Pope Francis illuminates the Lord’s Prayer, the most important prayer in all of Christianity, offering readers a guide to living a life of meaning, purpose and strength. In conversation with Father Marco Pozza, a theologian and prison chaplain in Padua, Italy, Pope Francis offers unprecedented insight into Jesus’s most profound words, as he explores the importance of embracing social justice, benevolence, and forgiveness in our hearts and minds. Looking to address the concerns and hopes of today’s men and women, Our Father: Reflections on the Lord’s Prayer is a guide to living a life full of meaning, purpose, and strength. “We need courage to pray the Our Father,” writes Pope Francis, “to truly believe that God is the Father who accompanies us, forgives us, gives us bread, is attentive to all that we ask, clothes us even better than the flowers of the field. To believe is a big risk.” Challenging this doubt and fear, he issues a call to “dare . . . help oneanother to dare.” With excerpts from some of the Pontiff’s most cherished teachings, this beautiful work offers words of encouragement and inspiration for all who are seeking hope and direction in our often tumultuous world.

Our Father is an accessible but theologically astute book, employing sound biblical scholarship, systematic theological reflection, and socio-cultural assessments which aid understanding of the profound implications for our time in history and of the sixty-seven words that comprise the Lords Prayer.

It was the 1960’s, when good catholic women married for better or worst. When families kept their problems behind locked doors. Sometimes, no matter how hard they tried, their private lives still spilt out into the street. Hal is a little boy with a father who has a secret that is getting harder to hide by the second. The only way for Hal to save his family, is for his father to go away. But, that’s something that just won't happen.

Our Father is a compelling memoir by Bruce Smith chronicling his life as a fatherless boy growing up in segregated Texas and his rise to fame and fortune as a star professional football player and real estate mogul. As his story unfolds, ghosts from his past and the lingering effects of being raised without a stable father figure, haunt him. Throughout the book, Smith takes the reader on an emotional, sometimes funny, at times painful journey, illustrating how the power of personal redemption and salvation transforms his life. A thought provoking read, it draws attention to the problem of fatherlessness, described by social commentators as one of the most serious issues facing society today. Statistics on youth crime, addiction, drop out rates and teen pregnancy, paint a picture of the devastating effects, the lack of engaged fathers in our homes is having on children. Pastor Smith s story gives insight into the feelings of hopelessness and confusion that fatherless children, particularly boys tend to experience and the self-destructive choices they make as a result. While Our Father speaks candidly about the harmful effects of fatherlessness on youth and society, it is a story about hope that illustrates how through the saving power of Jesus Christ, we can all conquer our demons and triumph.

From the beginning, God created men and women in his own image, as the objects of his love. His intention has been to father mankind, raising us as his children. While the intimacy of this relationship was broken through the fall, our Father has never stopped loving us. His faithful lovingkindness is unchanged. And through Jesus we not only see the intimate relationship of Father and Son as the divine pattern but we find ourselves restored as children in his household. Through Jesus we can experientially live in relationship with our Father and, through the working of the Holy Spirit within, affectionately call him our Abba. The greatest opportunity is now afforded to us—to walk in loving intimacy with our Father as he raises us, teaches us his ways, and matures within us his divine nature of other-centered love. Our Father, Our Teacher is a biblical exploration of how God is drawing men and women to himself in an experiential relationship of love and learning.

The subtitle of this book is "Pick up the Mission, Then Drop the Mic." This book walks you through the life of Christ with a primary focus on the book of Luke in the Bible. It provides wisdom from Jesus' life as He lived out Our Father's business. Although this book is divided by topic, it largely maintains the chronology of events as they are captured in the book of Luke. The inspiration for this book came as result of many personal experiences. Being about our Father's business is bigger than any title in life. Professionally, I am an entrepreneur, an adjunct instructor, an attorney, a board director and officer, and many other titles. Personally, I am a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a poet, an athlete. We all have many titles, but above all of these, there is a business, a mission, we have each been assigned to carry out. This book is written to remind and encourage you and me to "pick up the mission, then drop the mic." Picking up the mission refers to "bear[ing] [your] cross, and com[ing] after [Christ]." Dropping the mic refers to when a speaker or artist is on a stage, and says something so profound and final, leaving nothing else to be said afterwards. This is how our lives should be lived "" with such profundity that when our time on this earth is over, we can say, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith," our physical death being our "drop the mic" moment. The specific challenges we face in deciding to answer God's call on our lives will be different for each of us. Some of the most difficult decisions will be choices between good (our plans) and best (God's plans for us). It is my prayer that you read this book and "pick up the mission" so that at the end of your life, you can "then drop the mic!" Click here to access the author's website!