CHAPTER XXX
THE PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN LIVING: FAITH AND HOPE
114. Thus, from our confession of faith, briefly summarized in the
Creed (which is milk for babes when pondered at the carnal level but
food for strong men when it is considered and studied spiritually),
there is born the good hope of the faithful, accompanied by a holy
love.240 But of these affirmations, all of which ought faithfully to
be believed, only those which have to do with hope are contained in
the Lord's Prayer. For "cursed is everyone," as the divine eloquence
testified, "who rests his hope in man."241 Thus, he who rests his
hope in himself is bound by the bond of this curse. Therefore, we
should seek from none other than the Lord God whatever it is that we
hope to do well, or hope to obtain as reward for our good works.
115. Accordingly, in the Evangelist Matthew, the Lord's Prayer may be
seen to contain seven petitions: three of them ask for eternal goods,
the other four for temporal goods, which are, however, necessary for
obtaining the eternal goods.
For when we say: "Hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven"242 --this last being wrongly
interpreted by some as meaning "in body and spirit"--these blessings
will be retained forever. They begin in this life, of course; they are
increased in us as we make progress, but in their perfection--which is
to be hoped for in the other life--they will be possessed forever! But
when we say: "Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our
debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil,"243 who does not see that all these pertain to
our needs in the present life? In that life eternal--where we all hope
to be--the hallowing of God's name, his Kingdom, and his will, in our
spirit and body will abide perfectly and immortally. But in this life
we ask for "daily bread" because it is necessary, in the measure
required by soul and body, whether we take the term in a spiritual or
bodily sense, or both. And here too it is that we petition for
forgiveness, where the sins are committed; here too are the
temptations that allure and drive us to sinning; here, finally, the
evil from which we wish to be freed. But in that other world none of
these things will be found.
116. However, the Evangelist Luke, in his version of the Lord's
Prayer, has brought together, not seven, but five petitions. Yet,
obviously, there is no discrepancy here, but rather, in his brief way,
the Evangelist has shown us how the seven petitions should be
understood. Actually, God's name is even now hallowed in the spirit,
but the Kingdom of God is yet to come in the resurrection of the body.
Therefore, Luke was seeking to show that the third petition ["Thy will
be done"] is a repetition of the first two, and makes this better
understood by omitting it. He then adds three other petitions,
concerning daily bread, forgiveness of sins, and avoidance of
temptation.244 However, what Matthew puts in the last place, "But
deliver us from evil," Luke leaves out, in order that we might
understand that it was included in what was previously said about
temptation. This is, indeed, why Matthew said, "But deliver us,"
instead of, "And deliver us," as if to indicate that there is only one
petition--"Will not this, but that"--so that anyone would realize that
he is being delivered from evil in that he is not being led into
temptation.
--------------------
240 Note the artificial return to the triadic scheme of the treatise:
faith, hope, and love.
241 Jer. 17:5.
242 Matt. 6:9, 10.
243 Matt. 6:11-13.
244 Luke 11:2-4.