The Our Father is not only the "summary of the whole gospel" (Tertullian), it is also the Lord's Prayer. It was taught and given to all people of good will by the Lord Jesus. He gives us the words the Father gave him (John 17:7). He also knows the needs of his brothers and sisters. Thus, the Our Father has two parts. A first series of invocations are addressed to the Father: his name, his kingdom, his will. They are a prayer of praise, acclaiming the Father's glory and love. The second series of petitions express some of the real fundamental human needs and expectations: food, protection, peace and forgiveness. When we pray "Our Father" we commemorate and invoke the covenant between God and the human race become flesh and blood in Jesus Christ.
There are various ways in which to say the Our Father. In this woodcut, Pechstein has suggested three of them. Head and eyes turned heavenward from where comes the light, the first praying person exalts the Father's glory and mercy. Praise mutates and becomes supplication and confident docility as is illustrated in the second figure with the slightly inclined head and loosely folded hands. The third figure is the very image of exertion and concentration. Here, prayer is mainly desire, willingness, and effort to believe. It has not yet reached the level of praise or docility. All of these figures are bathed in the light from above. The three forms of prayer are clustered around the expression Unser, meaning "Qur." The Our Father is indeed ours, ours to say and ours to share.
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