Dear friends,
The prayers we habitually recite can begin to lose their meaning for us.
Just as we can fail to notice the beauty of the world around us because it's so ever-present,
In the same way we can fail to appreciate the depth of meaning that lies in the heart of our everyday prayers.
It can help if we have an understanding of a second language in which we hear a particular prayer.
Each language has its own character and beauty and each will have a particular way of expressing an idea,
Of expressing the same idea,
And we find it's not really possible to express that idea in the very same way in a different language.
An example,
In English we can greet someone with the expression Hello,
Or How are you?
In Irish we would say There is a depth to these expressions that cannot really be captured by the English hello.
Which leads me to the subject of this talk about the Lord's Prayer,
The Our Father,
A prayer which is common to Christians of all denominations.
Many listeners to this talk will be familiar with the prayer,
But just by way of reminder,
Here it is.
Now when you examine the Irish version of this prayer,
You will pick up a different nuance here and there.
And listening to a direct English translation of the Irish,
It's possible to see the prayer in a slightly different light,
And maybe bring more meaning to it.
In Irish,
This is how we say the Lord's Prayer.
Apologies there to people who are born Irish speakers for any mispronunciation of some of those words.
But converting that Irish version of the prayer directly to English,
This is how it would sound.
Now I'm not suggesting for a minute that this direct translation from the Irish is better than the one which we are familiar with,
But I believe that occasionally hearing a prayer through the feeling of a different language can bring us to a fresher understanding of what has become a little tarred by reason of familiarity.
I hope you find these thoughts helpful,
And I hope you continue to enjoy the prayer that we know as the Our Father.
Namaste.
