“Our Father who art in heaven hallowed be your name…” (Mt. 6:9)

When was the last time you listened closely to the words of the Lord’s Prayer?

Before COVID I used to take communion on Sundays to Catholic residents at a nearby nursing home, including a few residents in various stages of Alzheimer’s.  Some of the Alzheimer residents are not able to receive communion, or are often asleep when I arrive, so I usually just say a short prayer with them.  

One Sunday, when I came to one of the women who had her eyes closed (let’s call her Alice for the sake of privacy), I gently touched her on the shoulder and asked her if she would like to say the Lord’s Prayer.  She opened her eyes in a kind of blank stare.  I knelt beside her, put my hand on her hand, and started to slowly recite the Lord’s Prayer.  Her eyes opened and she started to say the words with me.  Her eyes became wider and wider as she saw herself remembering the words.  A slight smile spread across her face.  She appeared as if she were proud of herself for remembering the words.  As we finished a small tear appeared in the corner of one of her eyes.  I said, “Alice, would you like to receive communion?”  “Yes,” she nodded, and I placed the Eucharist on her tongue. 

This was the first time that I had ever seen Alice receive communion.  It was as if the Lord’s Prayer had awakened her soul and memory, enabling her to recite the entire prayer.  It made the back of my neck tingle.

I was impacted by seeing the power of Jesus’ words on Alice, words Jesus suggested to his disciples when they asked him how to pray. (Luke 11:2) Perhaps for some of us the Lord’s Prayer has become so familiar that we may let the meaning of the words bounce right off our mind and heart.    

When I first started to take communion to the residents of this nursing home, I was uncomfortable with the Alzheimer’s residents.  In fact, on my second visit I skipped going to their floor. But after seeing the impact of Jesus’ words on Alice and watching how those words awakened God’s presence in her, I received a new love for Alice and all her fellow residents.

How do you maintain the meaning and power of the Lord’s Prayer in your life?