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Second Petition:

“

Thy Kingdom Come”

The kingdom for which we are praying to come is the kingdom of which Christ so constantly spoke in the gospels. The Greek word Basileia (kingdom), which occurs in the Lord’s Prayer is the same term He used throughout His public ministry and, after the Resurrection, up to the time of His ascension into heaven.

Jesus intended us to pray that the kingdom He described, in every sense, might come.

There are two principal ways in which Jesus spoke of the kingdom. He described it as a present reality, and as a future anticipation.

Present Reality

The kingdom as a present reality is the Church which Christ was founding. It is a visible reality to which people are called by the preaching of the gospel; into which they enter through Baptism; in which they are sanctified by the sacraments; which is composed of both good and bad members; with which Christ identifies Himself as “my kingdom”; and from which the whole world receives the graces of salvation.

On all these levels, the kingdom as present reality is meant to “come,” that is, to increase and intensify.

We pray that the Church may become more effective in proclaiming the gospel; that the zeal of her members might increase by spending themselves in preaching Christ and Him crucified.
We pray that more people may receive the gift of the true faith and be baptized.
We pray that those who are in the Church may become more holy and pleasing to God.
We pray that those in the Church who are estranged from God through sin may repent and be reconciled with the Lord.
We pray that Christians may become more Christlike so that others may see their good works and be drawn to embrace the faith that produces such reflections of the Divine Master.
We pray that by their practice of virtue, all followers may become more effective channels of grace to everyone whose life they touch.

Future Anticipation

Especially in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus speaks frequently of the “kingdom of heaven.”

Here the petition of the Lord’s Prayer is a plea for the salvation of souls and for their glorification in the world to come.

We pray for the grace that people need to reach the heavenly kingdom for which they were made.
We pray for the light that people need to know God’s will in their lives and the strength to fulfill this will, so they may deserve to enter heaven.
We pray that those who belong to Christ’s kingdom on earth may be more generous in cooperating with His grace, so that in heaven they may give God greater glory for all eternity.

Third Petition:

“

Thy Will Be Done on Earth as It Is in Heaven”

Table of Contents

This petition is an epitome of Christianity and a synthesis of our whole purpose for existence.

Why do we have a free will? In order to do the will of God. Unlike the irrational creation that surrounds us, we can choose either to conform our wills to God or refuse to do so.

The scope of this petition is the prayer that human beings on earth might do God’s will as the angels and saints are doing in heaven. We therefore ask that everyone on earth may do God’s will, even as everyone in heaven does. There are no exceptions in heaven. We pray that there will be fewer and fewer exceptions in doing God’s will on earth.

We further ask that, as in heaven, people may do God’s will out of love and not through fear. In heaven there is no danger of not doing God’s will, and therefore no fear of the consequences.

We further pray that we on earth, like those in heaven, may do God’s will spontaneously. We ask that the divine will be done without hesitation, with no aversion or reluctance. On earth we know how slow we can be in responding to the known will of God. Our plea is to become more ready to fulfill the will of God the moment we know what He wants.

We also pray to do God’s will with selfless generosity. There is no envy in heaven among the elect, because they see others also doing God’s will. There is no jealousy but perfect cooperation in performing the divine will, not only individually but collectively.

We finally pray that, as in heaven, those on earth may enjoy doing the will of God. There is a mysterious relationship between our doing what pleases God, and God’s doing what pleases us. In heaven everyone does only what pleases God. He, in turn, does everything to please the elect. They are supremely happy. Why? Because they are perfectly conformed to the will of the Most High. We pray to discover, already on earth, a foretaste of the joys of heaven, reserved for those who do the divine will. In fact, the measure of true happiness this side of heaven is the degree of our fidelity in doing the divine will.