13ème Rose — L'excellence du saint rosaire dans les prières dont il est composé
The Majesty of the Father
The opening invocations of the Lord's Prayer reveal the infinite perfections, eternal nature, and divine majesty of God.
41. We honor God's perfections by reciting every word of the Lord's Prayer. We honor his fruitfulness by the name of Father—you who from all eternity beget a Son who is God like you, eternal, consubstantial, one and the same essence, one and the same power, one and the same goodness, and one and the same wisdom with you; Father and Son, who, loving one another, bring forth the Holy Spirit, who is God like you—three adorable Persons who are one only God.1 Our Father! That is: Father of mankind by creation, by preservation, and by redemption; merciful Father of sinners, Father who is friend to the just, and magnificent Father of the blessed. Who are.2 By these words we marvel at the infinity, the greatness, and the fullness of God's essence, who is truly called the One who is (Ex 3:14)—that is, who exists essentially, necessarily, and eternally; who is the Being of beings, the cause of all beings; who holds eminently within himself the perfections of all beings; and who is in all things by his essence, by his presence, and by his power, without being confined in them. We honor his sublimity, his glory, and his majesty by these words: Who are in heaven—that is, seated as on your throne, exercising your justice over all people.
The Petitions of the Heart
The subsequent petitions of the Lord's Prayer invite the believer to trust in God's providence, holiness, and mercy while imitating the Son's spirit of prayer.
We adore his holiness by desiring that his name be sanctified. We acknowledge his sovereignty and the justice of his laws by wishing that his kingdom come, and that people obey him on earth as the angels obey him in heaven. We believe in his Providence by asking him to give us our daily bread. We call on his clemency by asking him for the remission of our sins.3 We turn to his power, asking him not to let us give way under temptation. We entrust ourselves to his goodness, hoping that he will deliver us from evil. The Son of God has always glorified his Father by his works; he came into the world so that people would glorify him; he taught them how to honor him through this Prayer that he himself deigned to dictate to us.✦4 So we ought to recite it often, with attention and in the same spirit in which he composed it.
Read the original Latin
41. Nous honorons les perfections de Dieu en récitant chaque parole de l'Oraison dominicale. Nous honorons sa fécondité par le nom de Père, qui engendrez de toute éternité un Fils qui est Dieu comme vous, éternel, consubstantiel, qui est une même essence, une même puissance, une même bonté, une même sagesse avec vous, Père et Fils, qui, vous aimant, produisez le Saint-Esprit, qui est Dieu comme vous, trois personnes adorables, qui êtes un seul Dieu. Notre Père! C'est-à-dire, Père des hommes par la création, par la conservation et par la rédemption, Père miséricordieux des pécheurs, Père ami des justes, Père magnifique des bienheureux. Qui êtes. Par ces paroles nous admirons l'infinité, la grandeur et la plénitude de l'essence de Dieu, qui s'appelle véritablement Celui qui est (Ex 3,14), c'est-à-dire, qui existe essentiellement, nécessairement et éternellement, qui est l'Être des êtres, la cause de tous les êtres; qui renferme éminemment en lui-même les perfections de tous les êtres; qui est dans tous par son essence, par sa présence et par sa puissance, sans y être renfermé. Nous honorons sa sublimité, sa gloire et sa majesté par ces mots: Qui êtes aux cieux, c'est-à-dire assis comme dans votre trône, exerçant votre justice sur tous les hommes.
Nous adorons sa sainteté en désirant que son nom soit sanctifié. Nous reconnaissons sa souveraineté et la justice de ses lois, en souhaitant que son règne arrive, et que les hommes lui obéissent sur la terre comme les anges lui obéissent dans le ciel. Nous croyons à sa Providence, en le priant de nous donner notre pain de chaque jour. Nous invoquons sa clémence, en lui demandant la rémission de nos péchés. Nous recourons à sa puissance, en le priant de ne pas nous laisser succomber à la tentation. Nous nous confions à sa bonté, en espérant qu'il nous délivrera du mal. Le Fils de Dieu a toujours glorifié son Père par ses œuvres; il est venu au monde pour le faire glorifier des hommes; il leur a enseigné la manière de l'honorer, par cette Oraison qu'il a daigné nous dicter lui-même. Nous devons donc la réciter souvent avec attention et dans le même esprit qu'il l'a composée.
Scripture echoes
- ↩John.17.1-John.17.4 — Jesus spoke these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son, so that the Son may glorify you." John.17.2 — just as you gave him authority over all humanity, so that he may give eternal life to everyone you have given him. John.17.3 — And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and the one you sent, Jesus Christ. John.17.4 — I glorified you on earth, having completed the work that you gave me to do.
Notes
- 1 ↩French fécondité here is Trinitarian fruitfulness (the Father's eternal generation of the Son and the spiration of the Spirit), not biological fruitfulness.
- 2 ↩Fragment glossing the French relative clause Qui êtes from the Lord's Prayer; developed in the following sentence as God's self-name (Ex 3:14).
- 3 ↩French clémence is milder judicial mercy; rémission keeps the traditional language of sin-forgiveness rather than a looser 'pardon'.
- 4 ↩Oraison is the Lord's Prayer / Our Father; rendered here as 'Prayer' with capital to mark it as that named prayer, matching earlier Oraison dominicale.
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