In Living Color: The Lord's Prayer [Kindle Edition]

When I downloaded this onto my Kindle I wasn't completely sure what to expect, but once I began, it didn't take long for me to realize that I was really going to love this book. I finished it today, and I wasn't disappointed. I found myself highlighting so much that I gave up because what's the use of highlighting an entire book? I especially loved the chapter on "God's will". Still pondering...

Paul Meier's wonderful book, "In Living Color," re-introduces me to the Lord's Prayer in a way that allows me to glimpse a deeper meaning in its well-known message. Yes, on one level this prayer is perfectly wonderful taken at face value. But when Meier walks us through the shades of meaning found in the prayer's original language, I'm reminded all over again that my relationship with God is a living, growing relationship, with new layers available to me whenever I am ready to look beneath the surface of old, familiar words.

In concluding his exploration, Meier points out, "What better way to orchestrate harmony than through song? I'm certain that if a group of poets had translated Holy Scriptures instead of theologians, the kingdom of God would have come long ago."

I have to agree and this compact volume proves the point beautifully. I am tempted to include Meier's favorite translation of the prayer, because it is my favorite now, as well. But I encourage readers to find it for themselves. Instead of spoiling the unveiling of the final translation offered in the book, I'll share this passage from "In Living Color":

"When the world finally recognizes the goodness of the One who desires to unite us, we will dance together as one--in peace, love, hope, in harmony with all--and the inconceivable but long hoped for kingdom will come."

When I received this book from Pastor Meier, partly in gratitude for my splendid (yes!) review of his Praying the Gospels with Martin Luther, I trusted I'd learn something new and be reminded of facts I'd once known, but "Living Color" understates the highly chromatic historical, cultural, and practical insights in this book. When you learn about the transmission, compilation, and canonization of scripture, you discover a lot of biblical texts have antecedents and close parallels in other ancient near eastern writings, so precedents for the Our Father are no surprise. But this book goes far beyond that! Also, the practice of a rabbi or teacher providing a "pray like this" model prayer to his followers was widespread and is well-known; the "Lord's Prayer" that Christians recite every week during worship and in their own devotions outside the gathered assembly was Jesus of Nazareth's contribution to that tradition.

Paul W Meier discovered Aramaic to English translations through The Nazarene Way of Essenic Studies; subtleties and suggestiveness of Jesus' muttersprach helped the writer and now assist the reader to draw out, expand upon, and intensify many aspects of the familiar prayer. As Pr Meier explains, Hebrew has a much less cut-and-dried, far more expressive--and colorful personality than Greek! (Aramaic is to Hebrew approximately what koine Greek it to classical Greek.)

You can read and reread these 76 pages quickly and explore a broader, more inclusive, worldview than that of first century Palestine, so I won't go into details or provide quotes. Briefly, praying the Lord's Prayer using different words and pondering Pastor Meier's explanations can help lead to a universalizing faith more fully in accord with Jesus' - and our! - mission to reconcile all creation to heaven.

In Living Color: The Lord's Prayer concludes with group-oriented discussion questions related to scripture and to the participants' life experience for each chapter. Only 5 stars? Amazon wouldn't let me give it more!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.