The Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church
“Hallowed be thy Name” (Mat. 6:9) “αγιασθήτω” αγιαζω treat as holy, make holy, sanctify, customary in prayers and does not necessarily carry eschatological implications. Ονομα: sense of God is revealed. (A grammatical analysis of the Greek New Testament)
The Orthodox Church follows truthfully the hermeneutics of the Holy Fathers. One of the greatest hermeneutic of our Church, St. John Chrysostom, says: The “αγιασθήτο” means “make us worthy to live a life so pure that every person who sees us feels the need to praise you” (Chrysostom, On the Gospel of Mathew Homily 19,4).
Jesus Christ, with that beginning entreaty of the Lord’s Prayer, confirms the second commandment of the Decalogue: “Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain”. The respect and correct use and stand toward the Name and the mystery of God, should be the first and foremost concern and duty of every genuine follower of Christ. There exists, though, something that must be clarified, specifically concerning the Name of God. The problem began at the time when Moses felt the need to ask the Name of God in order to demand from Pharaoh to free his people of Israel from the slavery of Egypt. Addressing God directly, Moses asks His Name. The first reply does not mention a referral to the Name, but instead to who God is and His relationship to the forefathers of Moses: “I am the God of thy Father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Ex. 3:6) I am, in other words, the God who created a relationship with the people of Israel, through certain specific representatives: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, to whom He promised His blessing and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; (Gen. 22:17) Because of Moses’ insistence on God’s Name, God answered him: “I am that I am – I am He that exists («Εγώ ειμί ο Ων» (Ex. 3:14) It is an answer that involves giving a name but at the same time it isn’t a name, and there is an explanation for that. If God gave Moses a specific name He would’ve been adding yet another name amongst so many other godlike names of that era, and therefore the only true and real God would not have been distinguished among all the others.
Now we begin to understand more clearly the entreaty “hallowed be thy Name”. When we pray “hallowed be thy name,” we climb to a new level of respect for God and reverence for his person. We are ascending to the very heart of God to recognize who He is and what He has done for us.
What does it mean to “hallow” His name? The word “hallow” is the Greek word “ἁγιος” which is the word for holy, “Hallow” means “to set apart as holy, to consider holy, and to treat as holy.” “A ‘Hallowed Thing’ was something set apart from ordinary to a sacred use”. (From Funk and Wagnalls New Standard Bible Dictionary) The best modern word perhaps is reverence. When you pray “hallowed be thy name” you are saying, “Let your name be holy and reverence on earth as it already is in heaven. May your name be given the unique reverence that is due your character and nature as the Heavenly Father.”
When you begin your prayers “Hallowed be thy name,” you are not rushing into the presence of God to demand something, you come into his presence recognizing who God is and what He can do for you.
The name of God is always an expression of His character. The Psalmist said (20:7) “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember (boast ) the name (character) of the LORD our God”. When we understand that God’s names reveal who God desires to be in relation to us, then we realize that His names invite us to know Him. We can reverence God and worship him by praying through the Names of God. Each of the Names of God reveals some aspect of his character.
Elohim – the mighty Creator (Gen 1:1)
Adonai – master or Lord (Gen 15 – Abraham)
El Shaddai – Almighty (Gen 17 – Abraham)
El-Elyon- Most High (Gen 14 –