Released in 2010 by The Word Among Us Press, Mark Hart examines the Lord’s Prayer in thorough detail through his book The “R” Father. Pulling back the curtain on a prayer that is now thousands of years old, Hart invites readers to see its great richness, beauty, and liveliness. This 14-chapter, 183-page book shows how prayer is the linchpin that holds everything else together—a prayer that draws us into intimacy with our Father, into greater surrender, and a deeper relationship with God. It is a prayer that carries our response to God as Father, reunites us with God’s kingdom and will, draws us near in reverence, renounces the world around us for what God offers, reaffirms us on this faith journey, and reminds us that we rely on God for everything we need in life. It is a prayer that reconciles broken humanity with the holiness of God, moves us to repentance, redefines our reality, and extends God’s hand of resolve.
About Author Mark Hart
Hart, a popular Catholic author, speaker, and more. Nicknamed the “Bible Geek,” Mark Hart has served as the Chief Innovation Officer at Life Teen International. He is an award-winning producer of Bible-study DVDs and the author of more than twenty books. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Hart is also a blogger, podcaster, and international speaker. He currently serves as a research fellow at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Although Hart writes from a distinctly Catholic perspective, his insights resonate with non-Catholic evangelicals as well. He offers an in-depth exploration of a prayer that spans only a few verses yet, in his words, performs “a heart transplant by teaching us how to think, how to love, and how to receive God’s love” (Hart 2010, 9). Worship Leader Matt Maher describes this book well when he writes, “Mark leads the reader to a vast world of spiritual possibilities, a place where God is continuing to unveil the mystery of his love and provision” (Hart 2010, Backcover).
Fourteen “R” Responses
Hart treats the Lord’s Prayer not as a string of petitions but as our response to God. Instead of splitting it into five, six, or seven “petitions,” he identifies fourteen distinct responses. It is a key to a relationship with God, more than just a formula to engage God. To make them easy to grasp and remember, each of these fourteen responses begins with the letter “R,” and each one gets an entire chapter. The posture behind Hart’s book is not one of history, or reflection on this prayer through church history, nor is it purely contextualization. Each chapter gives us a way to reprioritize and realign our lives as a response to the Lord through this prayer.
The “R” Prayer: Prayer as Daily Relationship
The prayer is dealt with as an invitation to “Daily relationship” (Hart 2010, 11). He shares that “This prayer orders our priorities right from the beginning: God first, us second, worship before petition. If our prayer is only about petition (what we have to say), we lose the worship, the adoration, the thanksgiving, and the ability to discern what God is saying to us” (Hart 2010, 11). Hart looks to bring out a deep understanding of the worship, adoration, thanksgiving, and God’s leading in this prayer. Hart’s fresh approach aims to disrupt our over-familiarity with the prayer, warning that “because the Lord’s Prayer is so familiar to us, we risk reciting it instead of praying it” (Hart 2010, 11).
Restoration and Surrender
In The “R” Father, Mark Hart reminds us that at the core of this prayer is a reminder that “Christ came not just to redeem us but to restore us to proper relationship with God and with one another” (Hart 2010, 17). This was a unique relationship with God the Father: “Christ came to ensure that the people knew the Father as a true Father, not just a God who did fatherly type things” (Hart 2010, 29). In praying to this God who did fatherly type things, “Our response…should do everything in our power to be more present to him. That’s the only response worthy of his love: We must be present to his presence” (Hart 2010, 42-43). Such a prayer is a radical prayer, even a dangerous prayer, because we encounter God and our broken selves in the midst of it, realizing that “before we can announce ‘thy kingdom’ that has come, we need to renounce my kingdom that has been…Put simply, “Thy kingdom come” means “My kingdom go” (Hart 2010, 72). This prayer, like all of Christianity, “teaches us total surrender. It invites us to abandon everything of this world in favor of the next” (Hart 2010, 71). This prayer fuels the Christian Walk, and “invites us to reexamine our goals, vows, priorities, and lifestyle” (Hart 2010, 87). Hart gives us a thorough look at a prayer that, if we pray every day “with sincerity, your life will change” (Hart 2010, 88). Each chapter unpacks how our lives will change in light of praying this revolutionary prayer.
Why The “R” Father Matters for My Research
As a Doctor of Ministry student at Kairos University, I’m centering my doctoral project on the Lord’s Prayer. To that end, I’m surveying practical and theological works from every tradition. My research will culminate in a discipleship curriculum and a concise dissertation exploring how this prayer shapes spiritual formation. Mark Hart’s The “R” Father kept appearing in bibliographies and glowing reviews, so I picked it up—and I’m glad I did. The book offers some of the most poetic, thought-provoking language and fresh paradigms I’ve encountered.
Final Verdict on The “R” Father
Is it a good read? I believe the unique but orthodox approach The “R” Father book takes will open your eyes to the depth hidden in this seemingly straightforward prayer and reveal more vividly the overflowing love and powerful Kingdom that our Father lavishes on His children.
