When his disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, the Lord’s Prayer was his answer. Paula Gooder says that what Jesus gave the disciples was not just a single prayer but a set of guidelines for prayer itself. He was teaching them – and is teaching us – how to live a life of prayer formed by faith, hope and love, aligned with God’s desire for our own flourishing and a world full of justice.

(A note on the talk from Dr Gooder: 'After the talk I realised that I had forgotten to say something I meant to say – and so am adding it here. When I was talking about the three requests, (may your name be hallowed, may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven), I meant to say that these three only appear in Matthew’s Gospel. In Luke there is simply 'may your name be hallowed' and 'may your kingdom come'. Matthew’s version is much longer here. In a way Matthew is giving us a clearer picture of what Jesus had in mind.')

Dr Paula Gooder is Canon Chancellor of St Paul’s Cathedral and a leading Biblical scholar and the author of numerous academic and popular theology books.