We have been studying the “Our Father” in the Syriac language.
Having explored the heavenly direction of the opening petitions of the “Our Father” in Syriac, we now reach the turning point of the prayer, the point where the divine descent meets our human need. From invoking the holiness of God’s name, His Kingdom, and His Will, we now make our first petition concerning ourselves.
Chief among the legacies of Christ to us is His institution of the Sacrament of Communion. In the Syriac Aboun d.baš.ma.yō, we pray:
hab.lan laH.mō d.soun.qō.nan yaw.mō.nō
Give us (that) bread which is necessary, today
or Give us today our supernatural bread
The Syriac clearly does not mean “give us this day our daily bread.” The Syriac translators must have realised that, if it did, the Greek word epiousios, often translated as “daily,” would be superfluous. It must represent an attempt to put into Greek something which had been said in Aramaic but could not be easily rendered in Greek. Had Our Lord actually intended to say “give us this day our daily bread,” there would have been many ways of expressing it in ordinary Greek. It makes no sense for Saints Luke and Matthew to use a new and difficult word for a perfectly plain concept.
But St Jerome knew that the word could have meant “supersubstantial,” or as we might say, “supernatural” bread. Thus, the Vulgate Bible for Matthew 6:11 actually reads panem nostrum supersubstantialem da nobis hodie. The word supersubstantialem sounds like what it means in English: “supersubstantial.”
The word ousios carries the meaning of “being,” and the preposition epi- can mean “over” or “above” when used in compound words, as in epiphanēs, which means “splendid, glorious, remarkable.” The root phainō simply means to be evident, but with the epi- prefix it implies something more glorious or elevated.
This accords with the logic of the Aboun d.baš.ma.yō, which is concerned only with spiritual matters: God the Father, the kingdom of heaven, His Will, and the forgiveness of sins. The translation “supersubstantial” is better, and probably more accurate, than either “daily” or “necessary,” as there is not a single other request in this prayer for a material good. So, the bread which is intended here is, I would suggest, the spiritual bread of the Eucharist and the grace of God. We read in chapter 6 of the Gospel of St John:
Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. … And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” (27 and 51)
So the Syriac tradition understood that epiousios did not mean “daily.” The meaning “necessary” is acceptable, for both our physical and our supernatural foods are necessary for us, but St Jerome’s translation turns a good prayer into one which reminds us that every single day of our lives we need the grace of God, the higher food to nourish our souls.
The next interesting aspect of the Aboun d.baš.ma.yō is:
waš.buq lan Haw.bayn waH.tō.Hayn
ay.ka.nō dōff H.nan šba.qan l.Ha.yō.bayn
And forgive us our debts and our trespasses
As we have forgiven our debtors.
The Syriac has two words, for debts and for trespasses, whereas the Greek of St Matthew has only one: opheilēmata, which has the primary meaning of “debts” but can also include “sins,” as being something for which we must make ourselves right again with God. St Luke’s Gospel (11:4) uses amartias, meaning “sins.” Syriac uses two words to ensure both concepts are prominent: sin and debt. In this context, a debt is a wrong which is nonetheless not a sin.
In the Maronite Divine Liturgy, we often pray for the forgiveness of all our sins, whether intentional or otherwise. People often ask: how can one sin without intention? We see how “sin” in the Syriac tradition is broader than the legal definition; it concerns not only deliberate actions and omissions that offend God, but also our state of being. A person who is becoming more spiritual will be careful not to neglect those situations where unfortunate things occur that could have been avoided had we been vigilant. This is an aspect of the virtue of “watchfulness.”
In Syriac, this is zahee.rō beK, “watchful over thyself.” An angel, or ma.la.Kō, was also known in Syriac as an 3ee.rō, a “watchful one.”
With this petition, we are now ready to consider the forgiveness we seek, and the forgiveness we offer.