Three Prayers: The Lord's Prayer, O Heavenly King, the Prayer of Saint

by Olivier Clément

In this book, Olivier Clement comments on three traditional prayers. The first, which is known to us all, is the "Our Father." The author's intention is not to rival prestigious works but to discern, within the depths of the text itself, a trinitarian revelation, the ways of communion - the "prayer of fire" of which St. John Cassian spoke.
There follow two other prayers that are familiar to the Eastern first the prayer of the Holy Spirit ("O Heavenly King ...") which, in the Byzantine rite, precedes any liturgical action, and on a more personal level, any work of reflection of witness. it celebrates the tremendous Breath of God which conveys to us the resurrected life.
Finally, the "Prayer of St. Ephrem": it is characteristic of the services of Great Lent and sums up the interior struggle for trust, humility and respect for others.

Genres: Prayer

Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Olivier Clément was a French theologian and convert to Orthodox Christianity who taught at St. Sergius Institute in Paris.

He was born in 1921 in the south of France. In his youth he was a non-believer. As he grew to maturity, he became influenced by a number of Orthodox theologians in France, notably Vladimir Lossky and Nicholas Berdiaev, eventually receiving baptism at the hands of Fr Evgraph Kovalesvky, later Bishop Jean-Nectaire of Saint-Denis.

Although a committed school teacher, Clément was most devoted to his work at the St Sergius Institute and to his writing. His work was wide-ranging — from poetry to literary criticism, philosophy to theology, and extended to book-length interviews with figures such as Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras and one of his successors, Bartholomew.

The most widely distributed of Clément's many books was perhaps his introductory work on the Orthodox Church in the popular Que sais-je? series, first published in 1961 and now in its seventh edition.

Clément also enjoyed friendship and entered into dialogues on major spiritual themes with a number of imminent personalities including Patriarch Athenagoras, Pope John Paul II, the priest and theologian Dumitru Staniloae, and the brother Roger of Taizé.

Modest, kindly and balanced, and supported faithfully by his wife Monique, Clément worked selflessly to unite Christians of different backgrounds, to unite France’s various Orthodox communities, and to inspire readers and listeners with a love of the Orthodox tradition which, he believed, would enrich the whole Church.

Reviews

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

He weaves together a great deal in this tiny tome, cracking the door open at many points on three fundamental prayers so that by Gods grace we might enter into the reality of three liturgical waymarkers for communion with God.

Only warning is that, while beautiful and rich, it is quite dense at points and would require at least a modicum of theological language under your belt.

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this quite difficult to follow and make sense of, which may be as much my failing as Clément's. One passage I did find interesting was a discussion of sloth/acedia towards the end.

The two unfamiliar prayers to Western readers, the O Heavenly King and the Prayer of St. Ephrem, are quite lovely.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, short book that plumbs the depths of three short prayers. This book has helped enrich my prayer life

[Fr. Moses · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little book offers a great deal of depth in three meditations on three well-known prayers: The Lord’s Prayer, “O Heavenly King,” and St. Ephrem’s Prayer.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely book, with tons of depth for a book so short. Read thru with our priest and a men's group at church... sometimes we only got through a few paragraphs during an hour of discussion!

Recommended.

[Susan]

This short read is packed with a lot of insight!!! Worth the time ~ read slow so you can contemplate as you read!