Priest and theologian weigh changes to Denmark’s Lord’s Prayer

A new trial translation of the Lord’s Prayer uses more contemporary Danish, but a priest and a theologian differ on how significant the changes are, DR reports.

The Bible Society says people can continue to pray using the words they know. The new version does not make earlier translations incorrect, it says.

In the trial translation, “Hallowed be thy name” becomes “May your name be holy,” while “Our Father” replaces the more formal “Our Father” phrasing used in the traditional Danish wording.

Kathrine Fischer, a parish priest in Nørresundby, says the new version remains familiar and traditional. “It is actually very similar to the one we already have,” she says.

Theologian Margrethe Kamille Birkler, who has researched religious language, was surprised by how much the wording had changed. She says she had expected less revision because an authorised translation must stay close to the original Greek text.

But Birkler does not consider the shift from “Our Father” to “Our dad” a major change. The more everyday wording can fit within the Greek source text, she says. She argues, however, that replacing “Our Father” with “Our God” would depart too far from the original prayer in the Gospel of Matthew.

Fischer says the word “Father” may feel too informal to some people, suggesting it could make God seem like “the good dad” and create an overly close relationship. Still, she sees no major difference between “father” and “dad,” and does not view the new wording negatively. She says it may reinforce the idea that God is our father.

Birkler welcomes a modern translation, saying religious language should reflect the people who use it. Fischer also plans to try the wording with the confirmation students she teaches, asking them to analyse the prayer and discuss its differences.

The trial translation is part of work towards a new authorised Danish Bible translation, which the Bible Society says is due in 2036, 500 years after the Reformation in Denmark.

The trial translation reads: “Our Father, you who are in heaven! May your name be holy, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven! Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive the debts others have against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory for ever. Amen!”