On Mondays, I answer questions frequently asked by those considering a return to the Catholic Church. How do I know this stuff? I was away for more than 30 years myself, and am the co-author of When They Come Home: Ways to Welcome Returning Catholics, a book for pastors and parish leaders interested in this ministry.
I’ve been to Mass a few times, and the Lord’s Prayer doesn’t sound the same as when I’ve been to church with my
![By Anton 17 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://melanierigney.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/returning_lordsprayer_wikimedia_20151007_seefileinfoforattribution.jpg)
Catholics use the language from Matthew 6, then, after a brief prayer by the priest, join in praying as a congregation, “For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever.” It’s a doxology, a short form of praise to the Lord. Many Protestant churches include similar language directly after the prayer Jesus gave us in Matthew 6.
This isn’t the only doxology you’ll hear or say. For example, “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end,” which you may know as the Glory Be and is part of the rosary, is also a doxology.
