[Athos]

Here's a little story that I think illustrates some of what Waltero has been saying. If I'm wrong, I'm sure he'll correct me.


VERY shortened-----


The bishop stops by a remote island where he meets three fishermen whose people had been Christianized by missionaries centuries before.

“We Christians”, they said in pidgin English, proudly pointing to one another.

The bishop was impressed. Did they know the Lord's Prayer? They had never heard of it, they said. The bishop was shocked.

“What do you do, then, when you pray”?

“We lift eyes to heaven. We pray, 'You are three, we are three, have mercy on us.'

The bishop was appalled at the primitive, the downright heretical nature of their prayer. So the bishop spent all day teaching them the Lord's Prayer. They were slow learners but they learned it by the end of the day and recited the whole formula perfectly for the bishop.

Months later, the bishop was again passing by and he recalled with pleasure the three fishermen who were now able to pray thanks to his patient efforts. Just then, he saw a light approaching from the island. As the light grew closer, he looked in amazement to see three figures walking on the water.

The bishop recognized his friends, the three fishermen. “Bishop”, they exclaimed, “we see your boat go past island and we come hurry, hurry to meet you”.

“What do you want,” asked the awe-stricken bishop.

“Bishop”, they said, “we so so sorry. We forget lovely prayer. We say, 'Our Father in heaven, holy be your name, your kingdom come … ' then we forget. Please tell us prayer again.”

The bishop felt humbled. “Go back to your homes, my friends”, he said, “and every time you pray, say, 'We are three, you are three, have mercy on us!' ”


The bishop knew the doctrine. The fishermen knew the Person.