The Lord's Prayer - Our FATHER ...

"Furthermore, we should note that, against the grain of some post-Augustinian liturgies, the church is not instructed by its Lord to approach its Father with “Sorry” as its first word. Even the Prodigal Son began his speech with “Father.” There is, to be sure, an appropriate place for penitence, both for communities and individuals. But the normal Christian approach to the Creator God is the unfettered and delighted “Father.” There is a time for penitence, but its location within the Lord’s Prayer suggests that it should not take pride of place in regular liturgical worship." Wright, NT, 2001, "The Lord’s Prayer as a Paradigm of Christian Prayer", in "Into God’s Presence: Prayer in the New Testament", ed. R.L. Longenecker. 2001, Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 132-54.