Pope Francis speaks during a meeting with young people and families, in Iasi, Romania, Saturday, June 1, 2019. Francis began a three-day pilgrimage to Romania on Friday that in many ways is completing the 1999 trip by St. John Paul II that marked the firs
Pope Francis speaks during a meeting with young people and families, in Iasi, Romania, Saturday, June 1, 2019. Francis began a three-day pilgrimage to Romania on Friday that in many ways is completing the 1999 trip by St. John Paul II that marked the first-ever papal visit to a majority Orthodox country. Andrew Medichini, AP
Herb Scribner
By Herb Scribner

SALT LAKE CITY — Pope Francis approved changes to the Lord’s Prayer, according to The Guardian.

  • The prayer will no longer say “lead us not into temptation.” Instead, it will read, “do not let us fall into temptation.”
  • The prayer is mentioned in Matthew 6:13. The original version of the prayer implies that God instigates temptation, according to Fox News.
  • "I am the one who falls; it’s not Him pushing me into temptation to then see how I have fallen," Francis said about the change, according to Fox News. "A father doesn't do that, a father helps you to get up immediately. It's Satan who leads us into temptation, that's his department."
  • The general assembly at the Episcopal Conference of Italy approved the new wording last month. The new wording will be published in the Messale Romano, which is a liturgical book with guiding texts for Roman Catholic church masses.

Flashback: The change has been in the works for a few years. Back in 2017, Pope Francis said he believed the words should change, USA Today reports.

  • “It is not a good translation because it speaks of a God who induces temptation,” he told Italy’s TV2000 channel, according to USA Today.

Bigger picture: The Bible suggests that Jesus used the Lord’s Prayer as a way to teach people how to pray. It is a commonly used prayer throughout the Christian world.

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