It is the same garbage that many, many observers who believe themselves to be theologically well studied did in reference to Trump when he said, "two Corinthians instead of second Corinthians". Even a couple of pastors slammed Trump but in the end, it is absolutely proper to say it either way. I have said it both ways on many occasions in front of hundreds if not thousands of people and not one person has ever questioned it. Melania's rendition, while staggered, was correct (as has been previously posted) depending upon which translation, tradition and denominational stance a person is familiar with in the repeating of the prayer. If she sang Ave Maria better than Kirsten Flagstad she would have been as equally rebuked by those disliking not only the song but those who are envious of her personally.
I saw on Facebook that there is also a page for the President's prayer team, and people are invited to join the group. I think that it is wonderful that our First Lady would open the rally with the Lord's Prayer, whether she read it or not. Here is a picture of President Trump in prayer at the White House.
In the Anglican Church in New Zealand we prayed "forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us" which was hard to get used to after learning it several other ways in American Protestant churches of different denominations (Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist). But that was still easier to remember than the Maori version we all had to learn out of respect for the indigenous people. {Yes, political correctness is everywhere.}
This is not at all a criticism but, as Melania was raised in a Communist country by Communist parents, it would have been very unlikely that she would have had any exposure to any religious practice at all. However, if her family secretly practiced Christianity it would most likely have been the Eastern Orthodox variety. Since the fall of the Soviet Union many former Communists have resumed their Russian Orthodox practice, once it was safe for them to do so. I would assume the same would be true of people in the former Yugoslavian countries, such as Slovenia where Melania is from.
It is strange that a difference in wording is so important and ultimately consuming to some people. I wonder how it would be taken if I offered up my own postscript to the prayer as: to not forgive someone is like drinking rat poison and waiting for the rat to die? Not very well I should think, but, like the Lord's prayer it is not the wording that is important but the action that it conveys.
In any case, she would have learned it in her native language and not English. I'm familiar with communist Hungary and most were/are Roman Catholics. Most of my relatives knew the Lord's Prayer in Hungarian but never knew it in English. Also, she might have been raised in a communist country, it doesn't mean her parents were communist.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...del-White-House-favorite-s-wife-revealed.html I read the 'communist father' thing in the Daily Mail, as well as in other places, but they may be wrong, I have no idea. No offense to anyone meant, nor criticism.
Not everyone that was forced to be a communist believed the ideology is what I'm trying to say. My husband grew up in Communist Hungary and so did many others I knew and still know, but they didn't really believe in it but to survive some had to join the party if they wanted a good job, etc. Others in the same family agreed with communism so just because you lived in a communist system doesn't mean you believed in it....some did, some didn't. My husband left Hungary in the revolution of 1956...fighting against communism....as did many others. They lost that time when the Russian tanks rolled in...
One other side of the coin I did not include with my last post is that Jesus said to pray in this manner. He did NOT say, pray this prayer word for word. The Lord's prayer is a diagram that gives us a barometer of sorts on the things we should be concerned with in our daily prayers. I do realize that this post has nothing to do with Melanie's recitation, but again, to me it is still extremely strange how some folks are stuck on some manner of exact repetitiousness rather than the value of each word that is actually spoken.