The Encyclopedia of World Religions

266 S Loki

Orthodox churches this worship service is actually called the Divine Liturgy. In Catholic churches it is called the Mass. During the R EFORMATION some Protestants, such as Anglicans and Lutherans, retained the tra ditional liturgy ( see A NGLICANISM and L UTHERANISM ). Other Protestants rejected it. They adopted freer forms of worship in an attempt to return to the practice of the earliest Christians. During the 19th and 20th centuries there was a liturgical revival. Catholics tried to make the Mass more accessible to ordinary people. Protes tants tried to recover traditional forms of worship that had been abandoned. Loki A god in Norse mythology. Loki is an ambiguous figure. Renowned for his cleverness, he helps the gods. For example, he gives birth to the god Odin’s horse, who has eight legs. (Among other abilities, Loki can change sex.) He also helps the god Thor get his hammer back. At the same time, Loki opposes the gods. He fathers Fenriswolf, the enemy of the gods. He also kills the god Balder with a mistletoe arrow. Loki’s fate is like that of Prometheus in Greek mythology: He is tied to a rock. In Loki’s case, the ties that bind him are his own sons’ intestines. A poisonous snake hangs above him. His wife sits by his side to catch the poison that drips from its mouth. Legend says that Loki will return at the end of time. He will lead the armies of his daughter Hel, “death.”

Sakyamuni preaching the Lotus Sutra on the Vulture Peak, accompanied by two disciples and the bodhisattvas Avalokiteshvara and Mahasthampapta. Silk embroidery on hemp cloth from Cave 17, Dunhaung. This is one of the largest examples of Chinese embroidery known. (Erich Lessing/Art Resource, N.Y.)

lar, even simpler prayer appears in the G OSPEL of Luke (11.2–4). It has been customary in some churches to conclude the Lord’s Prayer with a doxology or statement of praise: “For the kingdom and the power and the glory are yours forever. Amen.” This practice appears to be very old, because the Didache, a book of Christian instruction written in the middle of the second century, ends the Lord’s Prayer with a doxology. Later the doxol ogy found its way into some manuscripts of the gospel of Matthew.

lord of the animals See PREHISTORIC RELIGION .

Lord’s Prayer Also known as the “Our Father”; the most sacred PRAYER in C HRISTIANITY . J ESUS teaches his followers the Lord’s Prayer as part of the famous Sermon on the Mount (Mat thew 6.9–13). The prayer is made up of seven petitions, each of which resembles prayers that RABBIS at the time taught. According to Jesus, the prayer embodies the ideal of simplicity. A simi