Prayer
In Christianity and many other religions, prayer is the process of directly connecting to God, usually for the purpose of deliberate communication.
Through prayer our thoughts and hopes are heard and understood. Oftentimes, prayer will result in feeling God's presence or feeling like one is touched by God. This feeling of a connection is cited by many theists as proof of God's existence. It is through prayer that man can understand God's will in his life and ask God for the courage and strength to carry his message to the world. Prayer is common throughout the Bible in both the Old Testament and the New.
Praying in secret
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ told followers how to pray and offered an ideal prayer (Mathew 6:9-13 ). He cautioned against praying hypocritically, such as praying in public to look good, and said that instead one should pray alone, secretly, and should not announce one's prayer. Some Christians interpret this as direct instructions and for this reason oppose prayers in schools, public meetings, or other non-religious meetings.
And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Matthew 6:5-7
Instructions for praying Sermon on the Mount.
Other religions, and even different traditions within Christianity have developed their own practices related to prayer.[2]
Praying in public
Various figures in the Bible prayed in public or otherwise not alone and in secret.
- Solomon prayed publicly in dedicating the temple (1_Kings 8:22-61 ).
- Daniel prayed alone in his room, but by an open window where he could be seen (Daniel 6:10-11 ).
- Jesus sometimes prayed with his disciples (Luke 9:18 ).
- Jesus prayed in public, such as in Matthew 19:13-15 when Jesus prayed for the children brought to him.
References
See also
External links
- Prayers Catholic Online.
- Mates, Nathan, Praying in Public 9th April 2000.
- Prayers