Pray Without Ceasing? Why?: Towards A Theology of Prayer, Pt. 5

It is not uncommon in Christian cirlces to hear people haphazardly spout off portions of Rom. 12.12 and 1 Thess. 5.17. In fact, I have heard these verses quoted (more than I care to admit), with an air of piousness that is a bit bothersome. In Romans, there is a snippet of a sentence that says "always be in prayer" and in Thessalonians, one can take a snapshot of the statement "pray without ceasing".

These verses have been interpreted a few ways throughout history. For example, St. Chrysostom took them to refer to certain "hours / times" of the day that persons should pray. Others have suggested that since everything Christians do is "in the Lord", then everything Christians do is a form of prayer. Probably, the most popular reading of these texts today is also the most simple, a reading which promotes that of a "vigorous" prayer life.

Yet, what if all of these views are off? What if there is another, more fruitful way to understand Paul's view of prayer? Well, I think there may be! Using not only Paul's theology as a sprinboard for this discussion but also my previous posts in this series, I want to suggest here that "continual prayer" is not necesarrily a reference to set prayer time each day (though there's nothing wrong with that) nor is it the call to a sort of prayerful repetitiveness.

Recalling the definition of prayer that I have been eespousing ("Attending to the presence of God both around us and in us"), I want to offer the thought that continual prayer is the ongoing journey of seeking after God's wants and desires. From this view, prayer is not a repetitive (circular) event. You are not returning to simply say and do the same things over and over; it is not a "going through the motions" type of thing. Instead, from this perspective, prayer is more like a "trip" or "journey"; it is akin to walking a path and being awed time and again at the new things one experiences.

Thus, when we approach God in prayer, each time we do it, we are seeking the "new" desires and wants of His mind & heart. And then, introspection comes as we discern how, in our lives, we can please and glorify God by helping fulfill His wants and desires. This is truly seeking the presence of God in us and around us throughout all of life (e.g. "continually"). So, let's not think of "continuous" as repetitive or scheduled but rather, in a more linear fashion: like an adventurous path that goes on and on--it is a continuous road.

One last thought: The sad interpretations of "praying without ceasing" that many adopt and put forth, which are very self-focused, are quite out of touch with both reality and healthy theology! I always get nervous when I hear modern Westerners recite these verses in a "prooftexting" or "self-gloating" or "pietistic" sort of way; they were never meant to be used or taken as such! Unfortunately, to many today, "praying without ceasing" means "praying for me" or "praying for what I want / need". What this has caused is a narcissistic church culture. Think about it: If prayer is for me and about me and I am at the center of it, then when I pray without ceasing, I am constantly thinking about me, my wants and my desires. Thus, prayer has become nothing more than a psychological phenomenon wrapped in the garb of cognitive (self) therapy. This is but one more way that prayer has been raped and embezzled! Let's remember that prayer is first and foremost about God's wants and desires. And let us not forget that prayer is about attending to God's presence around us and in us! Praying without ceasing is to glorify God and to be seeking His mind and heart!

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Other posts in this series:

1) Defining Prayer
2) Imaging Prayer
3) Asking in Prayer
4) Why I Don't Pray For Things

Forthcoming Book Reviews

I have a number of book reviews that will be published within the next few months, a handful of them are listed below in picture format (so you can view the cover of the book). Currently, I am working through the great book just published by David A. Fiensy titled, Jesus the Galilean: Soundings in a First Century Life. That review should be published around April. Recently, though, I completed a review of Marshall Govindan's, The Wisdom of Jesus and the Yoga Siddhas. I am interested in telling you specifically about this one because the book was free and it was easy to acquire. I was surfing the net one day and came across http://www.spiritrestoration.org/. If you are qualified, you can sign up and they'll ship you a free book to read and review, they'll then publish your work on their website (mine is still forthcoming on their site; however, and though this was not nearly my favorite book or review, since it was easy to get, I have gone ahead posted the review below in this column; for those of you who may be interested in starting to do this type of stuff, this might be a good place for you to begin).

Reviews of mine currently in the process of publication (or soon to be published):

SpiritRestoration.org Review (in their format, of course):

The Wisdom of Jesus and the Yoga Siddhas (Quebec, Canada: Babaji's Kriya Yoga & Publications, Inc., 2007), 219pp.

Author: Marshall Govindan
Rating: 1 (1 as lowest score, 5 as highest score)

As a young man, Marshall Govindan made a decision to trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. It was this choice that led Govindan to begin think more deeply about life and its connections with spirituality. Ultimately and early on, though, the energies of Govindan’s search were channeled away from Christianity and towards Buddhism. It was in this newfound experience of Buddhism that Govindan remarks, “I felt as if I had finally found my path to God” (15).

When Govindan eventually returned to reading and studying the Bible, it was from this vantage point that he did so. In short, he began employing a Buddhist-spiritual hermeneutic (this is the hermeneutic, which The Wisdom of Jesus and the Yoga Siddhas operates on). This, combined with the scholarship of extremely liberal Bible interpreters, though, is what ultimately skews his reading of the Biblical texts. Indeed, Govindan’s work is littered with eisogesis and distorted claims about the Bible. Even a quick perusing of his bibliography reveals his bias as he relies solely on the works of authors such as J. D. Crossan, E. Pagels and J. S. Spong. It is their works and the claims of the Jesus Seminar that Govindan takes as Gospel, something that any serious Bible scholar would be incredibly wary and suspicious of.

One of Govindan’s aims in this book is to suggest that there are parallels between the teachings of Jesus and the instructions of the Yoga Siddhas (free thinking Buddhists whose legacy, from the present, reaches back thousands of years). Yet, in this reviewer’s opinion, Govindan never achieves that aim because he gets too sidetracked in attempting to discredit the claims of traditional biblical scholars. Indeed, that seems to be Govindan’s focus. He could have shown supposed parallels without employing any form of defamation.

At one juncture, Govindan says that, to the Siddhas, “The teaching not the teacher is what is important” (77). This point, foundational to Govindan’s book, is what leads him to suggest that Jesus did not want people to worship Him but rather to practice inner worship. Govindan also notes that, “as Buddhism itself became a religion, Buddha became an object of worship, just as Jesus did” (71). Again, to Govindan, individual worship within oneself is the key to true spirituality, not the worship of another. Govindan compares himself, others and the Siddhas to Jesus arguing that through meditation, many enlightened persons have reached and still can reach divine status (68, 82). Jesus, then, is not “special” (68). It is remarks such as these that attest to Govindan’s stepping outside the bounds of Christian orthodoxy—a step that he, as a “free thinker” is proud to take.

While Govindan’s book is riddled with inaccuracies (e.g. the statement that “The concept of plagiarism was unknown in ancient times,” 49), slanted exegesis (e.g. reliance on the most extreme liberal scholarship) and misshaped theology (e.g. anyone can achieve divine status just as Jesus did) there are a couple of positive things one can glean from the book: 1) The reader will be forced to think about and research a great number of historical, religious and theological issues, and 2) The reader will accrue knowledge of another religious sect and thus, be able to converse with members of that group.The Wisdom of Jesus and the Yoga Siddhas has the potential to be a good discussion starter but with that said, for fruitful discussion to occur, one must carefully work through the plethora of errors contained within this volume. Indeed, that may be an issue worthy of discussion in and of itself.