All Christians, do you think praying the "Our Father" over and over is vain repetition?

Question

Erica, exactly!

of course, well said, Bruce! I agree with you 100%!

Answer 1

hmmmm i wonder if christs repetition at the garden of gethsemane constitutes and proves that ALL repetition is vain........

Answer 2

There is a difference between repetitive prayer and praying in vain. Jesus did not seem to have any objection to repetitive prayer.

Matthew chapter 26
37And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
40And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
41Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
42He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
43And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.
44And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

In addition, Jesus recited the 23rd Psalm while he was on the cross.

EDIT TO ROBIN: Apparently great minds think alike. Believe it or not I didn't read your answer before responding.

Answer 3

It's not the repetitions that's the problem, it's the 'vain' part that's the problem. We see many instances where repetition is acceptable and even Jesus Christ recommends repetitious prayer.

Luke 18:1-8
"Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to teach them that they should always pray and never become discouraged. "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people. And there was a widow in that same town who kept coming to him and pleading for her rights, saying, 'Help me against my opponent!' For a long time the judge refused to act, but at last he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or respect people, yet because of all the trouble this widow is giving me, I will see to it that she gets her rights. If I don't, she will keep on coming and finally wear me out!' " And the Lord continued, "Listen to what that corrupt judge said. Now, will God not judge in favor of his own people who cry to him day and night for help? Will he be slow to help them? I tell you, he will judge in their favor and do it quickly. But will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes?"

Even Jesus Christ Himself engages in repetitious prayer.
Matt 26:39-44
"He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want." Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep; and he said to Peter, "How is it that you three were not able to keep watch with me for even one hour? Keep watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Once more Jesus went away and prayed, "My Father, if this cup of suffering cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done." He returned once more and found the disciples asleep; they could not keep their eyes open. Again Jesus left them, went away, and prayed the third time, SAYING THE SAME WORDS."

It's not the repetitious aspect that is the problem but the vain repetition that is unacceptable.

God Bless
Robin

EDIT for Adoptive Father:
I believe you when you say you didn't read my answer before answering yourself. Could you please give me a thumbs up if you haven't already as I have for you?

I'm trying to reach 1,000 points and thumbs up can help. Thanks in advance.

Answer 4

No,
if it's good enough fro Jesus ,it's good enough fro me!

How can repeating the Lord's prayer be "vain" or "in vain" or devoid of meaning?
Jesus repeated prayers in Matt 26:24 and approved of the Publican's repeating his plea fro mercy(LK 18:13) and the Angels repeating Holy day and night in heaven(Rev4:8)

Answer 5

The "Our Father" is the perfect prayer. The words were composed by Jesus himself, and no one rivals his authority.
http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p4s2a1.htm

The "Our Father" bears repeating because we need to understand and draw meaning from every word. Further, we need to personalize the words by applying our particular thoughts, needs, and life events to them.

How are we making his name holy? What are we doing to make his kingdom come? What are the challenges to do his will on earth? What special needs to we have? What sins do we need to repent? Who do we need to forgive? What temptations do we need to overcome?

You can't answer all these particulars in a single recitation; it takes repeated prayer to begin to complete the process.

"Vain" repetition is self-centered prayer. Luke 18:11 exempifies vain prayer: "The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'"

Another kind of vain prayer is "babbling like pagans" (Matt 6:7). Babbling is prayer without meaning, and often without actual language. Thoughtfully praying Jesus' own words is anything but babbling--as he instructed us in the succeeding verses.

Cheers
Bruce

Answer 6

Real Christians know it is a model prayer and speak freely with the Father. He does not need to be insulted by our lack of intelligence and open conversation with Him.

He knows the heart of the one praying. The Vain repeaters love themselves, and not Him. This is another clue He left for the real believers so that they can spot those who DO NOT worship Him in Spirit or Truth.

Answer 7

It sounds like it. If you mean in a Roman Catholic way, it does seem to be vain repetition. Why do that if an act of faith is an act of trust. Is saying it over and over again showing that you trust Him? I don't think that it does. I see it as a 'religious' way of talking to God. People do it because they were taught to. Not because it was the way Jesus said to pray; quite the opposite in fact:

Matthew 6
7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.

Answer 8

No, not if u say it and mean it. I mean most people just say it over and over and over again without really listening and understanding the words in the prayer itself.

Answer 9

Jesus taught his followers to use the Lords Prayer as a "guideline" He didn't tell them to repeat the same things over and over again but to use it as a way to also incorporate their own feelings of gratitude to Jehovah for all that He supplies.
Prayer is "talking" to GOD with deep respect, and also being comfortable enough to approach Him, knowing that He knows us and desires to hear us.
Jehovah is our heavenly Father, and we should feel close to Him and be able to seek Him out with the contents of our hearts.

Answer 10

"With hurricanes, tornados,
fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the "Pledge of Allegiance?"

Jay Leno : )