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The Power of Prayer
Jordan Stratford has a really interesting post about prayer over on EGINA. There are some really great inspiring parts of it such as:
[…] prayer must be a radical, political act of intense examination and change. Each prayer, however simple, needs to be as violently historically impactful personally as, say, the Declaration of Independence is to the United States. I’m not that anymore, I’m this now. It’s alchemical, the transmutation of lead into gold.
Such a declaration must be made in a state of adult mindfulness, neither arrogant posturing or insincere grovelling. One must approach prayer like a Knight on the battlefield, with realistic appraisal of protagonist and opposing forces, of the terrain, acceptable losses, risk and stake.
This is a really exciting way of thinking about prayer, which Jordan contrasts to a fictional-but-typical prayer that might read:
“Sweet baby Jesus, I am a miserable sinner, but please have mercy on me and help momma with the bingo. And also, please take care of Fluffy in Heaven. God bless America. Amen.”
Jordan talks about how such prayer places you into a losing script in terms of power relationships with the divine, and proceeds to lambast such thinking as evil.
As much as I love what Jordan’s saying and am excited by this stirring message, I’m finding myself less and less upset by such “simplistic” approaches to prayer as Jordan mocks above. What’s wrong with somebody being sorry for what they’ve done wrong? Why isn’t it appropriate to want to succeed in Bingo or have a loved one protected? These are all real things that our important parts of our lives. Love, money, security. They aren’t bad or wrong. To me, the power of prayer lies not in its political-alchemical content, but in it’s simple honesty and heartfelt sincerity.
There is a stage of the game when simplicity is not only necessary but the only way to get things done. Those of us exploring other roads and stages tend to villify the ones that come before. But really, just because a stage comes sooner or later, doesn’t in my mind make it better or worse. Everyone needs to play different positions on the field. A pitcher isn’t “better” than a hitter. Many people will never reach the stage of alchemical transmutation in their devotional life, and there isn’t really anything wrong with that. Or is there? Am I just making excuses for people who are too chicken-shit to really take control of their lives and develop what some might consider a “real” relationship with God?
I find myself drawn more and more to defending the rhetorical punching bags, those things that are all too easy for us “enlightened” folks to rail against mercilessly, without ever stopping to consider the actual merits of them. That’s just the stage of the game I find myself playing now.
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September 15th, 2005 at 12:18 pm
http://homoplasmate.blogspot.com/2005/...on-prayer-demiurgic-brown-nosing.html
September 15th, 2005 at 12:34 pm
Proposition A: I am God.
Proposition B: I am as nothing compared to God.
Interpreted in the light of the Truth, these are both accurate statements. They should be interpreted differently. What do “I” and “God” refer to? Language can never completely capture the Truth, and it should therefore be no surprise to us that contradictory statements can illustrate the same Reality. (See “The Transcendent Unity of Religions” by Frithjof Schuon.)
Both statements can be interpreted heretically, and both can be interpreted as bearing on the Truth. Courage is a virtue, and so is Humility.
The position of the humble petitioner is for one man the position of utmost piety, for another man it may not be. I think Jordan overstates his stance; see these completely orthodox sayings:
“Allah draws unto him whom he wishes.”
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
September 15th, 2005 at 12:44 pm
There is an interesting distinction made in hinduism between three characters of people and their relative religious needs. I’m going to post about it separately, but I think it pretty well encapsulates this issue.
September 15th, 2005 at 12:52 pm
I’m with you, Tim. Jordan’s attacking a strawman, and this universe must have room for prayer that’s not “violently historically impactful.” But the thing I like about his idea is that it frames prayer as taking responsibility, instead of asking for a favor from an authority. I want a concept of prayer that would still make sense in a universe of equal beings. I forget where I read this, but my favorite prayer advice is to be very specific about your intentions, and then completely let go.
September 15th, 2005 at 1:20 pm
i think jordan’s simply addressing the issue from the standpoint of his own particular tradition. in fact, the earliest gnostics often asked for stuff from various gods and spirits and whatnot, but they didn’t call it prayer when they did this, they called it magic.
imho, i do think jordan’s post makes a good point about whether a prayer is genuine or just lip-service. when prayer is just saying a bunch of words because you’ve been told you have to, it’s totally devoid of value (you’re praying to an image of the god– the demiurge). when prayer is all ‘dear st. jude, please help me find my keys,’ it’s more like magic instead of prayer per se. but when prayer is a sincere expression of one’s experience with divinity, i say let it take whatever form works best for the individual.
the thing is, i don’t think any one of us can truly tell whether another’s prayer experience is ‘valid’ or ‘invalid.’ i don’t have any problem with someone saying the sweet baby jesus prayer; how do i know they’re not experiencing something divine when they say it?
it’s not the words you say, it’s the intent in which you pray.
hey, i’m a poet and i forgot!
September 15th, 2005 at 1:28 pm
[…]
3 Types of Religious Expression
As a follow-up to my post, the Power of Prayer, I wanted to quote an extended passage from Robert Laremy&# […]
September 15th, 2005 at 1:36 pm
That’s exactly my point. I think the strength of Jordan’s piece is for people who need that kick in the junk, and who need to know how to boost their own power and authority and personal divinity. I’m not so much trying to criticize Jordan as I am simply saying that not everybody needs that though.
I think this is one of those cases where all of us think so similarly on certain things that competing approaches get drowned out, and I’m trying to throw a life vest to the other guys.
September 15th, 2005 at 10:41 pm
Jordan’s definitely being tongue in cheek! His straw man is an exaggerated polemic. Like Tim said, that was aimed at the sort of people who need the wakeup call. Most of us pray like that when the chips are super low. It has it’s place, but the piece is more aimed at the folks who think this kind of prayer is all there is.
September 15th, 2005 at 10:50 pm
Mea culpa. Sometimes I do in fact exaggerate to make a point, as I did in that post. Of course I’m not chastising anyone for sincerely penitent prayer, even as a salve for one’s own wishes and fears. I deliberately turned up the volume here to stress my concern with “prayer as abdication” of personal responsibility, and how culturally one sees prayers as anemic.
Of course there is room for a broad variety of personal communions with the divine, and some of those are of the “meek and mild” type. I’m not questioning that. I’m suggesting rather that there is a cultural default to that effect, and that what is overlooked is how weapons-grade prayer can be when taken in the context of a punk bushido-style mindset.
J+
September 15th, 2005 at 11:03 pm
Oh yeah, totally. I got all that and thought it was a really strong and inspiring piece and don’t want to try and diminish that. I guess what I saw in it was something I find myself lacking in my ability to understand, and wanting to be able to - if that makes any sense.