CHURCH LIES ABOUT PRAYER
Prayer is communication with God. We only pray when we are trying to cause a
change in the universe or in ourselves or both. We want God to rearrange it for
us. We want him to change others and us for us. We are not supposed to pray that
way but that is what prayer is really about.
Even if we simply tell God we love him we are doing that for we are trying to
get him to cause us to love him more. If we didn’t we wouldn’t be loving him.
Prayer means trying to cause God to change something, to make something
different. But God is all wise and all-knowing. He will do the right thing
whether asked or not. Prayer then amounts to blasphemy (insulting God) and black
magic (you can’t expect to fool God except by magic) and superstition (you are
nothing in comparison to God and yet you think you can manipulate him). If
prayer does no good then why pray? It would be an iniquitous waste of time. What
prayer does is not bring us closer to God but brings us closer to the
representatives of God who try to control what we think about God. When we
follow the image of God they have painted we follow them in reality.
Religion knows that many ask for great spiritual favours from God even of a
personal development nature that they never get. What does it do? It goes and
puts the cart in front of the horse. It says it knows prayer works and then
urges you to imagine that it still works even when the opposite of what you
asked for happens. It says there is good in everything. That doctrine is used to
mask how prayer does not work.
THE LIES
Church says: We must not think that God
refuses to give us blessings until we ask for them. Prayer is basically letting
God know that he knows best and his will be done. It is implicitly asking for
his blessing and strength to endure the trials that he may send and he will give
these whether we ask explicitly for them or not. Prayer is not just talking to
God, it is more than that. It is uniting your heart and mind with the heart and
mind of God. When we say you need to pray to get blessings from God what we mean
is not that you have to ask for them but that you become worthy of them so that
you will be able to receive them. Even if you don’t use words in prayer but just
desire to become like God that is a prayer itself for it is telling God you need
his help to become more like him.
The Truth: Prayer then is about reshaping you
into the Church's idea of perfection. That's all. For example, the married
Catholic should turn away from using artificial contraception to please not God
but the Church's understanding of God.
It is the worst kind of hypocrite who claims to be humbly making prayer to God
to say save the life of a friend. Prayer doesn't develop you into anything
praiseworthy.
#Hypocrisy 1 Asking God to help a friend when you mean, "God do whatever you
want", is pretending that you want God to do what he wants. You are trying to
manipulate God and lie and use trickery to get what you want.
#Hypocrisy 2 In reality you think that it is you not God that knows best.
Otherwise you would not be asking God to help.
#Hypocrisy 3 Praying for the person will comfort them for they like to think
somebody is thinking of them. But this is misleading them if your meaning is,
"God do whatever you want".
#Hypocrisy 4 You think they should be doing the praying themselves. The person
in trauma is the best person to deal with getting help from God. If prayer is
just about doing the word of God and saying, "God do whatever you want" then you
are not doing the person any favours by praying for them. They should be praying
to get close to God for that is what prayer is all about and nobody else can get
close to God for you and pray for you.
#Hypocrisy 5 If John had stayed in London and not moved to Arizona he probably
would not have contracted cancer. Doing different things makes your life
different. So he didn't pray, pray right or pray enough so he deserves what he
got.
#Hypocrisy 6 If you need help and prayer doesn't work then clearly it may be
your own fault. Prayer increases human sanctimony - others will blame you and
enjoy feeling wiser and superior and more prayerful than you.
Church says: An all-good and all-powerful God
doesn’t need to be asked for anything. But if you make yourself good and holy as
you can and become his friend and express that through prayer you will find that
good things from him will come your way. Prayer does not change God’s mind, if
we want something from him we have to sanctify ourselves so that he will be able
to reward us and give us what we ask. If we ask for something that isn't good
for us he will give us something better. No prayer made in the proper spirit is
ever unanswered. The only thing that stops us receiving what we ask for is sin.
God will not give us much if we sin for then we only want to abuse his goodness,
we want good things but not to be good.
The Truth: Saints have
experienced years of depression that they call the dark night of the soul and
have even showed signs of possession by the "Devil". God will do what God wants
to do. All the prayer in the world will not stop you becoming depressed if that
is what God wants. Doctrines like the above are just bait to manipulate people
into the Church.
If prayer works, the one thing that would never happen is depression for nobody
in their right mind would say that any good comes from it. And if good comes in
spite of it, that is a reason for God NOT to allow it.
Church says: Prayer cannot change God who
will always do what is best.
The Truth: Suppose
a sick person does not get better despite your prayers but claims to feel
comforted a little by God. Then when prayer isn’t doing anything for the person
you pray for, the feeling of peace it gives is an illusion. Comfort is an insult
when you need help. The Church resorts to say you do not really need help for
your suffering is part of God's good plan. What a terrible doctrine!
Church says: Some say that prayer does not
change God. The reason it seems to is because when God is setting up cause and
effect he includes your prayer as one of the causes to bring about some goal.
The truth: If that is
true, then it still does not matter if you pray or not.
Church says: Praying for famine victims is
noble
The Truth: Donate your
wages first and then pray. If you had a choice and it had to be one or the
other, should you pray or donate the wages? If God and prayer come first then
pray. That is extremism. It means believers do not help you because you are sick
but because they think God wants them to help.
Conclusion
Prayer is flavoured with hypocrisy and deceit. And so is any miracle that
advocates prayer. People who are vulnerable and in dire need will pray to what
they were brought up to pray to. Religion takes advantage of their foxhole
situation.