Prayer in the Orthodox Tradition

From the Sermon on the Mount, our Lord Jesus Christ instructed, “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Matt 6:6)

With those words, was Jesus saying that all prayers should be said by ourselves in private? By being aware of the context in which he spoke, we learn that this was not the case. Earlier in the same chapter, Jesus tells us not to pray just for the purpose of drawing attention to ourselves. Go rather to a private place, and make your prayers between you and God alone.

Conversely, the New Testament also records several examples of Jesus praying out in the open, so others could hear. Prior to raising Lararus from the dead (John 11), and before his arrest (John 17), are two examples of Jesus praying out loud for the benefit of those near him. And, finally, his prayer, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” (Luke 23:24) was heard by all gathered by the cross at his crucifixion.

Jesus prayed alone and he prayed together with others. He taught us how to pray: from the heart, believing and trusting that God hears our prayers. And for those of us who sometimes do not know what words to use, he also gave us a beautiful example, the Lord’s Prayer, which is found in virtually every prayer service of the Orthodox Church.

Christians of all traditions acknowledge the importance and the benefits of prayer. There are prayers unique to the Orthodox Church, to the Catholic Church, and to many other Christian traditions. We can offer prayers before meals, before meetings, before taking a trip and before beginning our day; we can also offer prayers after meals, after meetings, after taking a trip, and at the end of our day. The timing and content of prayers is not as important as our attitude toward prayer.

When we speak of prayer in the Orthodox Christian tradition, we refer to prayers originating from, and practiced in, the eastern Christian tradition: prayers written by eastern Fathers of the Church such as St. Basil, St. John Chrysostom, St. Ephraim the Syrian and St. John of Damascus among many others; prayers practiced privately and corporately; those that have been set at certain times throughout the day and those appropriate for any time of day or night; those that have been written down, as well as with those said from the heart.

The reason that prayer in the Orthodox tradition is so incredibly rich and inspirational is because it has never ceased to be a primary function of the Church and of individual Orthodox Christians seeking to increase their personal devotion and strengthen their relationship with Christ our Lord and Savior.

This month’s article on prayer is simply to reiterate the concept of prayer in our Orthodox Christian tradition. Next month will offer examples on the unique prayers found in our rich prayer tradition.