Te Rogamos

I thought prayer might be an appropriate topic to cover. Recently in my house, the topic of "reverence during prayer" was discussed, so it seems as if a more thorough examination of the subject is necessary.
I previously mentioned that the only true prayer is "Thy will be done." I hold to this. I feel as if I could end my post right here, but I think there is still more to be said. I also previously mentioned in my post on religiosity that wordy prayer is a kind of false piety.
So what is it about prayer that captures us so much? Many religions use prayer in a very scheduled, systematic fashion, with certain prayers for certain hours of the day and certain circumstances that require prayer, etc.
I've noticed that most faiths embrace some sort of pre-set prayer. I find this peculiar. Did not Christ himself say, "When you pray, use not vain repetitions?" (Matthew 6:7). So why is it that Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Mormons all have set prayers? Why are we asked to repeat a prayer that somebody else is saying?
The true question to ask here is whether or not it is a true prayer if the words are already set aside.
Another thing that seems peculiar to me is that we are often admonished to thank God in our prayers. The Old English use of pray was the same as a request. To say, "I pray thee" is the same as "I ask you." Sometimes at Mass we use the Latin form when we offer up our intentions with the "Te Rogamos" which literally means "We ask you." A prayer, it seems, is strictly a pleading.
The assumed posture for people who pray is always one of a beggar. We often times lie prostrate or kneel down. We bow our heads to show our servility. We clasp our hands together in the state of begging. The act of praying is designed to be a demonstration of how low and vile we are and how great our God is.
Truly, Christ himself lauded the tax collector whose prayerful stance was one of utter unworthiness (Luke 18:13-14).
I once heard an atheist offer a prayer at a dinner. Before discovering that the man was an atheist, I thought to myself that it was the most arrogant, inflated and self-indulgent prayer I had ever heard. When I learned that he didn't even believe in God, I wondered how it was that his image of prayer was so skewed. I had a slight feeling that his prayer was in mockery, but at the same time I realized that it was highly likely that it was also due to the example set by his Christian friends.
So, perhaps there needs to be a reform in our worship with regards to the way that prayer is seen. Perhaps instead of praying in a very elaborate fashion as if we were trying to impress someone with our eloquence we should simply declare, "God have mercy on me, a sinner." Instead of our lofty orations, we should beg God as the truly penitent do. Our prayers need to be stripped of pride and laid out as humble petitions to an infinitely more perfect God.
So, in our assemblies and in our homes, we need to remove the pomp and circumstance of prayer. There is nothing celebratory about prayer. Instead of demanding respect and reverence as if we ourselves are channeling God, we need to acknowledge the lowly state we ourselves are taking on. There is no glory to be had by being the one offering the prayers. There is no grandiosity in being chosen to offer a benediction or an invocation. I don't mean to say that we should not pray, only that our attitude about it needs a definite reform.

Religiosity

One of my absolute favorite theologians of the twentieth century, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, criticized religiosity in both one of his letters from prison and The Cost of Discipleship. In fact, many spiritual writers, including Jesus Himself, have criticized false piety.
One of my favorite forms of false piety can be found in prayers. Growing up in a Mormon family, around Mormons, I was generally accustomed to hearing prayers that began something like this:
"Oh great, merciful, loving and kind, all-powerful, ever-living, benevolent and virtuous Eternal Father in Heaven from whom all blessings flow..."
They also tend to end, after much flowery and pompous language:
"We, thy servants, humbly ask of these things, with sincere piety and lowliness of heart and of spirit, in the name of thy wonderful Son, the Great Jehovah, even the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen."
I am reminded in this instance of the prayers of the pharisee and the publican in the temple (Luke 18:10-14). How simple was the publicans prayer? How honest was it? What of the pharisee, the man who had so much going for him and still felt the need to lift himself up before God?
The truth is, we are all worms before God. The believer is no better in the eyes of God than the unbeliever. Yes, we act as if the opposite is the case, but Christ himself said, "not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord will be admitted to the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 7:21). We are not somehow greater than all the rest of humanity simply because we think that our faith is right. Vatican II illumined our understanding by teaching us that those who try to do God's will, independent of what faith they may pursue, will be saved (People of God). So what good is our false piety?
I would venture to guess that there is a substantial amount of people who are turned off of religion because of religiosity. How many people are scared away by our "holier-than-thou" attitudes? How many people see us not as "living in the world but not of the world" but instead as not even living in the world?
I think that monasticism has gathered the disfavor in today's world that it has because of false piety. Those who live truly ascetic lives are viewed as trying to escape the real world. There is a feeling of resentment towards those who seek to escape the world and live in a truly Christian community.
I would also go as far as to say this is why there are an abundance of "reality" churches, or other such watered-down faith traditions. When the ceremony and pomp of church are removed, it is easier for a common man to feel at home.
However, I must warn that church is not a place where we should feel "at home" in the way that we feel at our own homes. Church is not a place to kick off our shoes and drink beer while watching the football game. Church is a place of piety, of worship and of prayerful humility. The only problem that really faces us is realizing our true humility. Being humble doesn't mean taking as we think a pious person speaks. Kierkegaard tells us very clearly that the Knight of Faith is unrecognizable because he dons no special cloak, nor embraces any false piety.
I am reminded of Dorothy Day. Here is a woman who spent her days in very humble circumstances. She took on voluntary poverty as did Francis of Assisi. She assisted the poor. She devoted her time to the Corporal Works of Mercy. Even in her radical, anarchistic, socialistic ways she was always a beacon of true piety. Her true humility didn't repulse others, except for those too full of themselves to realize she was right. Her approach to reaching out to those outside of the faith? "In order to reach the man on the street, we must go out to the man on the street."