Saying "Father God" religion?

[mrsdizzyd]

The prayer ended up sounding much like this: Father God, we thank you Father God for being Father God, Father God. Father God bless us Father God, for you Father God, are Father God, that is our Father God. Father God, we worship you O Father God, that you are the Father God. … so on and so forth.

Now honestly, can any of us truly say that if we were talking with someone else, someone else, and that someone else kept saying someone else and repeating, or repeating the same repeated thing that he repeated over again, that someone else repeating himself by repeating himself… wouldn’t sound weird and maybe, JUST maybe, might be irritating?

Meh. Most people I know pray this way. Didn’t bother me then, and it doesn’t bother me now. It’s cultural I suppose.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.
Christ have mercy. Christ have mercy.
Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

Hm, I’m not gonna throw a stone at “Father God” preacher from my greenhouse here…

Repetitions are a comforting form of prayer. The preacher’s repeating of Father God is not unlike any Catholic litany. He’s simply repeating the name of God over and over. Hard to be irritated with hearing God’s name 50 times.

 

[ltwin]

Okay, it’s true, I was annoyed, but not for the reason you might think. I’m fine with anyone saying “Father God”. It was the fact that he kept saying it over and over again.

It may have been annoying and excessive, but there is a style of extemporaneous prayer in which such repetition is not simply a stand in for “uuuhhh” but serves a function in prayer itself.

The prayer ended up sounding much like this: Father God, we thank you Father God for being Father God, Father God. Father God bless us Father God, for you Father God, are Father God, that is our Father God. Father God, we worship you O Father God, that you are the Father God. … so on and so forth.

OK, after reading this I have a better sense of what might be going on. There is a style of extemporaneous prayer in many evangelical/Pentecostal churches (which, in my opinion, African-American churches excel at) that will at times use repetitive elements to frame the prayer or “build up” the rhetorical “energy” of the prayer. It seems that in this case, there was a lot of adoration and exaltation of the attribute of God’s fatherhood toward us.

It could have just as easily been something else that was repeated or emphasized, like for example, “we magnify you” or “you are worthy to be praised” or " you are good" or literally anything.

 

[Reuben_J]

Hodos:

Perhaps a little charity is in order here for prayer practices that differ slightly from your own.

Okay, it’s true, I was annoyed, but not for the reason you might think. I’m fine with anyone saying “Father God”. It was the fact that he kept saying it over and over again. He was speaking so fast that it’s like @HopkinsReb says,

The reason they say it so much is really quite simple: their prayers tend to be improvised, and “Father God” sounds a lot better than “uuuuhhhhhh.”

.

The prayer ended up sounding much like this: Father God, we thank you Father God for being Father God, Father God. Father God bless us Father God, for you Father God, are Father God, that is our Father God. Father God, we worship you O Father God, that you are the Father God. … so on and so forth.

Now honestly, can any of us truly say that if we were talking with someone else, someone else, and that someone else kept saying someone else and repeating, or repeating the same repeated thing that he repeated over again, that someone else repeating himself by repeating himself… wouldn’t sound weird and maybe, JUST maybe, might be irritating?

I am fine with saying Father God but the one you mentioned looked like the person has some sort of speech impediment.

 

[TomH1]

Because we are not there to witness this event we can only guess more than if we were there and it appears a lot of answers are guesses. If you would really like to know why these people pray the way they do ask them in a friendly, non-confrontational way. Explain you are Catholic and not familiar with their prayer method and tell them that is why you are enquiring.

 

[mrsdizzyd]

the one you mentioned looked like the person has some sort of speech impediment.

Really?

Protestants have different prayer practices than Catholics do. Can we please just charitably respect that there is a difference?

 

[JoeFreedom]

For everyone here. I am not trying to make fun of him (he did not have a speech impediment) and I don’t have a problem with other people praying the way they want. It’s just not my style, it was too high energy and a little strange to me and I don’t particularly pray that way but I don’t mind if he does. And yes I did find it irritating but so what? And yes I did want to know where it came from because I was truly interested to know.

 

[lilypadrees]

Rabbi Schneider (“Discovering The Jewish Jesus”) says “Father God” alot. Mormons refer to “Father God.” My friend who is a member of a ND church refers to “Father God.” She wasn’t raised doing that but does now.

Many people do. Personal preference, I guess.