Why can prayers be changed?

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fakename

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Why can the words of a prayer be changed?

I always thought that the words of a prayer were necessary for it to have an effect -which is why you need to pray using a standardized prayer (like one standard Our Father). So if that’s the case, then no one can change the words of a prayer because then the prayer would lose efficacy and its essential meaning would be changed.

I’m guessing this is wrong in some way?
 
fakename said:
Why can the words of a prayer be changed?

I always thought that the words of a prayer were necessary for it to have an effect -which is why you need to pray using a standardized prayer (like one standard Our Father). So if that’s the case, then no one can change the words of a prayer because then the prayer would lose efficacy and its essential meaning would be changed.

I’m guessing this is wrong in some way?
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I doubt standardized prayers were intended to be “magical spells” or “incantations” that work on the principle of repetitiveness. They are simply petitions or “requests” to God. With that said, a standardized prayer is useful because it allows people to pray together and it always wise to use the words that Christ taught us. Standardize prayers ensure that you phrase your petition in a way that would be repectful. As a final aside, religious activities have a positive health benefit, so if praying in your own words works for you then continue to do it.
 
You have an enormous misconception about prayer.

God is not a computer in which you have to type in a correct command in order to receive output. Do you have to talk to your Earthly father in a scripted, command-type dialogue? Of course not. Approach God in a personal manner; He does care for you 🙂

He is a personal creator that longs to have communion with His Sons and daughters. Prayer is a personal activity in which you thank God, submit yourself to God, admit your reliance on Him, make your requests known, and spend time in His presence:
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Phil. 4:6)
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And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. (Ephesians 6:18)
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In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will. (Romans 8:26-27)
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Prayer is a gift from God to have constant communion with Him.
 
God is not something we have to invoke with arcane traditions. We can come to God with our own prayers which will reflect ourselves and our style, or we can come to him using the form of prayer He has laid out such as using the Our Father. But it isnt the wording of the prayers, it is the meaning we put behind those words.

In my life, I’ve moved three times and at each Church I have heard a different version of the act of contrition. All three versions are fine and are used to physically show our feelings of regret and choice to be penitent. It also fixes our minds onto the feelings and this choice we have made. In other words, its not in the semantics or the word choice.

So, while I love the wording of prayers the way I learned them, it doesnt matter at all how they change as long as the same meaning is behind them; and ultimately that meaning should be to bend our will to God’s and come closer to him.
 
The words of the Mass may not be changed except with proper authority. This is necessary for unity and to preserve the essential meanings of prayers and responses within the context of the liturgy.

Clearly, for unity’s sake, we all adhere to standard versions of prayers such as the Our Father and the Hail Mary. These are frequently recited in public devotions, and without standard translated versions it would be chaos with everyone reciting a slightly different version. In your private devotion, you are permitted to change prayers in any way you see fit, as others have posted above.

However, changing prayers substantially can certainly lead to changing their essential meaning, and this can tend to impede their efficacy. So in the interest of proper practice, many of us choose to adhere to approved prayers with an Imprimatur to guarantee that they are accurate and faithful to the Church.
 
fakename said:
Why can the words of a prayer be changed?

I always thought that the words of a prayer were necessary for it to have an effect -which is why you need to pray using a standardized prayer (like one standard Our Father). So if that’s the case, then no one can change the words of a prayer because then the prayer would lose efficacy and its essential meaning would be changed.

I’m guessing this is wrong in some way?
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Yes you are wrong.
 
1ke said:
Where did you get that idea?
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“whereas all that is needed for vocal prayer proper is the repetition of certain words, usually a set form with the intention of using them in prayer. So long as the intention lasts, i.e. so long as nothing is done to terminate it or wholly inconsistent with it, so long as one continues to repeat the form of prayer…”

Catholic Encyclopedia

And it goes on to say that so long as these things are done, the prayer is effected properly.

The use of the words “needed” and “so long” imply that the set form is a necessary condition (but not sufficient) for a prayer to be valid.
 
link please. I think you are totally misconstruing what you are reading.
 
Some prayers come from the Bible (notably the Lord’s Prayer, but many others, such as Psalms). The wording of those prayers is pretty much set in stone - we don’t edit God.

Everything else is up for grabs.
 
fakename said:
“whereas all that is needed for vocal prayer proper is the repetition of certain words, usually a set form with the intention of using them in prayer. So long as the intention lasts, i.e. so long as nothing is done to terminate it or wholly inconsistent with it, so long as one continues to repeat the form of prayer…”

Catholic Encyclopedia

And it goes on to say that so long as these things are done, the prayer is effected properly.

The use of the words “needed” and “so long” imply that the set form is a necessary condition (but not sufficient) for a prayer to be valid.
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newadvent.org/cathen/12345b.htm

Under “Attention in Prayer”
 
During a recent surgery( I had to be awake) I kept trying to pray the Hail Mary. All that my brain could manage was “Holy Mary mother of God pray for us, Holy Mary Mother of God pray for us…” Definitely not the standardized Hail Mary, but I knew she was there and my prayers were answered.
 
raaucoin said:
During a recent surgery( I had to be awake) I kept trying to pray the Hail Mary. All that my brain could manage was “Holy Mary mother of God pray for us, Holy Mary Mother of God pray for us…” Definitely not the standardized Hail Mary, but I knew she was there and my prayers were answered.
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Or, what if you said the Hail Mary with “…Holy Mary God’s Mom please pray for us…” does it become invalid because it is not the exact accepted English language text? I would venture not.
 
No, you don’t have to only use repetitive prayers.

IMO, a good prayer involves:

Contrition,adoration,love,thanksgiving and perhaps petition.

Basically: “Lord I am a sinner. You are great and holy. I love you with all of my heart. Thank you for all the wornderful blessings you’ve given me.Lord, please aid me in this time of need.”

Obviously you’d go into more detail perhaps make it more pretty but it contains the five elements of a great prayer. Heck, you can take just one element and pray on that if you want. The point is, God loves all prayers, reptetive or made up off the top of your head. However, aiming for one or all five of the above is a good place to start.
 
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