The Clueless Arrogance of the Spiritually Stunted

"As latest batch of innocent Americans are left lying in pools of blood, cowards who could truly end gun scourge continue to hide behind meaningless platitudes [i.e. prayers].” --NY “Daily News” 12/3/15 “Better to rule in hell than serve in heaven.” -- Lucifer, from John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. --James 5:16 NKJV “Better to rule in hell than serve in heaven” is the feral ego’s motto, guideline, and rallying cry. The idea of subservience to God is, has been, and always will be anathema to the narcissist and conceited. Only those willing to submit to God’s ineffable and infinite grandeur open themselves to the blessing of divine union. It can be no other way.

The Godless heap scorn upon that which they do not, cannot, understand. Their shrill invectives are the spiteful prattling of deluded ego-centric fools who confuse ignorance with wisdom and byzantine drivel with elegant reasoning. Instead of engaging in the hard work of expanding their spiritual capacities and knowledge these noxious atheistic buffoons spend their time taking potshots at immature conceptions of God, and then preen as if shooting ducks in a barrel were some sort of sterling accomplishment. But enough about contemptuous and contemptable morons – I wish to discuss prayer. In the sentence from “The Book of James” I quote at this article’s beginning the key word is “effective” – meaning prayer that works. Before broaching that topic, however, I would like to say a few words about the chillingly mean-spirited comments made by certain liberals in regard to the prayers offered to the victims, families, et al. involved in the San Bernardino, CA shootings. How dare they conflate prayer with cowardice? How dare they mock God and those offering solace and comfort to the grief-stricken and frightened? How dare they! Perhaps “instant karma” won’t get them, but whether in this lifetime or the next their comeuppance is on its way, no doubt.

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Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.-- Galatians 6:7 NIV Be that as it may, prayer is both a science and an art, and how to pray effectively is an area of theology rife with misunderstandings and erroneous if well-meant intentions. Let me say up front that my purpose here is not to attempt to teach anyone the “proper” way to pray. Whatever style of prayer gives you the most comfort at your present level of consciousness is fine. Just the fact that you are open to the reality of a power greater than yourself gives you a spiritual leg up on those who consider themselves to be the alpha and omega of their reality. That being said, there are methods or modes of prayer that are more effective than others. For my money the most effective prayer is the simple statement “Thy will be done.” That should not be confused with some sort of “que sera, sera” fatalism. Jesus, for example, always submitted to God’s will – and yet He was aggressively pro-active in changing things around Him. He was not in the least fatalistic, and constantly shifted reality to be more in tune with His vision of heaven on earth. Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written. -- John 21:25 NIV Did Jesus perform miracles? To my mind it is not so much a question of Jesus performing miracles as God manipulating reality through Him. Jesus was such a clear pure channel that God’s will was enacted on earth as it is in heaven. Was Jesus God, or God Jesus? I believe that the union between them was/is so seamless as to render the question moot. I would love to delve deeper into the meaning of “God’s will,” and free will, but that will have to wait for another article. In any event, my purpose here, which was to hopefully offer some thought provoking comments on prayer, is finished. Keep your eyes on the prize, and don’t worry about what the earth-bound contracted bitter hearts say.