Vain repetitions

Question: Is saying the same prayers everyday correct by the Roman Catholics? In Matthews 6:7 it says not to do that.

Answer: Here is a part of the answer I gave concerning Roman Catholic’s using vain repetitions in their prayers:

In another answer I told of the confusion in the Roman Catholic Church over the doctrine of the Virgin Mary and the Rosary. I made it very clear from Scripture that we are not to pray to Mary, or for that matter to any of the saints. You might think, well, how could you be in the Roman Catholic Church even to worship or as a witness, when they sometimes pray to Mary? I would say if I were there to be a witness, I would not pray to Mary, but pray to God the Father through Jesus the Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit. This is what I would do silently when the Rosary or other prayers were being made to Mary, or the other saints.

Unless I was the leader of prayer, then why not pray to the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus. If you got into trouble for doing this, then you would know what St. Paul felt like when he was persecuted. By the way, the Roman Catholic Church is not the only one that believes in getting help from Mary or the saints. That could be a discussion for another question or article.

The Rosary was popularized by Alan de la Roche (1428-1475), a Breton Dominican. “The historical development of the Rosary begins with the desert fathers and their need to find a system to ease their laborious and repetitive prayer life. It is generally agreed by scholars that a system for counting repetitive prayers began with the Hindus some nine centuries before Christ. Prayer counters such as rocks, sticks or notches in wood were employed to ensure that the proper number of prayers were recited.” (HCFM: Rosary : Explanation & History) What does Jesus say, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” (Matthew 6:7)

Many times through out the Rosary you are instructed to say for example, “Say three ‘Hail Marys’ or Say ten ‘Hail Marys’ and so on. Also after the Rosary you are instructed to pray: “HAIL, HOLY QUEEN, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping valley of tears. Turn the, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Mary! V. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

I believe praying in such a way is wrong, and Roman Catholic should pray directly to our Father through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We need to pray for them and all others who pray using vain repetitions, and who pray to Mary instead of to God.

Thanks for the question, I have gone into more detail on several of the answers about Roman Catholics on the Bible Discussion page if you want to read more.  Also, feel free to write again if you want to discuss this question or others more.  God bless you!

You might enjoy reading these discussion questions. Praying over and over the same thing, Is it wrong to say the Rosary, and Is repetitive prayer against God’s will?
In Christian love,

Gary T. Panell

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