[RobbyS]

vain repetitions when you pray The prayers to pagan gods were(in) vain because those gods could not hear the petitions addressed to them no matter how often they were addressed. But that aside, the common practice of Protestants of using cant phrases and snatches of Scri[ture when they pray extemporaneously is like a Catholic's repeating the Hail Mary and is done for the same reason. Most people are not verbally very inventive.

[nobdysfool]

the common practice of Protestants of using cant phrases and snatches of Scri[ture when they pray extemporaneously is like a Catholic's repeating the Hail Mary and is done for the same reason. Most people are not verbally very inventive.

I see your point, but I still don't quite see how you justify the repetition when Jesus specifically said not to. I will agree that many people aren't verbally inventive, but my belief and understanding is that prayer is conversation with God, and being that, should be of a more conversational nature, similar to how we speak with each other (with the proper respect shown to God, of course).

If I need to talk with God about something specific (or even not so specific, as in I don't know quite what to say), I can't see how repeating over and over again the Hail Mary or the Our Father is going to really accomplish anything. It would be more likely to put me in a trance, and that I have a real problem with, as I don't believe Christians should put themselves in a trance. It's quite another thing if God does so, because His protection would be a part of it. Putting oneself in a trance would seem to me to be dangerous, because of the potential for opening oneself to demonic attack, because it is a voluntary lowering of ones mental defenses.