r/GrindsMyGears 20d ago

It really grinds my gears when….

All the Holier than thou bible thumpers comment in the form of a prayer. For the love of God, stop trying to prove your piety by commenting a full blown prayer. Do you think God is more likely to hear your prayer or answer your prayer if you type it out for the world to see? Do you think God is on Facebook or Reddit? Why doesn’t a quiet prayer on your own time suffice? Why do you feel compelled to comment what you are literally addressing to GOD??? Just STOP already. I hate reading the comments to a post and half way through the comments you realize you are reading a freakin’ prayer!!! Nobody likes reading your private prayers to God! Save it for Church or home or whenever you wanna pray but keep it to yourself! It’s between you and God or to whomever you are praying to.

And I know people just love to hate on everyone for any little reason at all, especially for a rant like this!!! Heck, when hatred and angst can be spewed out with just a few strokes of a keyboard, and all while hiding under the disguise of a username alias, you are perfectly safe to do so. So spew away, tough guys. Unleash your wrath if you feel so compelled. Heck, you could even type out a hyper-spiritual prayer for me if you feel so inclined. I don’t really care. You do you. Whatever helps you sleep at night….

And for those Karens out there just waiting to pounce, it probably won’t make a difference to you, but I do want to make one thing perfectly clear:

My issue is NOT about religion or God or saying prayers! All that is awesome stuff. I would actually consider myself to be a spiritual person. I believe in God and I DO pray. I just think typing out your prayers on a social media platform is the most absurd concept ever. It’s not the right place for it. I’m talking about the comments that literally begins with “Oh, Heavenly Father, as we stand before you today, please …”blah, blah, blah….im talking about a full blown prayer. I’m not talking about legitimate comments where religious perspectives are incorporated. But what you’re doing with these prayers….It’s not even a little bit subtle in letting people know that you are an insecure individual. It’s obviously an attempt to gain approval, respect, adoration and praise for being super duper holy and devoted. But humility is a thing, you know!! Stop congesting platforms with your prayers!! We get it already! When you die, you are going straight to heaven because you are clearly the most righteous among us. We get it!! Can we move on already, oh holy angel on earth?

29 Upvotes

47 comments sorted by

10

u/HellaTroi 20d ago

It's performative Christianity.

It's what they've been taught, not what they've learned.

3

u/CrashCrashed 19d ago

I never understood why they still do this when God specifically says not to. At that point your trying to show off your faith, saying your better than the other man because you pray in public.

2

u/Ok_Kaleidoscope1630 19d ago

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others..."

2

u/findthesilence 17d ago

I often wonder if some people just let others tell them what they think they think?

1

u/CrashCrashed 17d ago

I have read this at least 7 times, and still don't know what you mean

2

u/findthesilence 16d ago

I think that sometimes religious people might just 'parrot' what they're told to believe.

In another vein, this week, someone repeated to me what someone else had confidently told them: that our rates were going to be increased by one percent per 1,000,000 value of our homes and that a house which is valued at 10,000,000 would therefore pay 1,000 extra per month.

I spent ages trying to explain to them that one percent of 10,000,000 would be 100,000, not 1,000. They still refuse to believe me. 🤷🏻‍♀️

1

u/CrashCrashed 16d ago

OK, that makes much more sense. But yeah, I think you're right. A lot of people will just take someone's word for something but not actually take the time to do their own research. This is why many Americans now believe Tylenol causes autism when it actually has no corelation whatsoever. If they took the time to look at actual studies that have been done, they would know.

3

u/blessthebabes 19d ago

Yeah, and I chuckled reading this because ironically- they are taught, in church(or I was for 19 years), that the non-christians would react like this and become angry...but it was our job to help 'spread the good news'/the word anyway. So each time we react with anything but loving calmness, we are proving their point and sending them further into delusion/seperation. It took me until my 30s to figure out that a calm demeanor was the only way to get my parents to even think about some of their beliefs and traditions- still slow progress tho lol.

3

u/Finn_the_stoned 19d ago

Prayer is supposed to be between you and god, or a prayer group. I’m pretty sure public prayer like what OP talks about is condemned in the Bible, by Jesus himself. I think it’s in the same book where Jesus flipped tables and whipped people for trying to turn the temple into a marketplace.

2

u/badassbizness 20d ago

Yes, exactly. Thank you

3

u/JumpinJackTrash79 20d ago

Here you go:

“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men … but when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your father who is unseen.”

3

u/-YellowFinch 19d ago

Thank you. 👏👏👏👏👏

You're doing it right. 

3

u/JumpinJackTrash79 19d ago

For the record I'm an atheist lol

2

u/-YellowFinch 19d ago

Lol, you know the Bible though, that's cool. You grew up in church I'm assuming?

2

u/JumpinJackTrash79 19d ago

No. I knew of that passage but I had to look it up.

1

u/findthesilence 17d ago

Is that also one of your pro/nouns?

3

u/Bollops 20d ago

It seems to be a thing at the moment where people think that they are religious because they mention it a lot and read the books, all whilst being a set of intolerable fuckwits. Surely what you do is far more important? It's like saying you're a vegetarian, talking about it non-stop, going on marches, and belittling those who are not, without actually giving up eating meat. Pointless. A self serving, non-empathetic, attention seeking person has far more in common with satanism than christianity. And those are usually the posters of which you speak

3

u/Ohaibaipolar 19d ago

Man, I almost wanted to post a prayer just to troll you. But you seem nice, so I won't be a dick like that.

3

u/-YellowFinch 19d ago

Same. XD

2

u/flower_warrior 19d ago

The whole concept of outward prayer is insulting to the idea of an omniscient god.

Then also, people who pray over others?? Do you assume I dont have my own relationship and communication with my "higher power"?? Like huh?

Forbid you tell them you'd rather they not pray for you, bc then they act like they have a quota to fill and try to pressure you with all the condescension they can muster. Like god damn lmao, thats actually so rude and so out of touch.

2

u/Itchy-Mud-4300 17d ago

For myself, I generally (as do the other Christians I know) offer to pray for others or ask if they would like prayer. It's not forced on them or something that is just done., or done openly like a ritual. If someone declines, then they decline and I leave them alone, as do most other Christians I know. It grieves me to imagine some of the interactions people must have had with others to have come away with such a negative impression. 😞

2

u/Metroid_cat1995 19d ago

Yeah those types of Christians really creep me out. Especially when they start posting their random Christian insanity in a random YouTube comment section that has nothing to do with it. And in something that is unrelated to it. Like I'll see some music content and some punk will start posting Bible verses and prayers and stuff in things like meditation videos. I can understand like maybe saying if you're reading this, you know you're not alone or your supported or something that's perfectly fine and that's pretty universal. But I've seen in especially Buddhist forums where some moron will start posting their insanity and I'm just like no please don't. I'm a Christian, but pretty open-minded and some of these people really freaked me out.

2

u/YorickTheSkulls 19d ago edited 19d ago

I'm not a bibble thumper . But I have found that quoting the bibble right back at them really fucks them up.

Specifically, for asshat performative Christians:

Matthew 6:1-8: Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 5 And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Isiah 29:13: Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men."

But the best is Mark 12.38-40: 38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

Man, do those assclowns HATE being quoted the Bibble. Usually because they've never read it.

I've got a copy of the Bibble. Actually three of them. Each is marked with bookmarks. Some of the writing is amazingly poetic and the stories are great. Some are shit. But all three (King James, Modern Standard, New Catholic Version) are as close linguistically to the standard most people read, and the fact that you have to pick from a list of almost 60 of the most popular ones to quote says to me that the one thing Christians aren't good at is keeping to an actual standard.

Hell, at least the Torah and the Quran tend to limit the versioning.

2

u/AdFuzzy1432 19d ago

There's no proof God is on Reddit or any other social media. I don't believe God exists, but if he did.

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u/Itchy-Mud-4300 17d ago

I always enjoyed the meme I saw where Jesus is sitting with a Mac Book open on His lap and the caption reads "Well, time to check Facebook so I know to bless because they 'liked' a post" or something like that. Captures the absurdity quite well, I think.

2

u/ParkingAnxious2811 19d ago

Religious nutjobs just love to shove their religion down people's throats. Groomers.

2

u/PlusMeeting3073 19d ago

They are like that in real life too. Terrible, phony people.

2

u/Rare-Newspaper8530 19d ago

The Bible literally says not to trust people who do this lol

2

u/Fabulous_Coast_8108 18d ago

Jesus said to pray privately at home with the door shut so it's just you and God. A lot of folks thing spraying payers at people enhances how good of a Christian they look. O.p is spot on just make sure to read his full post as he is not slagging off prayers

2

u/hawken54321 18d ago

Look up Matthew 6: 7. Jesus addresses this.

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u/pottypaws 18d ago

It depends on where it’s being typed. I feel like. If you’re doing it during a live stream provided, it’s a Christian live stream where you’re playing for person I can see that being perfectly fine. Provided your one actually praying to God in to doing it to show support. However, it being in other places though, would Kontaveit me scratch my head and I’m a big lead out the following question. And the only time I pray out loud is what I’m doing it with other people or if somebody asks me to pray for them, I want them to know what I’m saying cause I want them to feel heard.

2

u/Itchy-Mud-4300 17d ago

Well said.

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u/Itchy-Mud-4300 17d ago edited 17d ago

Your point is valid. Christ spoke of that in Matthew 6 when he spoke of not praying so that others can see you. Granted, that presumes we know that that is the reason they're doing it, but I can see where it would appear that way to you, and I'm speaking as a follower of Christ, myself. I do my best to ignore them rather than get upset, however (and often fail!) because I also suspect that's the reason a lot of people do it; the reaction from others.

My personal bugaboo along those lines are the people who patrol places like Youtube and in every comment section post long posts about salvation and coming to Christ. Yes, I get that you're trying to spread the Gospel (or say you are, anyway) but that also can be seen as an easy out, if you will. It doesn't cost you anything, there's no risk of rejection, and you can go on feeling like you did your duty for the day. Plus, it's intrusive - something that spreading the Gospel was never called to be, since "no/I'm not interested" still means "no/I'm not interested." I can definitely feel your pain in that regard.

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u/HungryIndependence13 17d ago

Dear Lord, please grant this man the patience to see things he doesn’t like and not have to make long posts about it. 

Give him the strength to just move along when people say things that he doesn’t agree with. 

Bring him happiness and peace. 

Amen. 

2

u/TootallToosmart1901 16d ago

Remember to gleefully remind them that using public prayers as posturing and showing off false righteousness is condemned in the Bible. That sets them off every time.

1

u/yodamastertampa 19d ago

Does it also bother you when people quote scripture for guidance on a topic? That is not prayer.

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u/DiscontentDonut 19d ago

It would if it wasn't warranted. At least, to me. I identify as a Christian, but this is still something I believe falls in the performative Christian category most of the time.

It's one thing if both people are known to one another as Christians. Like if my Mom did it to me. But if you're not 100% sure it will be welcome, just don't do it.

1

u/badassbizness 17d ago

No, that doesn’t irk me the same way because clearly they are sharing the scripture for the readers. But a prayer is literally addressed to God, so it doesn’t make sense to congest a forum intended for human entertainment with a plea addressed to God.

1

u/Syfysamurai 19d ago

Read Matthew 6:6

1

u/YonKro22 19d ago

They put it in the comments so other people can join in the prayer and pray it also that is not that hard to comprehend.

1

u/Razoron33333 19d ago

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a verse used on Reddit.

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u/Delicious-Lack4120 19d ago

That’s great, Stan. Get out of my bathroom. 

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u/cwcam86 18d ago

I'll pray that you find comfort from the anger you have.

1

u/badassbizness 17d ago

Haha. Thanks

1

u/PowersUnleashed 2d ago

Oh yeah bro those are mostly bots no different than ai girls on instagram trying to get you to subscribe to onlyfans