Why I No Longer Pray
Why I No Longer Pray: This reflection isn’t a rejection of awe, gratitude, or the Sacred. It’s an honest exploration of why I’ve stepped away from petitionary prayer and toward reflection, responsibility, and embodied care. I offer it in a spirit of curiosity rather than certainty, and with respect for those whose prayers still sustain them. At least not in the way I was taught to, and not in the way most people mean when they ask others to “pray for them.” For much of my life, prayer meant asking God to intervene. To fix something. To stop something. To heal. To change outcomes, or to change people. Sometimes the request was for me. Often it was for others. The prayers were sincere, detailed, and carefully worded, because I had been taught that precision mattered. Say the right words. Use the right formula. Address the right persons of the Trinity. Pray long enough, hard enough, faithfully enough, and something would change. But over time, that understanding of prayer began to unravel...
