Yesterday, I was challenged by a friend regarding public prayer in church meetings. It was a good question and it made me think, and not take for granted what I had grown up with. Here is my answer:

• Acts 2:42 – the ‘Acts church’ was devoted to praying. As all the other characteristics in these verse are open and public (e.g. meeting together, sharing communion together) there is no reason to think that the prayer was not also open and public
• Acts 20:36 – Paul prayed with the Ephesian elders before departing from there.
• 1 Cor 11:4-5 suggest that men (and women) are praying aloud and publically in a church meeting.
• 1 Thes 1:1 suggests that Paul, Silas and Timothy prayed regularly together. Similarly, see 1 Thess 3:10.
• Lastly, 1 Tim 2 (esp. vv1 and 8 ) demonstrate public praying. In 1 Tim Paul is writing to Timothy about some problems that were going on in the local church and so Paul’s teaching, although addressed directly to Timothy as an individual, is really an open letter for the whole church. V8 specifically seems to be talking about things that happen in a public church meeting.

I think it is also very important to remember that most of the New Testament letters are written to churches (i.e. groups of Christians, local churches) not to individuals. And these letters are littered with instructions and commands regarding prayer – these lead me to think that Paul (or whoever else was writing) was encouraging corporate as well as individual prayers.

Lastly, what Jesus teaches against in Matt 6:5 isn’t public praying in itself, rather it is public praying “to be seen by men”. The context of the passage as a whole is set in Matt 6:1 – where Jesus explicitly states that what he is teaching against is “practicing your righteousness before other people”. Jesus is not condemning visible acts of righteousness, rather he is condemning the attitude that was prevalent amongst the Pharisees and others.

What is clear from the bible is that prayer ‘for show’ is categorically wrong. But the bible does not condemn public prayer absolutely.

Also, on a practical point: the church family is the place where younger Christians learn from older, more mature Christians. Public praying in a church is important because, by their prayers, mature Christians can demonstrate and teach younger Christians how to pray.

Having said all that – I do acknowledge that there is also a lot of NT teaching about personal/individual prayer and I think we all have a lot to learn from Jesus’ discipline in quiet, personal prayer.