Pray-Reading

[ZNPaaneah]

Originally Posted by OBW

I was wondering if there were two different booklets. I believe that the booklet I am referring to was written at the end of the 60s or the early 70s and was sort of a "how to" on turning off your mind and deconstructing verses into words and phrases punctuated with "Oh Lord," "Lord you are our. . .," "Amen," and other things that emphasized the notion of "eating" the words without any concept of what the words actually said or meant. Nothing that changes your life. In my opinion, it just gets you out of your mind to accept Lee's take on the verses without their actual content getting in the way.

The booklet I was referring to was not a how to, but rather an attempt to show that the concept of pray reading was both scriptural and something that men of faith had practiced throughout the past centuries.

[rayliotta]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

The booklet I was referring to was not a how to, but rather an attempt to show that the concept of pray reading was both scriptural and something that men of faith had practiced throughout the past centuries.

And apparently, whether or not what they practice as "pray reading" is the same thing as practiced in past centuries...is another matter.

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

The booklet I was referring to was not a how to, but rather an attempt to show that the concept of pray reading was both scriptural and something that men of faith had practiced throughout the past centuries.

That would be Graver's compilation, "Lord ... Thou Saidst." March 1981

Quite a good work actually. I could recommend this to any Christian. Graver included a short bio introducing each brother, along with pertinent quotes from his writings.

Apparently after completing this work in 1981, Graver did an about face, and began to promote WL with an almost blind passion. Ray Graver is one of those great anomalies in the LRC. Apparently he viewed WL as a culmination of the "best of the best" throughout man's entire history.

[rayliotta]

Based on ZNP's sharing, I would have thought much earlier than 1981. Maybe we should be open to the idea that there was no "about face", that someone actually could write such a pamphlet while fully committed to the "blind promotion" of the minister of the age.

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by rayliotta

Based on ZNP's sharing, I would have thought much earlier than 1981. Maybe we should be open to the idea that there was no "about face", that someone actually could write such a pamphlet while fully committed to the "blind promotion" of the minister of the age.

I based my post on two factors. Firstly, the book came out during the time of litigation for the Mindbenders and God-men books. Graver's book was an attempt by LSM to make them appear in the "mainstream" like the rest of evangelical Christianity, and it was really anti-cult groups like the Spiritual Counterfeits Project which were the real fringe group. The practice of pray-reading made the LC's look suspicious, and the book helped to relieve those concerns of the Christian public.

Secondly, following the Philippians Life-Study training, RG and BP began to travel about and teach concerning "having an account with the Apostle." The teaching was coupled with the ministry of condemnation that somehow all the churches had been negligent in their care for WL and his burden for the gospel. This teaching, coming out of Texas in the wake of the so-called Max rebellion, laid the groundwork for the radical "oneness" zeal which accompanied the "new way."

[rayliotta]

Originally Posted by Ohio

I based my post on two factors. Firstly, the book came out during the time of litigation for the Mindbenders and God-men books. Graver's book was an attempt by LSM to make them appear in the "mainstream" like the rest of evangelical Christianity, and it was really anti-cult groups like the Spiritual Counterfeits Project which were the real fringe group. The practice of pray-reading made the LC's look suspicious, and the book helped to relieve those concerns of the Christian public.

If I understand you you're saying the booklet was really just political, a little game of CYA? Not sure that'd be something I'd recommend to others...

[ZNPaaneah]

Originally Posted by rayliotta

Based on ZNP's sharing, I would have thought much earlier than 1981. Maybe we should be open to the idea that there was no "about face", that someone actually could write such a pamphlet while fully committed to the "blind promotion" of the minister of the age.

I saw the booklet prior to 1981, but it may be that the LSM published it in 1981. What I saw was clearly something that RG had put together prior to being published. I may be mistaken but I think KR helped him with his research.

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

I may be mistaken but I think KR helped him with his research.

Now that helps to explain a lot of things ...

[awareness]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

I saw the booklet prior to 1981, but it may be that the LSM published it in 1981. What I saw was clearly something that RG had put together prior to being published. I may be mistaken but I think KR helped him with his research.

Before leaving the LC, around 80/81, I heard rumblings of this booklet, even read some of it at one point, tho it may have been after the LC.

The booklet is nothing but an attempt to justify and legitimize the practice of pray-reading that, anyone on the outside of the LC thought to look like crazy mindless parroting of words in the Bible. It's purpose to validate that mindless insanity, that : pray reading the Bible would result in magic transformation ... when all that the transformation resulted in was attending meetings, conferences, and such, and acting like a bunch of crazies at large from the insane asylum.

[ZNPaaneah]

Originally Posted by awareness

Before leaving the LC, around 80/81, I heard rumblings of this booklet, even read some of it at one point, tho it may have been after the LC.

The booklet is nothing but an attempt to justify and legitimize the practice of pray-reading that, anyone on the outside of the LC thought to look like crazy mindless parroting of words in the Bible. It's purpose to validate that mindless insanity, that : pray reading the Bible would result in magic transformation ... when all that the transformation resulted in was attending meetings, conferences, and such, and acting like a bunch of crazies at large from the insane asylum.

I didn't see it that way. It seemed to me that what the booklet showed was that the word of God is designed to be prayed and has been prayed over throughout the centuries. There was nothing in the booklet that suggested to me that pray reading as a practice should be done in a mindless way.

[OBW]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

I didn't see it that way. It seemed to me that what the booklet showed was that the word of God is designed to be prayed and has been prayed over throughout the centuries. There was nothing in the booklet that suggested to me that pray reading as a practice should be done in a mindless way.

I'm not sure that I would assert that the word of God was "designed to be prayed." It was designed to reveal God through its various forms. Among the various ways that you may be able to use and understand portions of it would include through prayer.

But the last time I read anything by the LSM that was trying to show others "pray reading" I was unable to conclude that any of them (or at least few of them) actually engaged in what the LRC had called pray-reading. I've heard scripture used in prayers in many ways, but outside of the LRC, I have not heard, or heard of such a practice that looks like their version of it.

What I recall from what I read was some descriptions of some notable people through history that made reference of some kind of prayer as they read the scripture. Virtually all of these were part of their personal study time. And I somehow recall only finding one or two that were even possibly found to have mixed the scripture in with their prayer, although the description I recall was still nothing like the deconstruction that was practiced in virtually every LRC endeavor that I had any knowledge of or participation in.

So they found "pray" or "prayer" within a reasonable proximity of the word "read" within a sentence that was talking about scripture and determined that their practice was thereby blessed.

[awareness]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

I didn't see it that way. It seemed to me that what the booklet showed was that the word of God is designed to be prayed

So the Bible is designed to be prayed....

Really! Is that so? Are there Bible verses that advise us to pray it? References please. Educate me.

[rayliotta]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

I didn't see it that way. It seemed to me that what the booklet showed was that the word of God is designed to be prayed and has been prayed over throughout the centuries. There was nothing in the booklet that suggested to me that pray reading as a practice should be done in a mindless way.

Expect for the pesky little fact of how pray reading is actually practiced in "the Recovery", so much of the time.

In other words, that little devil called context.