Religious organizations like the Quakers have extolled the virtue of group prayer. In my experience with Christian group prayer, I have noticed that the practice serves several functions, including the increase in prayer power as alluded to in Matthew 18:19-20. Group prayer can help the individual focus on the prayer and on God rather than having the mind wander to selfish thoughts. I felt much more focused when praying in the group than I usually do on my own. My inner thoughts are private, but I am focused on the Biblical passage or concept being invoked for the purposes of the prayer. Therefore, group prayer can be helpful to beginners because it helps us to figure out how to pray and what to focus on while praying. I would not have known about the various Bible passages or prayers used had I not attended the group prayer sessions.
Another function of group prayer is similar to...
We are accountable to the others in the room, and they encourage us to leave the house to go to Church in case our spiritual practice has lapsed. On more than one occasion, I looked forward to attending the group prayer sessions because of the social aspect.
Group prayer can also be used altruistically. For example, in one group prayer session a woman asked us to pray for her son. Her son was terribly ill, and this group prayer focused all of our energies on helping. This helped us get out of our selfish prayers and instead focus on the alleviation of suffering. I could feel the power palpably when praying in the group like this. Therefore, prayer in a group has brought me personally closer with God and also with the Christian community. I feel a lot more confident about the pact of prayer and its role in…
