The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1879-11-12
From the United Presbyterian
Posture in Prayer.

From the United Presbyterian
Posture in Prayer.
VIII you please allow me space in your
columns for a few remarks on a subject
that seems to need attention. l mean
sitting in social and public prayer
While I freely express my views on the
question, I hope none who may differ with
me will think that I am charging them
either with indifference or want Of the
spirit of prayer while they are engaged
in this duty in a sitting posture. Nor do
desire to give it any undue prominence.
Ny desire is that we may all come to a
right understanding Of what the Master s
will is on this as on every other question.
With his will we are always safe-with-
out it never.
We are sometimes told that posture is
non-essential. l can think Of no word
that is more abused than this one-11o1a-
essential 1t is used by some protesting
Christians in relation to any and every
doctrine and principle outside Of what
they may think Just enough to bridge the
gulf and land the individual inside the
threshold of heaven. Carry this princi-
pie out, and what have we left? Ger
tainly not much of either Old 0r New
Testament. do not say tba: tLx3e who
differ from ne JIink OF ruiao TO ChaI
extent. But l do say, it lool5ln that di-
rection.
| am glad to be able to give on this
subject the action of the General Assem-
bly, of the Presbyterian Church. The
Assembly of 1849 declares as follows:
THAT while standing in public prayer, and
kneeling in private prayer, are indicated by
example in Scripture and in the general prac-
tice of the ancient Christian Church, the posture
of sitting in public is nowhere mentioned and
by no usage allowed; but on the contrary, was
universally regarded by the early Church as
heathenish and irreverent, and is still in the
customs of modern and western nations an attl-
tude obviously wanting in the due expression OF
reverence" &C.
That body, 1 think, was capable OF
Judging in this matter. And mas not the
United Presbyterian Church and other
branches of the Christian Church, in their
uniform practice, testified to the same
thing, until of late it has been discovered
that sitting is preferable?
But again, prophets and apostles OF
Jehovah have made know to us that has
servants in all ages either stood or knelt
in PRAYER. The Master himself said,
when ye stand praying" &C., but never
said when We sit, nor has he left us an
example of sitting The foregoing GER
tainly shows that posture in prayer is not
matter of indifference. 1t is our duty
to respect Scriptural example and Scrip
tural authority in the posture as well as
the matter of prayer.
But it is also claimed that whatever
posture may be Judged most conducive to
a devotional mood may be taken. This
certainly gives wide latitude, 1t implies
that every one is to decide for himself,
without reference to decency or order.
Suppose no two of a congregation should
think the same attitude at the same time
to be most efectual in exciting devo-
tional feeling, and each take different
one. 1t would certainly give variety
But says the Divine Word "Let all
things be done decently and in order
q Cor. xiv; 4O) Prayer does not seem
to be excepted in this injunction.
Take some of the many Scripture ex-
amples, if you please, and test this mat
ter. When Daniel knew that the decree
was sealed, and that there was nothing
between him and violent death except
the interposition of his God, he did not
think of sitting as an expression Of his
devout feeling, or as an aid to it. And
Daniel is no exception to the rule. In
deed, time and space would fail me to
tell Of Stephen while enduringa dreadful
death of martyrdom, and our Saviour in
Gethsemane, and all the Old and New
Testament worthless Posture is the out
ward expression Of the inward feelings Of
the soul. Much is made by advocates
of the sitting posture Of Dayd's sitting
before the Lord q Samuel VII: 49, In
regard to this I would only say that our
best Hebrew scholars tell us that in the
original language no reference is made to
posture in this case-that all that is de-