Christian Prayer and the Local Congregation: A Social Analysis of Individual Prayer Petitions

Prayer requests from members and attendees of a progressive Christian church located in a large American City was the subject of this investigation. This church serves congregants from Roman Catholic and Protestant backgrounds, and a large, but not exclusively gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender com...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of religious and theological information
Authors: Lukenbill, W. Bernard (Author) ; Young, William D. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Routledge [2020]
In: Journal of religious and theological information
RelBib Classification:AA Study of religion
CH Christianity and Society
FD Contextual theology
KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history
KDG Free church
NCF Sexual ethics
Further subjects:B church ministries
B Sexual Orientation
B gays and lesbians
B computer research
B Christianity
Online Access: Volltext (Resolving-System)
Description
Summary:Prayer requests from members and attendees of a progressive Christian church located in a large American City was the subject of this investigation. This church serves congregants from Roman Catholic and Protestant backgrounds, and a large, but not exclusively gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community. ap Siôn’s study of prayer typology and subject contents from rural England influenced this investigation. This study used computer technology and document analysis to categorize 8,059 individual prayer card requests submitted between 2014-2018 from church members and attendees. Results showed the most common prayer requests were “Thanks and Thanksgiving” prayers with “Praise and Adoration” prayers among the least common. Few references to sin and forgiveness were found. The most frequently mentioned subjects of prayers were those referencing personal needs and concerns. Findings and comparison with ap Siôn and other research suggest these prayer requests demonstrate the social and theological cohesiveness of Christian prayer. Additional research is suggested comparing Christian prayer with prayers in other religions and how prayer behaviors interact with the rise of multiculturalism in society.
ISSN:1528-6924
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religious and theological information
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/10477845.2020.1793536