Do Catholics BABBLE when they pray?

By Kathy Schley

In my last debate I was told I "babble" when I pray? It was one of those remarks that
left me mad and laughing out loud! Of course the non-Catholic Christian I was having a
debate with was serious, and like those in his belief system will always quote Matthew 6:7
to try to prove Catholic praying is what Jesus tells us not to do. But is Jesus referring to
all repeated words? Let's take a look at what He says:

"And in praying do not heap up EMPTY PHASES as the Gentiles do; for they
think they will be heard for their MANY WORDS."

Jesus does not condemn praying the "same" words, but condemns meaningless words,
empty phases. He's telling us to be sincere when we pray, and not pray like a hypocrite.
Catholics are condemned by non-Catholic Christians for praying the same words, such
as the prayers of the Rosary. But if Jesus were condemning praying the same words,
then Jesus disobeyed Himself when He prayed the same words in Gethsemane the night
of His arrest. St. Matthew tells us: "So, leaving them again, he [Jesus] went away
and prayed for the THIRD TIME, saying the SAME WORDS" (Matthew 26:44).
Here we have Jesus praying the SAME WORDS. Does that mean Jesus also "babbles"
in prayer and prays like a hypocrite? Or how about the angels of God who day in and
day out never stops saying: "Holy, holy, holy," is the Lord God Almighty, who was
and is and is to come!" (Revelation 4:8). Are the angels of God guilty for "babbling" in
their worship to God?

It is also interesting that these non-Catholics will also connect the "Lord's Prayer" given
to us by Jesus Himself in the following verses (verses 9-13) to the Catholic practice of
prayer repetition and claim this is exactly what Jesus is talking about in verse 7. Are they
saying the prayer Jesus gave us Himself is not worth repeating? For example, if we are
experiencing Satan's torment to sin against God, are we going against God by repeating
the same words given to us by Christ Himself, "And lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil"? How can asking God repeatedly for His grace to overcome the
temptation to sin against Him be worthless praying? If we want to say to God "I love
you" a hundred times in prayer is God going to condemn us and say, "Once is enough!"
Certainly these non-Catholic Christians find themselves at times praying the same words
to God. Yet, they condemn Catholics for doing it. Sounds like hypocrisy to me.

What Jesus condemns in Matthew 6:7 is praying like how a hypocrite would pray with
worthless words; not repeated words from a true believer's sincere heart. Only God
knows what's going on in a person's heart and their prayer to Him, and no one has the
right to push God over in His Throne and judge another person's prayer to God as being
"worthless" and only "going through the motions" like a "babbling programmed robot."
Non-Catholic Christians can also sing like a babbling programmed robot in their church
worship songs that contain repeated words. Who are they trying to fool? Certainly not

all their moments during worship are with a sincere heart as they sing (babble) away along
with their church family. But who are we to pass judgement on any person's heart?