"The Most Useless Form of Prayers": Catholic Priest Drags Those Who Join Online Prayer Sessions
- A Nigerian reverend father has shared a post on his Facebook account advising people against joining online prayers
- In his post, he claimed that the prayers only exercise the jaws, legs, hands and heads, and are 'useless' for spiritual growth
- Mixed reactions trailed his post as social media users stormed the comments section to share their various opinions
A Nigerian Catholic priest shared a lengthy post on his Facebook page warning people about the growing trend of participating in online prayer sessions.
His post drew attention as many internet users argued over the points he raised and the tone he used in delivering them.
Source: Facebook
Catholic priest warns against online prayer sessions
In the post shared on his verified account, Fr Kelvin Ugwu on Facebook expressed strong disapproval of virtual prayer gatherings that attract large audiences every morning and evening.
He argued that these sessions offered no real spiritual nourishment and served mainly as dramatic displays that encouraged participants to shout, gesture repeatedly and move parts of their bodies in ways he believed had no spiritual value.
According to him, such routines did little more than stimulate physical activity without fostering any genuine connection with God.
The priest maintained that the loud declarations and continuous cries against unseen forces only deepened people's belief on imaginary threats rather than strengthening their relationship with God.
He insisted that the practice had no grounding in scripture and pushed the idea that true communication with God required sincerity, openness and a calm disposition, rather than the theatrical manner he associated with these online gatherings.
Source: Facebook
The priest further claimed that many of the individuals leading these online sessions were running them as commercial ventures.
In his view, these figures positioned themselves as spiritual solution providers while relying on fear-based messages to keep audiences engaged.
He claimed they crafted problems in people's minds and later presented themselves as the answer, turning the prayer platforms into revenue-generating activities rather than genuine spiritual ministries.
Speaking further, he pointed out what he described as contradictions in the behaviour of some of these popular ministers.
He observed that although they regularly proclaimed victory over evil forces during their sessions, they continued to surround themselves with security measures, including armed personnel and protective vehicles.
To him, this proved a contrast between their public proclamations and their personal precautions.
In his words:
"All those prayers you join online every morning and evening to shout and kill demons are the most useless forms of prayers. The only good thing about them is that they exercise your jaws and as you shake your legs, hands and head, it is a form of aerobic exercise. Those shoutings are not even supposed to be called prayers. They only strengthen your relationship with your imaginary demons, not your relationship with God.
"True prayer is a relationship with God, and there is nowhere in scripture where God even gives a clue that we should relate with Him in that manner. I repeat: such prayers are USELESS. Those ministers you join every morning or evening are making content and cashing out. Na business dem dey do. They open shop or stage every morning and evening, then invite you to patronize them after convincing you that they have the solution to a problem they first created in your head.
"They “kill demons” and declare how their enemies monitoring them will die, yet they still move around with security men carrying guns, inside bulletproof cars. If that one no prove to you the uselessness of their shouting, nothing else will. To be clear, you can remain in your foolishness, no wahala. But don’t say you were not told."
Reactions as catholic priest criticises online prayer platforms
Nigerians stormed the comments section to share their various opinions.
Rosemary said:
"I am happy joining those prayers and at same time book mass steadily and attend mass. But you see some of those prayers are really edifying and and are not just meeting our needs but also exceeding it."
Ekene Oliver said:
"I know the Church strongly encourages solemn prayer filled with meditation and the rich tradition of liturgical prayer. Yet, the Church does not cancel or reject spontaneous acts of worship and charismatic vocal prayer. Instead, the Church wisely maintains a respectful silence on these expressions, because she recognizes the value of sensus fidei the instinct of faith in the people of God. This sense of faith should never be underrated, but it should be gently supervised and properly moderated. Kindly watch extremes please."
Adika Okoli said:
"Well, demons can't be killed because they are pure spirits, no matter the way you say prayers for demons to die, they can only be driven away, not killed. However, since we are corporeal beings, the posture of the body affects the quality and volume of prayers. Those prayers might be called "useless" because demons don't die but aside the sole intention of killing demons, they can actually be useful for both body and soul."
John Abah added:
"What I understand from the post is that, if the prayer you join online is aimed at shouting and killing demons, then they are useless because demons are spirits and they can't die."
See the post below:
Pastor rains curses on thief
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a Nigerian cleric was really angry after he could not find his fowl and rained curses on whoever took it.
With the aid of a public address system, the angry pastor declared what would happen to whoever or those involved in the theft of his fowl, which he claimed cost N30k.
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Source: Legit.ng
