The Prayer of the Righteous Is Not Empty Rhetoric

The Reverend Kay Dennis, Deacon

Episcopal Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast

In recent years, a phrase has become almost toxic in the public square and on social media: “thoughts and prayers.” We hear it after yet another mass shooting, after yet another natural disaster, and after yet another preventable tragedy. The world rolls its eyes. Prayer, people say, is not enough. Do something.

They are right—if prayer is nothing more than sentimental words offered into the void. But James 5:15 cuts through our cynicism: “The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.” Prayer, rightly understood, is not a substitute for action. It is the action by which God’s power breaks into the world.

James is not romantic. His letter is as earthy and practical as Scripture gets. When he says prayer is effective, he is not inviting us into pious distraction. He is declaring that prayer, aligned with God’s righteousness, unleashes divine energy. Elijah, he reminds us, prayed and the heavens closed. He prayed again and the rains returned. This is not superstition. It is the testimony of a God who acts through human intercession.

But here lies the warning: not all prayers are alike. James does not say “the prayer of the indifferent” or “the prayer of the powerful.” He says, “the prayer of the righteous.” Righteousness in Scripture is not moral perfection. It is fidelity to God’s covenant, and alignment with God’s justice. To pray as the righteous is to pray for the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the hungry, the homeless, and the poor. It is to pray for healing that costs us something, for justice that unsettles our comfort, and for mercy that overthrows our indifference.

If our prayers never disturb us, they are not righteous prayers. If our prayers never propel us into costly action, they are not effective prayers. To pray “Thy kingdom come” is to set ourselves against the kingdoms of exploitation, violence, and greed.

In a nation where “thoughts and prayers” has become shorthand for doing nothing, Christians must reclaim the paradox. Prayer is not escape; it is confrontation. It calls down God’s justice on our false peace. It exposes the idols of money, weapons, and power. And then it compels us to act—not in our own strength, but as participants in the Spirit’s work.

The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective because it is not our power at all. It is God’s. When the Church prays in righteousness, the world changes.