Prayer and Religiosity
摘要
This Chapter compares the different views on praying and soldiers’ religiosity. Religious manuals and catechisms published for the armies illuminate how dissimilar the spiritual instruction was between Parliamentarians and Royalists. The King’s ministers published multiple pre-formulated prayers which, in most instances, did not really touch upon the war or the soldier’s profession. The form of Royalist devotions was strictly regulated, but without providing clear context for the benefits of prayer. Puritan preachers, however, rarely published ready-to-made prayers. Instead, they taught soldiers how and why they should pray and emphasised that one had to actively pursue the results one was praying for. Even though both sides agreed that ‘the arme of flesh’ was not to be relied upon and only the Lord gave victory, Royalist ministers were content to pray for a divine intervention whereas Parliamentarian preachers demanded active participation from their soldiers.