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Reno Omokri was in Ethiopia recently and he wrote..” I went to an Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The priest asked the congregation to pray and I closed my eyes to pray.
The priest came to me and asked in Amharic ‘why are you closing your eyes?’ I said ‘because we are praying’. He said ‘where do you see that in Scripture’. I was speechless.
Ethiopians are the oldest Christians in the world, bar none. They became Christians a year after Christ’s death (Acts 8:38).
Jews and Ethiopian Christians do not close their eyes to pray. The practice is a European tradition, originating from the practice of making petitions to kings, of which protocol demanded that your eyes be closed. So many traditions we think are Scriptural, are not!”
But it has also been explained why closing eyes is very practical…”It’s not a tradition and I don’t think anybody has said it’s from the scripture. Barring any showbiz, most of us close our eyes when praying to avoid distractions and movements around.
“its all about concentration. Prayer is a private matter between you and God, it’s not out of place to shut your eyes and turn your thoughts inward. Moreover, there is no compulsion about it.”
