People recite prayers aloud not because God requires audible words to understand their supplications, but because this method helps the one praying to focus, awaken their soul, and transition to a deeper, heartfelt prayer.

The Power of Vocal Prayer: Awakening the Inner Spirit

People recite prayers aloud not because God requires audible words to understand their supplications, but because this method helps the one praying to focus, awaken their soul, and transition to a deeper, heartfelt prayer. By reciting a prayer aloud, a person participates in a process that, according to the guidance of Hieromonk Dorofey, begins with a vocal prayer and gradually transitions into a thoughtful prayer and then into a heartfelt prayer.

According to the guidance presented in Hieromonk Dorofey’s Cvettinik, which is dedicated to the teaching of prayer, it is stated:
"Hieromonk Dorofey... advises the one learning the Jesus Prayer to first recite it aloud. He says that the vocal prayer naturally turns into a thoughtful one. … The Jesus Prayer should be recited not in a loud voice, but quietly, aloud to oneself. In cases of significant distraction, sorrow, dejection, or laziness, it is very beneficial to recite the Jesus Prayer aloud: with the vocal Jesus Prayer, the soul is gradually stirred from the heavy moral slumber into which it is usually plunged by melancholy and dejection." (source: link txt)

This practice helps the one praying to concentrate the mind, "enclosing it within the words of prayer," which fosters a more vivid and conscious communion with God. It represents a way to awaken the soul; by starting with vocalization, a person gradually moves to an internal, silent prayer filled with true feeling and repentance.

This idea is detailed further in another source, which notes:
"He says that the vocal prayer naturally turns into a thoughtful one… The Jesus Prayer should be recited not in a loud voice, but quietly, aloud to oneself." (source: link txt, page: 244)

Thus, reciting the prayer aloud is not an attempt to please God through sounds, but a method of activating one’s inner life, stirring the mind and feelings, so that one can then transition to a deeper, internal prayer in which direct communion with God occurs. This helps move beyond the mechanical repetition of phrases to embrace the true essence of prayerful communication.

Supporting citation(s):
"Hieromonk Dorofey, our compatriot and a great instructor in spiritual endeavor—comparable in this honor to St. Isaac of Syria—advises the one learning the Jesus Prayer to first recite it aloud. He says that the vocal prayer naturally turns into a thoughtful one. 'From the vocal, abundant prayer,' says the hieromonk, 'comes forth the thoughtful prayer, and from the thoughtful prayer emerges the heartfelt prayer. The Jesus Prayer should be recited not in a loud voice, but quietly, aloud to oneself.' In cases of significant distraction, sorrow, dejection, or laziness it is very beneficial to recite the Jesus Prayer aloud: with the vocal Jesus Prayer, the soul is gradually stirred from the heavy moral slumber into which it is usually plunged by melancholy and dejection." (source: link txt)

"He says that the vocal prayer naturally turns into a thoughtful one (Cvettinik of Hieromonk Dorofey, teachings 30 and 32). 'From the vocal, abundant prayer,' says the hieromonk, 'comes forth the thoughtful prayer, and from the thoughtful prayer emerges the heartfelt prayer. The Jesus Prayer should be recited not in a loud voice, but quietly, aloud to oneself.'" (source: link txt, page: 244)