The purpose of prayer is to communicate with God. The prayer of the Zoramites served another purpose entirely. Inspired by Satan, it served to reinforce religious complacency and stifle spirituality. Nowhere in the scriptures is there a better example of how not to pray! This prayer is self-righteous—a public parade rather than a penitent petition. It is vain, repetitious, meaningless, and empty. It denies the Christ, the atonement, and the religion of the Nephites.
Neal A. Maxwell
“How fascinating to see adherence to a false religion in which superficial ritual, proud contentment, and a haughty rejection of prophecy were so adroitly combined! Sanctioned agnosticism can be very insistent on its own orthodoxy.” (Plain and Precious Truths, p. 67)