[Vocabulary] "save" as words may be thoughts unexpressed

[sitifan]

[Prayer] may be one word or many words or no words at all save as words may be thoughts unexpressed, but always the effective prayer is "the soul's sincere desire." (FAITH IS POWER FOR YOU, page 5)
What doe "save"mean in the above sentence?

 

[tedmc]

Except.

 

[sitifan]

Prayer is both universal and individual, even as God's love. Prayer is the open door for everyone, but it is also as personal as your name on a card. It may be one word or many words or no words at all save as words may be thoughts unexpressed, but always the effective prayer is "the soul's sincere desire." You may pray with beads and a crucifix and I without, but God is listening when his children cry. When I offered my first prayer to a decision, I did not even sense this vast and universal fact. (FAITH IS POWER FOR YOU, page 5)
What does the word "as" mean in the quoted sentence?

 

[sitifan]

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-meaning-of-save-as-otherwise-stated
According to the above link, "save as" seems to mean "except when."

 

[5jj]

I'd say it was closer to "except in the way that" in your example.

 

[jutfrank]

I can't make sense of it.