China and countries that adopted its values have a system where farmers are considered a social class above artisans and merchants, due to the fact they produce. Though they're still considered below the scholar elite.
Another thing to note is that actual farmers, particularly in the past, really needed to pray for good luck. Farming can be observed to very unstable, look at the price of wheat per year in Medieval England. Things that farmers have little control over such as weather and natural disasters could completely throw off yields. So while we could pray to farmers, farmers pray to god. And the king so he doesn't bend them over with taxes.
