Prayer 'no aid to heart patients'

[David Sklansky]

"This only strengthens the notion that God doesn't answer experimental prayers.

But listen to the many doctors who say that prayer does make a difference. And notice how they say this NOT as a conclusion from an experiment."

But that could be tested statistically as well. By interviewing people after the fact to see if they prayed for a patient (who was not expecting that prayer). It would be hard but in principle doable. And if your contention was right there would be a correlation. Wanna bet?

[David Sklansky]

Deuteronomy 6:16 "Do not test the Lord your God"

So God will likely purposely thwart any experiments that are set up to try to show his existence. How convenient. The guys who wrote Deuteronomy were pretty clever. And the ones who believe it not so clever.

[quinn]

[ QUOTE ]

But that could be tested statistically as well. By interviewing people after the fact to see if they prayed for a patient (who was not expecting that prayer). It would be hard but in principle doable. And if your contention was right there would be a correlation. Wanna bet?

[/ QUOTE ]

That might work, but it would be a fuzzy study. There would be no way to confirm whether any individual prayer was faithful. And once again, I wouldn't be surprised if God purposefully messed up the study. This is still testing God, and I don't think He appreciates it.

Would I bet? Probably. I'm confident that you would lay ridiculous odds against any positive correlation, and I would most likely take those ridiculous odds.

By the way, your books are great. Thanks for helping me not have to work a minimum wage job during my summer breaks from school.

[quinn]

[ QUOTE ]
Deuteronomy 6:16 "Do not test the Lord your God"

So God will likely purposely thwart any experiments that are set up to try to show his existence. How convenient. The guys who wrote Deuteronomy were pretty clever. And the ones who believe it not so clever.

[/ QUOTE ]

If God doesn't actually exist, this shouldn't be a problem for you. But yeah, if Deuteronomy was totally made up that would be pretty clever.

[kpux]

[ QUOTE ]
Prayer doesn't work because of God. The human mind is built to tap into the Quantum Universe. This is the source of all energy and life in the universe, and scientists are just beginning to understand it. By tapping into this gigantic quantum field, we can do seemingly miraculous things.

Meditation and prayer both draw on this quantum field.

[/ QUOTE ]

There's this homeless guy who lives outside my apartment that you would get along with quite well.

[David Sklansky]

"That might work, but it would be a fuzzy study. There would be no way to confirm whether any individual prayer was faithful. And once again, I wouldn't be surprised if God purposefully messed up the study. This is still testing God, and I don't think He appreciates it."

He would mess up this study? People are honestly praying for somebody, God is prepared to answer those prayers. Yet now he doesn't, lets patients, suffer or die, because a third party unrelated to the patient or legitimate prayer, is conducting a study?

[quinn]

[ QUOTE ]
"That might work, but it would be a fuzzy study. There would be no way to confirm whether any individual prayer was faithful. And once again, I wouldn't be surprised if God purposefully messed up the study. This is still testing God, and I don't think He appreciates it."

He would mess up this study? People are honestly praying for somebody, God is prepared to answer those prayers. Yet now he doesn't, lets patients, suffer or die, because a third party unrelated to the patient or legitimate prayer, is conducting a study?

[/ QUOTE ]

There's more than one way to skin a rat.

Notice also that I said I wouldn't be surprised if God did that. I didn't say He would. But for the record, I also wouldn't be surprised if God killed someone for testing Him.