Original Sin?

Quote: Evenbob

"While the main purpose of prayer may be to help others, it never demonstrably does that.

Someone made a good point
about prayer in a PM. If
prayer works, then the world
must be exactly as all the
praying Xtions want it to be.

So, is it? The answer to that
is blaringly obvious. Prayer
is a joke. Prayer, fails every
time it's tried. Action at least
has a chance at success,
prayer has none. All the
things you 'accomplish'
thru prayer you can
accomplish just as easily
without it.

What a naive thought. Have you ever heard of anything called free will and sin?

Quote: Evenbob

Someone made a good point
about prayer in a PM. If
prayer works, then the world
must be exactly as all the
praying Xtions want it to be.
.

I read a long article by an evangelical
minister who says he no longer believes
god answers prayers that involve what
the person praying wants.

He said he's been active for 25 years
and has prayed with people countless
times for healing, for employment,
for relationships. The results have been
as close to mundane as it gets. He
says god has a 'plan' for everyone and
he doesn't alter the plan just because
you ask. He still prays to stay close to
god, but that's it.

He's on the path to atheism and doesn't
realize it. He may connect the dots, who
knows. The truth is slowly dawning on
him.

Prayer is a relationship with God who loves us. We get all mixed up when we think of it as trying to win favor with God or to change His will to ours. You need only study the prayer that Jesus taught us to realize this. There is nothing more Christian than praying to stay close to God without demanding that He answer our prayers or do our bidding. That preacher seems to understand prayer and the reality of the relationship we form with God through it will sustain us through all of life's difficulties. He is no danger of atheism, but you are in danger of faith or finally understanding prayer.

Here is a really good video on prayer from an atheist who found God through prayer.

Why and How do I pray?

Quote: Evenbob

I read a long article by an evangelical
minister who says he no longer believes
god answers prayers that involve what
the person praying wants..

There is no god to pray to, so
that makes prayer a total waste
of time. We invent gods, we
pretend we're the center of
that gods universe, then we
pretend he listens to our every
word when we pray to him. The
height of egotistical conceit..

Just meditate, empty your mind.
It's far more beneficial than
pretending some god is listening
to your pitiful self centered whining..

Quote: FrGamble

Here is a really good video on prayer from an atheist who found God through prayer.

Why and How do I pray?

I watched it
I don't pray. Its pretty pointless
Now that I watched the video
I still don't pray. Its still pointless to me

Quote: terapined[/q

I watched it
I don't pray. Its pretty pointless
Now that I watched the video
I still don't pray. Its still pointless to me

I made it about 12 min before
I had to turn it off. Sophomoric
nonsense. If prayer is sooo
important, the MOST important
thing the video said, why don't
we hear about it more. I can
watch an entire 10 season
series of you name it, and not
once will the subject of prayer
be mentioned even once.

That's because it's NOT important,
people do it very little and care
about it even less. It bores people
to death, that's why you rarely
see it mentioned anywhere outside
of a church.

Quote: terapined

I watched it
I don't pray. Its pretty pointless

Face prayed for a year and verified
that it's pointless. It's a useless habit
people learn when very young, like
writing letters to Santa. They grow
out of Santa, but the church keeps
on them about prayer. I trust Face's
conclusions, and other atheists who
were once believers, over somebody
who has his head still stuck in the
sand like most Xtions.

I'm always glad when you take as evidence someone's personal experience, it is important. You know of course that you mischaracterized what Face really said. However, the former atheist on the video might be another testimony to consider. You might even want to try yourself.