[Ed.] The brilliant side of saying ‘No’ to prayer
Published: October 23, 2005
The other day we were talking about thanksgiving and the idea to give thanks in all circumstances, not just when you’re on a roll.
It looked really good on paper — well, okay, on the monitor screen. This would move some people, motivate them. It would be one of those columns that gets forwarded a lot, including lovely flowers and maybe even bunnies in the email template.
But seriously, who encounters these things in real life?! I mean, come on; this is the stuff you read about or see a movie of, not experience…
That got me thinking and watching. Thinking about the positive in everything, watching for a piece of reality.
I think I found it.
Ban prayer
Today I want to announce that I’m so happy with headlines like these; “School board backs halt to team prayer”, “Popular High School Coach Quits Over Pregame Prayer”, “Prayer message not allowed at Pueblo high school”, “Air Force Rule May Ban Christian Prayer”, “Councilman broke law with prayer to Jesus”.
I love it! It’s perfect! They complement headlines about how serious studies show that prayer for the sick doesn’t work.
Excellent, I say, excellent!
Getting rid of Faith
It is said that “we” are going down the drain. “We” are non-religious. And if we are religious, it is a salad-bar faith where we picked and match from every theory, religion, sect, cult, or thought.
America, and they mean the USA only but could easily talk about any Western country, is de-Christianising [1]. Kids think Jesus Christ was named after a swear word. Church attendance is down, continiously down.
Science explains the visible and invisible; who needs Faith?
Faith, religion, is a done deal. We’ve been there, done that. It’s over. Evolution and pills have solved it all. Let’s not go over that again, puh-lease!
And in that time, in that cultural climate, prayer dominates the headlines.
Prayer is discussed by studied law persons, concerned PTA parents. Causes heated debates among students, sports people to quit. It’s in your local newspaper and the New York Times. On CNN and CBS.
Prayer is everywhere. Funny how things work, isn’t it?
Give thanks in all circumstances.
[1]: According to a 2003 Gallup poll among more than 12 thousand randomly selected Americans, about 82% of American adults can be classified as Christian. More than 6 in 10 Americans say that religion is very important to them in their own lives, and another 24% say that religion is fairly important in their lives. That leaves only 15% who say that religion is not very important.
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