Prayer

As mentioned in Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion,

a recent scientific study was conducted by a physicist, Russell Stannard (one of Britain’s three well-known religious scientists) and a Dr. Herbert Benson, backed by the Templeton Foundation on the effect of prayer for patients who were to receive coronary bypasses. The study was done with the proper standards of the scientific method using a double-blind experiment. The congregations who prayed for the patients were only given the first name and first initial of the last name (God in his omniscience would know which patients for whom they were praying) and the prayer included words “for the successful surgery with a quick, healthy recovery and no complications”. There was no difference in outcome of surgery between the control group and the group who had received prayers. There was a difference in the third group who had known about the prayers being said for them…they suffered significantly more complications than the other two groups. Dawkins concluded that these people had somewhat of a performance anxiety, wondering if they were so sick that the doctors had to call in a prayer team.

So, no, prayer does not work! Why waste your time? Concentrate on things that matter in the here and now and completing actions associated with your worldly goal.

An article from Duke News, “Prayer, Noetic Studies Feasible; Results Indicate Benefit to Heart Patients” uses these examples…

HERE IS THE LINK
http://dukemednews.duke.edu/news/article.php?id=5056

The first sentence of the article is misleading the audience to believe that the rest of the sited research has direct influence from prayer (spirit)…

DURHAM, N.C. – Cardiac patients who received intercessory prayer in addition to coronary stenting appeared to have better clinical outcomes than those treated with standard stenting therapy alone, according to researchers at Duke University.

This is very vague. Appeared to have? – What were the outcomes of their experiments? Researchers at Duke? Who were these researchers? A student does research, doesn’t he/she?

This article claims that “Noetic interventions are defined as ‘a healing influence performed without the use of a drug, device or surgical procedure,…’”.

Yet, here is more explanation of Noetic.

In a five-way randomization, all patients were assigned (in equal distribution) to coronary stenting with standard care or to coronary stenting plus one of the following therapies: guided imagery, stress relaxation, healing touch or intercessory prayer. Of the 120 patients assigned Noetic interventions, 118 (98 percent) completed the therapeutic assignment.

Guided Imagery? What does this have to do with prayer? This is only another stress relaxation technique, usually integrating instructions to calm the breathing as well. It uses the term stress relaxation. This could be anything!!!!! Yah, I find that taking a hot bath for stress relaxation helps my muscles loosen and improves my circulation. Healing Touch? Ok, if you’re touching someone, even a light stroking which may be done even in Reiki, more than likely you’re releasing endorphins which are natural pain relievers and mood enhancers, once again allowing the muscles to relax and the body to function more properly. THIS IS SPEAKING OF THE MIND AND BODY, NOT SOME HIGHER SPIRIT! DID YOU NOTICE THAT THE WRITER DIDN’T ACKNOWLEDGE IN WHAT PERCENTAGES EACH HEALING TREATMENT OCCURRED AND TO WHICH PATIENTS, THE HEALED OR UNCHANGED, RECEIVED WHICH TREATMENT? Another words, how many of the patients received Healing Touch (massage) or Guided Imagery (a relaxation technique), as opposed to intercessory prayer (praying to God on behalf (intervention) of another). Not to mention, that the writer spelled stinting incorrectly, twice. What a joke!