Posted on 04/13/2006 8:24:36 AM PDT by Mr. Silverback
"He prayed that He would not have to go to the Cross."
Okay, Mr. Mark Early. The above statement proves that you don't have a clue about much of anything.
-First and foremost, that was not what Jesus Christ was praying for, you dumbo! Get your facts straight if you are going to put things in print. He prayed, that the FATHER would not discontinue their personal relationship, while he suffered the agony of scourging and crucifixion...
Yes. The problem some people have is they ask and never hear the answer.
I KNOW prayer works. 20 years ago, I was involved in a custody fight for my sons (in the democratic peoples republic of California, where it is still almost impossible for the dad to win custody).
Through the power of my prayers and countless others, I did win custody of my children. The good lord provided me with a winning lottery scratcher ticked worth $25000.oo to continue the fight just when I was out of resources. It provided enough finances to prevail.
The day before the winning ticket, I received $16.94 from the sale of the family home, my ex got the rest of the proceeds.
If this is the case, do you believe it's possible to construct an experiment to see whether or not prayer is effective? It seems to me that no matter what happens, people who believe in prayer will believe that the prayer was answered in one way or another, those who don't won't believe it without convincing evidence of effectiveness.
Yep. But none of my Christian charity will find it's way to you...
Always.
Of course an experiment can't be conducted to gauge God. The only people who think it can be done see God as George Lucas's Force. If you truly believe He is a sentient being far beyond our understanding, how can you possibly think you could make Him do YOUR will?
One way I heard it put was: "Sometimes God says No so He can say an even greater Yes later." I know there are prayers that have been answered 'no' for me, and I am probably closer to God now than I ever would have been without that 'no.'
Ward Churchill is a perfect example of what I speak of.
Science deals with the physical world. God is Spirit. Therefore, science is not an appropriate tool with which to evaluate God's interactions with this world.
In other words, scientific experiments having to do with God are a waste of time.
*Luke 22:42
Matthew 5:22
But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,'* is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
*'Idiot'
That's one way of looking at it. For me, it's just recognizing that whether God is Spirit or physical (as in Jesus), He is sentient. You can't look at empirical actions based on petitions with an assumed motive as the basis of a scientific experiment.
> I find it puzzling why some "academics" as they are referred to here, are so anxious to disprove the existence of a higher power.
What I find puzzling is your belief that that was their goal. Consider two possibilities:
1) The researchers find no correlation between prayer and effect. Result: Shrug.
2) Researchers find Evidence Of God. Result: Nobel prizes all 'round. Buckets of money. Scientific knowledge of a staggering order. Groupies. Some idea regarding eternal life.
Scientists are humans. The results of #2 would be more appealing than #1.
> If you truly believe He is a sentient being far beyond our understanding, how can you possibly think you could make Him do YOUR will?
A question I ask Christians all the time regardign their prayers. No good answers yet.
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