Can Prayer Really Heal?

Parade Magazine ^ | March 23, 2003 | Dianne Hales

[TBP]

Summary:

• A nine-year study of the mortality rate among 21,000 adults found that those who attended religious services more than once a week lived up to seven years longer than those who did not.

• In a study of 108 women with gynecological cancers, researchers at the University of Michigan discovered that 93% said religion bolstered their hopes for treatment.

• Researchers at the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Michigan, studying self-esteem in seniors, found that religious faith was the most important factor linked to feelings of self-worth. The study of 1005 seniors over age 65, who did not live in nursing homes, found that those with low self-esteem tended to be nonreligious.

• A review of more than 80 studies on the link between religion and depression found that people who are not involved in organized religion are 20 to 60% more likely to experience a major depression.

[TBP]

I am absolutely a believer in the power of prayer to heal, to change conditions, to change our lives. I am interested in teh views of my fellow FReepers on this subject.

[Alex Murphy]

I have read these articles before. I find it depressing and misleading to see how they focus on the one who prays, instead of on the one prayed to. I'd love to see a breakdown by religion.

[TBP]

Apparently, the studies indicate that the particular religion doesn't matter.

There is only one God, Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omnipresent. This one God has many names -- according to the sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke, about 9 billion. I don't think it matters to God what you call God, but it shapes your preception of God.

The point is, prayer heals and changes conditions, if the prayer comes from turly felt belief and deep knowing.

[TBP]

Apparently, the studies indicate that the particular religion doesn't matter.

It may matter in terms o other things, but not in terms of this pareticular thing. The active, sincere, committed followers of any religion do better than those who are casual about it.

[MN_Rightside]

Treading on thin ice. Many questions arise with some of the numerous studies that have been done. I would ask, when Muslims pray to their Allah, do all Muslims have their prayers answered or only the devote who follow the true teachings of Mohamed (and kill the infidels)? Or does Allah answer those who only partially follow through with his commands but do not kill the infidels but actually befriend them. When someone prays to Jehovah - Does the requestor have to simply be a believer just as Satan is: or do you have to obey HIM as well? Can you beleive Him in your own way and worship Him in your way of choosing with your own form of worship? Does it matter?
Does it matter who does the praying aand who is being prayed to? Psychol Rep. 91(3 Pt 1):731-41, 2002 Dec.
Stress levels in participants went down for those individuals who were prayed for, regardless of what was being asked for by whom. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking. I also do not underestimate the power of Jehovah God. I just think we need to be careful when we credit Him with something He may not be intervening in. Just my two cents.

[man of Yosemite]

If you read the Bible, God reveals his name at different times,to different persons, each revelation bringing up some new understanding of his divine character. What he demonstrated in the judgments upon Egypt was that he was the true God, and their gods were nothing more than idols. The critical issue is whether or not there is a true revelation of God in the world, who has that revelation, and does the evidence of the faithful followers of that God demonstrate his truth. If you look at those who have followed Jesus, or Yeshua... if you are a Hebrew believer, there are many evidences in their lives that would lead you to believe in the truth of their faith in Israel's Messiah. In the final analysis, however, it still remains a step of faith. Those with ears to hear will hear, and the rest will stumble over a lie.

[TBP]

Can you beleive Him in your own way and worship Him in your way of choosing with your own form of worship? Does it matter?
Does it matter who does the praying aand who is being prayed to?

I think you cna believe in God in the way that is most comfortable for you, because it's ll the same God. There's only One. Does it amtter who is doing the praying and who is being prayed to? What matters most is the come-from. Prayer is really just a means. It's God and the faith of God (note I didn't say faith in God) that heals. When we know that it is done in God, it is donein the world. As Jesus said, "It is the Father within who doeth the work." You don't really have to ask, because "Your Father knows what you hve need of before you ask." What we must do is be open to the healing, forgive, and accept with faith, knowing that it is so.