Prayer Makes The World Go Backwards

Another reason to dislike religion is the emphasis on prayer.  Prayer is supposed to solve everything.  When there's a natural disaster, people will sit around and uselessly spend hours in prayer.  I guess it makes them feel like they are actually doing something, when really all they are doing is getting sore knees and another layer of fat.

If prayer worked, this song would make no sense:

This song makes sense because prayer is a useless, wasteful endeavor.  All it does is allow lazy people to stay lazy.  This is why prayer is so popular.  A Christian or other religious person can dismiss any blame for sitting on their butts because they can say, "Hey - I did do something!  I prayed!" while the world burns.

Defend The Faith

Ephesians 6: 10-18, in the Bible, describes the Armor of God.  It involves a sword, a shield, a girdle (likely a belt), a breastplate and shoes of some sort.  One has to ask, though, why God needs you to be armed to the teeth?

Modern theologians explain that this is because Satan and the wicked ways of mankind are out to get us.  We must protect ourselves from evil things like temptation, false belief and Teletubbies.  However, just considering this brings up another question:  Why do Christians get so defensive when you question their faith?

"Gods are fragile things; they may be killed by a whiff of science or a dose of common sense." 
-- Chapman Cohen

This quote really sums it up.  Christians have to become apologists with even more vigor than skeptics or Atheists, because their beliefs are harder to defend.  I say they are impossible to defend.

The typical tactic for a Christian who has had his or her religion challenged is to try to calmly explain that the questioner just doesn't understand.  When the questioner invalidates that statement, the apologist has a series of arguments in their arsenal, all of which are equally worthless, but together form a confusing brier patch that not every Atheist is willing to trudge through.  For instance, when the power of prayer was offered as a subject of debate, one reader responded:

"The problem is your just taking snipits out of the Bible without understanding the whole context."

Really?  I thought that is what Christians do all day long?  They preach that the Bible is a whole and complete book.  They claim that the Bible is factual, including historical events (which will be discussed in a later blog post).  They also claim that each individual part is as truthful as the whole... until you show them three verses, which all say the same thing, but question their faith.

Here's another quote from the apologist:

"As far as moving mountains go. Is it likely to happen-no. Is it possible yes."

The Bible says that if you have the faith the size of a tiny, little mustard seed, you can move a mountain.  You will tell the mountain to move from here to there and it will - period.  There are no caveats listed at all.  The apologist admits that the Bible is true, by saying it could happen, but also admits that it's not likely to ever happen.

That's exactly the point.  Christians say they believe it, but admit that it is false - yet they keep believing it it!  They defend a faith which I'm sure at least most of them, deep down inside, know to be completely wrong.

Pray about it.

One universal beliefs of all sects of Christianity (except maybe Christian Scientists, which I don't really understand) is the belief in prayer.  Christians believe that prayer can cause or inspire miracles to happen, from the mundane to anything at all - the sky's the limit.

I contend that prayer is useless, boring and gives people false hope.  As evidence, I submit the following Bible verses (since the Bible is where the whole idea of prayer comes form anyway).


 In Matthew 7:7 Jesus says:

Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Did you notice the subtle caveat in this scripture?  No?  Read it again.  Still can't find it?  Me neither.  This scripture says that if you pray, you're going to have your prayer answered - period.

How about this scripture:


In Matthew 17:20 Jesus says:

For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

Nothing will be impossible - nothing.  Not even moving a mountain - literally.  The Bible doesn't say it will be like moving a mountain - it says you will command the mountain to move and it will move.

Prayer has never been answered.  The Godless Geeks put it this way in their list of proofs of God's existence:

ARGUMENT FROM MIRACLES (I)
(1) My aunt had cancer.
(2) The doctors gave her all these horrible treatments.
(3) My aunt prayed to God and now she doesn't have cancer.
(4) Therefore, God exists.

Christians tout this kind of "answered prayer" all the time.  But, nobody seems to give credit to the doctor who attended school, studied, learned and applied the right kind of medicine to give the aunt the best chance she could have.  No, it was God.  So why even give her the medicine?  Some will say "the medicine is God's way of curing her".  What a cop-out!

Three times this week people have offered to pray for me.  In retaliation, I offer to think for them.

Prayers are never answered because God does not exist.