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January 28th, 2011
04:44 PM ET
Amid Egypt protests, prayerKeep up with the latest developments in the Egypt protests on CNN's Just In blog. By Emily Smith and Katie Glaeser, CNN Amid flames and tear gas clouds, rioters in Egypt have stopped to pray, with many bowing down wherever they found themselves. Video from the region shows rows and rows of men stopping to pray together before returning to hurling stones at the Egyptian police. Friday's massive demonstrations throughout the mostly Muslim country began after the day's afternoon prayers.Daily prayer is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Muslims are expected to pray five times a day kneeling towards the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Friday’s afternoon prayer, or Juma’ah Salat, has special significance because it is a congregational prayer. It's the week's only prayer in which Muslims are expected to come together and to listen to a sermon. Naimah Abdullah, a secretary at Atlanta, Georgia's Masjid of Al-Islam said that the Quran commands Muslims to “stop traffic and trade on Fridays.” Muslims are expected to take time out of their day to think of God and reflect before returning to their daily routines. The Friday prayer is obligatory for Muslim males. Abdullah says Friday’s congregational prayer carries an abundance of blessings. “It’s said whatever you pray for you will get during this prayer,” she said. |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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I would guess there is hardly a person alive who hasn’t exclaimed, at one time or other in their lives…. ‘Oh, my God!’
But I bet the dead ones don't!.
Ta-Ha sura 20:
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Ta. Ha. (1) We have not revealed unto thee (Muhammad) this Qur'an that thou shouldst be distressed, (2) But as a reminder unto him who feareth, (3) A revelation from Him Who created the earth and the high heavens, (4) The Beneficent One, Who is established on the Throne. (5) Unto Him belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth, and whatsoever is between them, and whatsoever is beneath the sod. (6) And if thou speakest aloud, then lo! He knoweth the secret (thought) and (that which is yet) more hidden. (7) Allah! There is no God save Him. His are the most beautiful names. (8).
Ta-Ha sura 20:
And faces humble themselves before the Living, the Eternal. And he who beareth (a burden of) wrongdoing is indeed a failure (on that Day). (111) And he who hath done some good works, being a believer, he feareth not injustice nor begrudging (of his wage). (112) Thus we have revealed it as a Lecture in Arabic, and have displayed therein certain threats, that peradventure they may keep from evil or that it may cause them to take heed. (113) Then exalted be Allah, the True King! And hasten not (O Muhammad) with the Qur'an ere its revelation hath been perfected unto thee, and say: My Lord! Increase me in knowledge. (114).
And the koranic-driven drivel goes on and on and on and on and on!!!!!
Sadness Grief Misery and Sorrow
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveIslam_LiveIslam/message/1108)
Koranic-Driven Sadness Grief Misery and Sorrow
1a) 179 killed in Mumbai/Bombay, 290 injured
1b) Assassination of Benazir Bhutto and Theo Van Gogh
2) 9/11, 3000 mostly US citizens, 1000’s injured
3) The 24/7 Sunni-Shiite centuries-old blood feud currently being carried out in Iraq, US Troops killed in action, 3,481 and 924 died in non-combat98,691 – 107,707
Iraqi civilians killed as of 11/9/2010, http://www.iraqbodycount.org/ and
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf
4) Kenya- In Nairobi, about 212 people were killed and an estimated 4000 injured; in Dar es Salaam, the attack killed at least 11 and wounded 85.[2]
5) Bali-in 2002-killing 202 people, 164 of whom were foreign nationals, and 38 Indonesian citizens. A further 209 people were injured.
6) Bali in 2005- Twenty people were killed, and 129 people were injured by three bombers who killed themselves in the attacks.
7) Spain in 2004- killing 191 people and wounding 2,050.
8. UK in 2005- The bombings killed 52 commuters and the four radical Islamic suicide bombers, injured 700.
9) The execution of an eloping couple in Afghanistan on 04/15/2009 by the Taliban.
10) – OperatioAfghanistan: US troops 1,116 killed in action, 902 killed in non-combat situations as of 08/10/2010. Over 40,000 Afghan civilians killed due to the dark-age, koranic-driven Taliban acts of horror
11) The killing of 13 citizen soldiers at Ft. Hood by a follower of the koran.
12) 38 Russian citizens killed on March 29, 2010 by Muslim women suicide bombers.
13) The May 28, 2010 attack on a Islamic religious minority in Pakistan, which have left 98 dead,
14) Lockerbie is known internationally as the site where, on 21 December 1988, the wreckage of Pan Am Flight 103 crashed as a result of a terrorist bomb. In the United Kingdom the event is referred to as the Lockerbie disaster, the Lockerbie bombing, or simply Lockerbie. Eleven townspeople were killed in Sherwood Crescent, where the plane's wings and fuel tanks plummeted in a fiery explosion, destroying several houses and leaving a huge crater, with debris causing damage to a number of buildings nearby. The 270 fatalities (259 on the plane, 11 in Lockerbie) were citizens of 21 nations.
15) Followed by the daily suicide and/or roadside and/or mosque bombings every day in the terror world of Islam.
16) Bombs sent from Yemen by followers of the koran which fortunately were discovered before the bombs were detonated.
17) The killing of 58 Christians in a Catholic church in one of the latest acts of horror and terror in Iraq.
18) Moscow airport suicide bombing: 35 dead, 130 injured. January 25, 2011.
Was told that "The Lions in the jungle die of starvation while "Mutton Meats" are eaten by dogs".
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article27358.htm
Religion is God's gift to the poor and oppressed. If it was not for religion, atheists would have eaten all the poor people as food by now! See Hitler and jewish extermiation as an example of what happens when atheism reigns supreme and religion is totally eradicated from society. It is the poor and the oppressed who suffer the most.
God could have given poor money. But the atheists and the unGodly would have stolen it from them one way or another. So God has given the poor, religion. A means via which the rich and the blessed can serve the poor and the unblessed.
Whenever religion is eradicated from society in history, you see the resulting ungodly atheist ruling class oppressing the poorest and the neediest people mercilessly and callously.
The Twenty Worse Atrocities
Rank Death Toll Cause Centuries Religions involved
1 63 million Second World War 20C (Christians et al and Communists/atheists vs. Christians et al, Nazi-Pagan and "Shintoists")
2 40 million Mao Zedong (mostly famine) 20C (Communism/atheists)
40 million Genghis Khan 13C (Shamanism or Tengriism)
4 27 million British India (mostly famine) 19C (Anglican)
5 25 million Fall of the Ming Dynasty 17C (Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Chinese folk religion)
6 20 million Taiping Rebellion 19C ( Confucianism, Buddhism and Chinese folk religion vs. a form of Christianity)
20 million Joseph Stalin 20C
8 19 million Mideast Slave Trade 7C-19C (Islam)
9 17 million Timur Lenk 14C-15C
10 16 million Atlantic Slave Trade 15C-19C (Christianity)
11 15 million First World War 20C (Christians vs. Christians)
15 million Conquest of the Americas 15C-19C (Christians)
13 13 million Muslim Conquest of India 11C-18C
14 10 million An Lushan Revolt 8C
10 million Xin Dynasty 1C
16 9 million Russian Civil War 20C (Christians vs Communists)
17 8 million Fall of Rome 5C (Pagans)
8 million Congo Free State 19C-20C (Christians)
19 7½ million Thirty Years War 17C (Christians vs Christians)
7½ million Fall of the Yuan Dynasty 14C
http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/warstat0.htm
Biraq..some religions brainwash their adherents, and some have the hose on so hard it removes their brains altogether....I will let you guess which one that is
Religions are not the only ones into brainwashing. I would argue, that Non-religionists, especially atheists are bigger brainwashers than all the religions combined. Because atheists try to wash your brain of the MOST FUNDAMENTAL truth of our existence. That there is a supreme being that has created us, and created this universe.
Religions just try to brainwash you about minor things, atheism tries to brainwash you of the most obvious thing! Atheism is proof positive that you can convince anybody of anything, even the non-existence of your own creator!!
I'm not sure if you are serious, deluded or trolling. Any way you look at it, you're hysterically funny.
Once again... Hitler was a Christian and explicitly stated that he believed he was doing god's work. Does this "Hitler was an atheist," boondoggle have to be rebut-ted in every single comments section of every single article posted on this blog? It certainly seems that way.
civiloutside,
"Does this "Hitler was an atheist," boondoggle have to be rebut-ted in every single comments section of every single article posted on this blog?"
Yes, it does seem so. Fortunately, it and the other frequent flyers, like Pascal's Wager, the monkey dilemma, and the failure of Communism are fairly easily dealt with, even if it does get tiresome. The "feelin' in my hoart" and "I saw an angel in my driveway" and "God cured my leprosy" ones are a bit trickier.
from: us.geocities.com/chiniquy/Hitler.html
"The allegation is sometimes made that Hitler was a Catholic – a Christian until the day he died. This claim is based upon the fact that Hitler was born and raised in a Catholic family.
However, as an adult, Hitler specifically rejected the Catholic Church, as well as Christianity in general. He described himself as "a complete pagan".
The book Hitler's Secret Conversations: 1941-1944, published by Farrar, Straus and Young, Inc. (1953), contains definitive proof of Hitler's real views. The book was published in Britain under the t-itle, Hitler's Table Talk: 1941-1944, which t-itle was used for the Oxford University Press paperback edition in the United States.
Some excerpts:
All of these are quotes from Adolf Hitler:
Night of 11th-12th July, 1941:
"National Socialism and religion cannot exist together.... The heaviest blow that ever struck humanity was the coming of Christianity. Bolshevism is Christianity's illegitimate child. Both are inventions of the Jew. The deliberate lie in the matter of religion was introduced into the world by Christianity.... Let it not be said that Christianity brought man the life of the soul, for that evolution was in the natural order of things. (p 6 & 7) "
10th October, 1941, midday:
"Christianity is a rebellion against natural law, a protest against nature. Taken to its logical extreme, Christianity would mean the systematic cultivation of the human failure. (p 43)"
B)iraq
Once you have absolute proof of your god please share the findings.. reading an ancient text of dubious origin does not const-itute proof. Atheists do not brainwash, we ask for the proof you have of your magical beings. Religions teach from their holy books and at no time is there evidence or proof offered of the teachings. You are told what to believe. The frustrating part for religions is that they cannot stand up to scrutiny and so far none of your gods or Prophets have shown up to help you out. " Religion, a business for at least 2000 years and still waiting to see a Prophet."
BLIND ATHEISM POP-QUIZ
show an atheist 1,000 different robots, and EACH AND EVERYTIME, he will insist, MADE BY MAN, MADE BY MAN, MADE BY MAN.........................
ask him you sure? 100% sure, MADE BY MAN..........
show an atheist 1,000 different human beings, and EACH AND EVERYTIME, he will insist, MADE BY A BIG LOUD F ART (big bang), MADE BY A BIG LOUD F ART (big bang), MADE BY A BIG LOUD F ART (big bang).......
ask him, why are nt the robots also made by your big loud f art??? the irony of course is lost to them! only the bang remains in their little empty skulls.
Hysterically. Funny.
(B)iraq.. you see the problem I hope.., you still have not given any proof of your god and you know you cannot.. You have ranted against atheists ok, but no proof of your assertions are given. The big bang did not make human beings.. it facilitated our emergence in the universe. It may well have been set off by a god f-art as you say, or a giant dragon sneezing, or by an alien. You still have the problem as well of finding out where your god came from in the first place.
@ Biraq
You seem determined to advertise your scientific ignorance to the world. My hat is off to you sir, as you succeed here.
However, by the same token, you manifest that you are a hopeless arguer. You cannot reject scientific reasoning (evolution,big bang, whatever you find annoying) and then attempt to use that same method of reasoning (logical reasoning, that is) to make any point. You have an intrinsically flawed vantage point, so I'd suggest moving.
And with what logic are we supposed to convince someone who does not value logic, like yourself, to value logic?
Unless you become less close-minded, don't be foolish enough to think that anyone will take you seriously. Your objections to the aforementioned scientific principles have been answered innumerable times and you a clearly ignoring the answers. Simply being unable to comprehend them does not qualify whatever nonsensical jargon you might happen to spew out.
watch how they start babbling and going around in circles when you pull their pants down! Amazing, its simply amazing, the level of their brainwashedness!
Show them a Robot. They are 100% convinced its made by man, made by a creator. Show them man, they are 100% convinced its not made by a creator!
Idiots!
Biraq you're ranting.. we would just like a little proof of your as-sertions..you have none right? you have never been able to discuss the info you have been told, and I am sure it is frustrating to find out none of it is real.
The gifts of Free Will and Future belong to all the thinking beings in the Universe. This being the case, god (if one even exists) is not able to alter life and requests/prayers will not be answered. Statistically, your request might come true but it is simply the result of the variabiliy/randomness of Nature.
So put down your rosaries and prayer beads and stop worshiping/revering cows and bowing to Mecca five times a day. Instead work hard at your job, take care of aging parents, volunteer at a soup kitchen, donate to charities and the poor and continue to follow the commandments of your religion or any good rules of living as gracious and good human beings.
Prayer should not be all about receiving things and good things happening, it should also be about connecting to “the higher power” on a spiritual level and providing sustenance for your soul.
Also religion has been described as the opiate of the masses and I believe that is true to an extent, since religion and praying helps to calm one down and provide a time for thought and reflection similar to meditation without the connecting to a higher power thing.
And as for the question of why are their bad things going on in the world and why god does not fix them or help, the answer I would give would be too ask god and the way to do that is too pray 🙂 (don’t worry praying is like Facebook, you post on gods wall and wait for a reply 😉 )
@Anglican
Alright, so it seems that we've at least agreed that your god cares little for human life. If on the other hand he is able to help but does not, that makes him a despi-cable, contemptible, and vile creature who should be hated. There's no moral argument against that. You should be deeply ashamed of yourself if you think that a god like that is worth praising.
And as far as "evidence" for God, you can't expect to be taken seriously with reasoning like that! Sure, many have been happy to "seek him," yet in all of our collective seeking, there's nothing to be found. If you think that your personal experiences and emotions consti-tute evidence, then by that same logic, every other god and religion is equally as valid, and their followers say and feel just as you do.
Do you think that for one second I would care what you think about me? How dare you say I should be ashamed? I have nothing to be ashamed of. All you do is deconstruct because you can not construct. You never have anything positive to say. I do pity you. Good Night and Peace.
Could not resist. You just called YOUR Creator vile and said He should be hated. Please, The Rationale, please do not forget that you said that. Wake up everyday and remember. Going to a play and dinner. Peace
Have you not read what I said? If God is as powerful as you say he is, and he lets suffering exist in this world as it does, then you should be deeply ashamed to give a creature like that any positive emotion. I simply cannot believe you take offense to this. What sort of vile plan is God supposed to have for the patients at the childrens hospitals, or those dying of hunger? This is what Hitler did to the Jews. He had a plan for them. God rewarding people with paradise after they die does not justify that he simply sat back and watched them get tortured for their life, knowing full well he had the power to stop it. That is not moral and if you cannot see that then ashamed is far too weak a word.
I have nothing to construct because there IS nothing to construct. I deconstruct because justifying evil such as the inaction of God is the epitome of immorality. I say you should be ashamed for good reason. I pity you because you cannot even bring yourself to look at God under the same moral light that you view the rest of the world. You cannot even fathom that your God might have something wrong with him. You are unable to think for yourself and you confide that you've already reached the correct conclusion. You simply get offended whenever anyone questions your beliefs. There is better philosophy waiting for you yet.
@Anglican
Dude! TheRationale just handed you your head. I agree with everything he said.
@TheRationale – Damn! I do love the things you say!
Cheers!
Dave. So, you agree with everything The Rationale said. Because one can not explain with mortal brains the ways of God, He should be considered "vile" and should be "hated". David is saying his Creator "is vile and should be hated." If I were you, I would not be worried about the "head" of Anglican, I would be worried about my own. The Holy Bible speaks of the arrogant, who will ignore His teachings, I think I have just encountered two. Mercy
@Anglican
I do not believe god is vile. I believe that if god existed, he would have to be vile.
Remember, I am an atheist. I have arrived at this conclusion, based on logic and a preponderance of the evidence.
Cheers!
@Anglican
You use the Bible to justify your belief in God, which stems from the Bible. Circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works.
Besides, you contradict yourself. For someone who says that the ways of God are unknowable, you seem to do a lot of decision making for him. How do you know he's good? How do you know he isn't evil? According to everything you say about him, he's pretty darn evil, you'd have to concede, at least by our mortal metric of morality. Whether he's moral on the supernatural scale, well, that's just not relevant to anything that actually does happen here on Earth. In either case, you can't go saying nobody can know, only to turn around and say that you do and others don't.
Dave and The Rationale. You have said , what you have said. So be it. Mercy.
Five times a day? Praying is a waste of time that could be better spent. Really, only the person that is praying can hear themselves; their message is going nowhere.
Dave and The Rationale. You have said, what you have said. So be it.
we are not here to fight. I hope we can all pray for the Egyptians because they are humans like us and they have rights. They dont deserve to be killed. They have human rights like us. Where are their rights????? America gave Pres. Mubarak billions of dollars,,for what?? For him to kill his people?? The Egyptian army used guns made in America to kill these innocent people and also tear gas that was made in U.S.A.
To me this means the Americans are supporting the killings of innocent people!!
I am ashamed to be an American!!!
Agreed. Everyone deserves a dignified life. Peace to you.
Actually Julie, Egypt buys most of it's arms from the Russians. I am curious about one thing. What rights do you think the Egyptian people should have?
It's all about oil, sister. It is all about oil.
Cheers!
Anglican
I am also still here strong and alive and I am no spring chicken., and have never prayed since I became an adult many moons back. I think that people pray and that allows them to abdicate responsibility for a problem rather than look for a real solution. Some prayers being answered and some not sounds like coincidence to me again to me. If your car started some days and not others could you accept that... the solution to get some where would be random and you would be unable to make plans.
@Evolved DNA
Someday, I would like to sit down and buy you a beer. I think you and I could be buddies.
Cheers!
Evolved. No spring chicken here. Cold weather and worn joints don't mix. You have coincidence, and I have prayer. We both speak from experience. Peace be with you and your family.
@Dave. Gosh Dave, I like beer too.
@Anglican
But then I would ask you why you liked the brand you are drinking, and you would run out of the bar...
Cheers!
Dave. Please explain.
Believers are a lot like roaches. When you shine the light of reality on them, they run for cover.
Cheers!
They also tend to be "drive by bloggers" – make some silly statement, get all huffy about something, throw in a couple of quotes from a book of bad fiction, whine about being persecuted, and then disappear as you suggest, when asked for anything remotely verifiable to support their delusions.
Religion is a big part of the problem there; Gods are human constructs, made to keep people down; Reward after death
I disagree. That is what Karl Marx said. My reward is a full life. A life I did not ask for, but have been given. Family, work, friends, but at the same time, sorrow and bruises. God is not a construct of man, but I agree, religion is. Peace.
@Anglican
You keep attributing God with giving you all the wonderful things in your life. Tell me, what does God this of the millions of starving people in the world? He is demonstrably indifferent to what goes on on this planet, and I don't see how you could morally or logically justify otherwise.
Additionally, if you're going to post replies, at least try to have some coherent reasoning. Simply stating that he exists and that you believe in him doesn't say much in your favor. In fact, that you say you aren't here to defend your dissenting opinion largely implies that you simply can't.
The Rationale. First, I nor you know why there is evil and suffering in the world. God does not promise a rose garden for any of us, though it is mine and your responsibility to help our neighbor.
Second, and I have posted this before, if I knew the ways of my God completely, then He would not be God, No man can give you the kind of evidence you think you need, and if he could, you would still trash him. You want to see God, seek Him. You don't, don't. I can not supply you the scientific data you so desire. You know, that is what some of this is all about. Seek, or not
Angilcan
Imagine you are going into an aircraft with 200 others who believe that prayer works. At 40 thousand feet the pilots decide they will no longer fly the plane. The aircraft is off of autopilot and under manual control. Two hundred of you pray to get god to land the plane safely.. I bet that it would end somewhat badly...and not quite make the runway. Prayer only works, it appears, when chance takes over and is very high. Now, if god did make the plane land that would get may attention as an atheist...
@Evolved DNA
Good example!
Cheers!
Evolved. I speak from my experience. I have had prayers answered and some not. I am still here, alive and strong. It is your choice to believe and prayer or not. I speak for myself.
PS Dave. I think calling people "roaches" is in poor taste. I call you no names.
@Anglican
You said: "PS Dave. I think calling people "roaches" is in poor taste. I call you no names."
I would prefer that you would. You are like a child that throws a rock and then runs away.
Defend your beliefs, Anglican. You preach and give advice constantly, but when you are confronted, you scurry away. If you post an opinion, be prepared to show why that opinion is valid!
Address the evidence that is contrary to what you believe.
Cheers!
David. I do not have to defend myself to anyone and I have nothing to prove. I have faith in my Lord. As for beliefs contrary to mine, let them be. I am on a belief blog because I have faith in something. Lurk and cut people down if you want.
@David Johnson
People have faith when there is no actual evidence or logic to support their beliefs, so I doubt you'll get any cogent ideas from Anglican.
@TheRationale
You said: "People have faith when there is no actual evidence or logic to support their beliefs, so I doubt you'll get any cogent ideas from Anglican."
I know, but sometimes I like to pick at scabs. LOL
Cheers my friend. Love what you post!
No doubt the terrorists who carried out the following acts of horror prayed to allah before their demise:
1a) 179 killed in Mumbai/Bombay, 290 injured
1b) Assassination of Benazir Bhutto and Theo Van Gogh
2) 9/11, 3000 mostly US citizens, 1000’s injured
3) The 24/7 Sunni-Shiite centuries-old blood feud currently being carried out in Iraq, US Troops killed in action, 3,481 and 924 died in non-combat98,691 – 107,707 Iraqi civilians killed as of 11/9/2010, http://www.iraqbodycount.org/ and
defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf
4) Kenya- In Nairobi, about 212 people were killed and an estimated 4000 injured; in Dar es Salaam, the attack killed at least 11 and wounded 85.[2]
5) Bali-in 2002-killing 202 people, 164 of whom were foreign nationals, and 38 Indonesian citizens. A further 209 people were injured.
6) Bali in 2005- Twenty people were killed, and 129 people were injured by three bombers who killed themselves in the attacks.
7) Spain in 2004- killing 191 people and wounding 2,050.
8. UK in 2005- The bombings killed 52 commuters and the four radical Islamic suicide bombers, injured 700.
9) The execution of an eloping couple in Afghanistan on 04/15/2009 by the Taliban.
10) – Afghanistan: US troops 1,116 killed in action, 902 killed in non-combat situations as of 08/10/2010. Over 40,000 Afghan civilians killed due to the dark-age, koranic-driven Taliban acts of horror
11) The killing of 13 citizen soldiers at Ft. Hood by a follower of the koran.
12) 38 Russian citizens killed on March 29, 2010 by Muslim women suicide bombers.
13) The May 28, 2010 attack on a Islamic religious minority in Pakistan, which have left 98 dead,
14) Lockerbie is known internationally as the site where, on 21 December 1988, the wreckage of Pan Am Flight 103 crashed as a result of a terrorist bomb. In the United Kingdom the event is referred to as the Lockerbie disaster, the Lockerbie bombing, or simply Lockerbie. Eleven townspeople were killed in Sherwood Crescent, where the plane's wings and fuel tanks plummeted in a fiery explosion, destroying several houses and leaving a huge crater, with debris causing damage to a number of buildings nearby. The 270 fatalities (259 on the plane, 11 in Lockerbie) were citizens of 21 nations.
15) Followed by the daily suicide and/or roadside and/or mosque bombings every day in the terror world of Islam.
16) Bombs sent from Yemen by followers of the koran which fortunately were discovered before the bombs were detonated.
17) The killing of 58 Christians in a Catholic church in one of the latest acts of horror and terror in Iraq.
18) Moscow airport suicide bombing: 35 dead, 130 injured. January 25, 2011.
Some pray to love and forgive, others to hate and murder!
@Enoch
You said: "Some pray to love and forgive, others to hate and murder!"
And some to win a football game.
It really doesn't matter since prayer does not work.
BUT! The effect of the prayers on the people praying is real. Prayer convinces people god is on their side. God hates/loves what they hate and love.
Religion poisons everything – C. Hitchens
Cheers!
Prayer works in the same way that coincidence does.
Evolved. Have you ever prayed with an open heart? Peace.
Yes, Anglican, in fact I did... for the first 35+ years of my life. Good, bad and mediocre things happened daily to me and to those I prayed for. I have not prayed for 20+ years... and guess what?... good, bad and mediocre things still happen on a daily basis. There is no difference.
Anglican
Have you ever considered that people of every faith who all "pray with an open heart" get the same results? Clearly it's not the prayer working. This isn't some deep mystery we're trying to solve here.
To Know What and The Rationale. God hears our prayers and answers them in ways that are best for us. All of us have said to ourselves, "God, I wish I had this or that", Sometimes an unanswered prayer is a blessing. Time sometimes tells. Peace.
@Anglican
You asked: "Have you ever prayed with an open heart? "
Several studies have been done on prayers effect on the sick. Prayer was found to have no effect.
An amputee has never received a limb.
The religious, use selective observation to convince themselves that their prayers are answered.
Know What already explained the random chance and coincidence angle.
Cheers!
@Anglican
Jesus speaking:
John 14:14 – If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it. – Did you note the "any thing"?
Mathew 17:20 – He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." – Note the "nothing will be impossible to you".
Seems like in 2000+ years, someone must have had faith the size of a mustard seed. Most the fundies on these blogs claim to have large amounts of faith. Including you.
Was Jesus wrong, or perhaps misquoted? LOL
If what you said was true, wouldn't Jesus have said: "Ask your prayer, and if your Father in Heaven knows it is good for you, He will give it to you"?
Cheers!
Anglican said “Sometimes an unanswered prayer is a blessing.”
The fact that one still manages to enjoy life after something you’ve prayed for doesn’t happen says a lot about your atti-tude and circu-mstances, but nothing about any blessing.
The only reason people are able to make the claim that god never lets them down is because they have no expectations of him. They’ve already decided in advance that he gets a free pass on ignoring a plea because “he knows what’s best for me, so not answering must be what’s best.” and the only reason one can convince oneself of this is because he’s not there to consult anyway, so you can fill in whatever justification makes you feel good a out it.
Civil. I am where I am today because of the blessings God has given me.
I would argue that you are where you are today because of the confluence of your choices and those around you in the situations in which you found yourself. Do you suppose that children who died a lingering death in a flithy camp tent in Haiti because a collapsing building crushed their chest are where they are today because of "the blessings god gave them?" Or are you perhaps more deserving of blessings than that child was?
As David has said, you are purposely filtering your perceptions.
I have a pretty good life. I'm very happy. But that's because I have made choices with which I am happy, and am fortunate enough to be surrounded by loving people while living in a relatively stable society. Not because an invisible being is bestowing blessings upon me.
A fundie once told me, that god always answers prayers in one of three ways:
1) God says, "yes". You get what you asked for immediately.
2) God says, "to wait". You will get what you asked for at some future date.
3) God says, "no". You will not get what you asked for.
Hmmm.... But I can get the same success from the carton of milk I have sitting on the breakfast table.
1) If I pray to my magic carton, some things will come true immediately, just by chance and coincidence.
2) Some things will come true at some future date, for the same reasons.
3) If I don't get what I want, then my magic carton said, "no".
I think there is a problem, when there is no difference between praying to a god and praying to a milk carton.
Cheers!
"there is no difference between praying to a god and praying to a milk carton"
Ah, but there IS a difference. You can actually see and touch the milk carton, and you don't have to wait 2000+ years for the next one to show up on the table. But, as you say, the prayer results will be exactly the same.
Self delusion on a grand scale. Although better than violence...
The Rationale. Hey, your getting it. Prayer and peace go together. I am happy for you. Peace.
I would have to agree that prayer is better than immediate violence.
However, in pretty much every other circu-mstance, prayer only exacerbates the problem. Why? Because it takes little reasoning to deduce that prayer simply does not work. Because of this, people think that they're solving problems when in fact they are perpetuating them by delaying actual solutions. So prayer and making-problems-worse are largely indistinguishable.
May God be with the poor and oppressed. May all who seek justice, receive it. God be with us all. Peace.
It seems as though History does repeat itself. Go down MOSES way down in EGYPT LAND, tell old PHAROAH let my people go.MUBARAK is a PHAROAH reincarnated, and his nameis incrypted with the with the MESSIAH complex. It is time for change and the evolution of the EGYPTIAN PEOPLE, CHANGE IS INEVITABLE. The will ofthe people is like the wind.All men are created equal..
The highest creative intelligence was birthed in EGYPT iethe pyramidswith precision math as astounded man forcenturies. This is amajor turning point in History. The phenonomen ofchange will sweep with a great transilience, NATURE IS OBEYING UNIVERSAL LAWS. DIVINE INTERVENTION IS WITHIN the realm of the current evolutionary cycles. GODS WILL BE DONE