Healing through prayer doesn't work?

Question

Some people can live into their 100's! Well done them. I think the last one I read about in the newspaper even used to smoke a cigarrette everyday too!

I'm sure if they were a religious family, they would have prayed for them to be alright. Clearly, since no-one human yet has lived forever, a few people praying for you doesn't help.

If however you have millions of people praying everyday for you, e.g. "God save the Queen", or "God keep the Pope alive and well"...

...Why aren't these people living far far FAR in excess of everyone else? Into their 200's maybe! If praying for people does anything, how comes whenever one of these important or well-known and loved people gets ill and people start praying for them, they don't survive all of the time?

If millions of people praying for someone to get better doesn't work, what good is it doing?

Answer 1

I thought studies had pretty much shown that prayer for another has no effect. Sure, if you tell somebody you'll pray for them, that's the same as saying you care and they get whatever effect that has (gotta be positive) but if you just pray for somebody to live even another year without telling them, nope, no effect. It is, of course, very difficult to test the effect of praying for oneself (try doing a double blind study on that - some people pray a placebo prayer to a "fake" god while others pray a real pray for healing to a real god). It's a messy question but no, prayer does nothing (and it's messy precisely because people who believe it does anything tend to be the most resistent to any scientific proof - witness the ID "debate").

Answer 2

No, healing through prayer doesn't work.

Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and atheists all live pretty much the same amount of time. Tests on whether prayer works have repeatedly come up negative.

One man with a hammer can do more good than a billion people praying.

Answer 3

If people lived "far far FAR in excess of everyone else" simply because they belived in God, people would then try to use God in order to live longer and promote their own selfishness. I came to this conclusion in my own human reasoning. Therefore, God, being infinately wiser than I, would have thought of this before the beginning of time. Just because God doesn't heal everyone and make them live for thousands of years doesn't mean that He does not still perform miracles.

Answer 4

the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away - simple as that

God has reasons that i will never be able to understand; do i understand why loved ones have passed on after I prayed? no - but then again, i dont understand a lot of things God does - thats why i'm not God. :D
-- am i going to stop praying? absolutely not

He is God, and I am just His servant

Answer 5

Prayer is an act of Faith.
God sees that and listens to your prayers.
You draw closer to God through prayer as well.

Not all things that you 'personally want done' can be done just because you prayed about it. Not saying these people don't pray on a regular, but just to do it out of selfish gain, isn't going to get anyone what they want!

Answer 6

the average American only is going to live to about 100. God has kept them till that vary day. if you pray and believe that you are going to stay a live till you are 200 then Belva but who have you herd of that has stayed a live that long????

Answer 7

Prayer isn't like putting a coin in a vending machine. Sometimes the answer to a prayer is 'no.'

Answer 8

My boss's father will turn 101 in June. He has smoked a pipe for decades and still works out.

Answer 9

Prayer is bogus and a waste of time, don't bother praying ...do something if you must but don't just sit and pray uselessly.

Answer 10

There's plenty of evidence that prayer doesn't work. This is the most sickening evidence you will see.