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[–] Enigmius1 2 points 2 points (+4|-2) ago 

Prayer is the least effective thing you could do for him.

That's not true at all. At the end of the day, an agnostic such as myself respects the benefits of spirituality and the rituals that form around it even if I don't believe that the explicit process is doing what believers claim it to be doing. The impact of spirituality on emotional and mental health is far greater than revolutionary atheists gave it credit for, and the impact of mental and emotional health on physical health is generally regarded as significant and irrefutable even if the science can't map it out just yet.

In other words, if you believe prayer matters and you know people are praying for you, it can absolutely lead to improved health.

We don't need to turn every mention of prayer, God, or a particular religion into a soapbox to tell everyone who supports a religious view that they're wrong and their beliefs are meaningless.

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[–] SkepticalMartian 2 points 0 points (+2|-2) ago  (edited ago)

It has nothing to do with whether or not I believe in God or my degree of spirituality. This has been studied ad nauseam by science.

Prayer when used by an individual may have some degree of physiological benefit for that individual, in the same way meditation may have some degree of physiological impact. However, other people praying for you is entirely worthless from a medical perspective. It is in fact a waste of time and effort to peruse such an idea with the notion that it will have any real benefit. It's only making you feel better by way of thinking that you did something useful, when in reality that is simply a lie you're telling yourself.

If the goal of this is to just show support, a more constructive and universally accepted method is to send him a "get well" note or card. This is completely religion-neutral, and it's a tangible token of appreciation for the man and his work that he can actually quantify.

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[–] Enigmius1 1 point 1 point (+2|-1) ago 

You're thinking from a very ego-centric point of view.

It's not necessary for every gesture of support be "religion-neutral". Not necessary at all. Why would you even bring that up? Why does a gesture of support even have to meet your approval? Why, when a guy has a terminal illness, would you come to a thread like this and be negative about it for having the audacity to draw attention to a gesture of support that you don't personally subscribe to? Are you so insecure in your beliefs that you need to cut down someone else' just to remind yourself that you're okay?

It has not been studied ad nauseum by science. Atheist sheople want to tell you that, and they'll bury you in articles that prove their point. But if you're smart enough to get out from under the bullshit long enough to examine both sides, you realize why there's such a growing emphasis on holistic care.

At the end of the day you can turn this into another half-wit atheist manifesto you if you really have to, but I would hope that at some point you would at least recognize and respect the purpose and spirit of the thread. Fucking shameful what the sycophant cowards are doing to suppress this because being an atheist means you're at war with religion.