"I prayed for you"

by Scully 98 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  Crumpet

  Okay I'm going to be a bitch once more and get it out of my system for the afternoon

  unless you want to get really offensive and state that all believers should get their heads read.

  How astute - this was precisely my implication! (And I think you are more likely to have a response from Lapland than heaven.)

  Okay - thats it. I will try and find the "on button" for nice crumpet now and stop being nasty.

  I should add that in my initial post here - I have never actually had that conversation at all with anyone and possibly the last time I heard the phrase "I'll pray for you" was in a nice email from some christians meaning well on another JW board, which I received as gracefully as I could.
• 

  love2Bworldly

  Sometimes all it means is that someone is keeping you in their thoughts and goodwill.
• 

  LittleToe

  Crumpet:
  ROFL

  I should add that in my initial post here - I have never actually had that conversation at all with anyone and possibly the last time I heard the phrase "I'll pray for you" was in a nice email from some christians meaning well on another JW board, which I received as gracefully as I could.

  Then WTF is all this stuff about people being patronising?
  

  Christians are maligned enough, without people making stuff up about them.
  Of course it's likely to be said that some Christians do their own maligning of individuals, so perhaps that's merely a human preoccupation having little to do with religiosity at all!

  How astute - this was precisely my implication!

  I feel bad - I lined you up for this one:
  Is mental illness disproportionately in evidence for religous folks, or do their beliefs have negligable impact on their health?
  My understanding is that studies indicate that prayer has a psychologically calming effect.
  I felt bad, but not bad enough not to execute that one

  (And I think you are more likely to have a response from Lapland than heaven.)

  Based on what statistical evidence
  I know plenty of children who think Santa is real (and then kid their parents that they believe it for a few extra years), but I also know plenty of adults who claim they get answers to prayers.

  ~frantically searches for Crumpets "button"~
  
• 

  Crumpet

  Don't waste your time the on button is permanently disabled! hehe

  I wasn't maligning all christians - but I have definitely heard it said in a way that is not meant in a sincere way. (I will confess this could be in books or on tv though.)

  I must ask though did those studies include that show prayer having a calming effect include long term effects - ie disappointment when there is no result, and did it include JWs?

  I don't want people to pray for me though- it makes me feel weird and uncomfortable and slightly dizzy.
• 

  LittleToe

  I don't want people to pray for me though- it makes me feel weird and uncomfortable and slightly dizzy

  That would be all those prayer vibes flying around - pesky little beggars!!!
  Is that proof positive that prayer is doing something?
• 

  Jim_TX

  The only thing worse (if that is possible) than the "I prayed for you" scenario, is the one where... upon hearing of some sort of success you have, the other person triumphantly declares, "Well, I have been praying for you." as if to let you know that your successes are directly related to some sort of prayer that they have made - rather than anything that you have been doing.

  This scenario is a no-win scenario. If you say "Well, I don't think your prayers have had anything to do with my success.", they may become offended - and even proclaim that their prayers are the directly related to many successful events that have happened in the past - all of which are unproveable.

  If you graciously say, "Thank you." they go away with the delusion that they have some sort of 'power' to help people... which may - or may not - be true.

  *shrug*

  Kinda negates the 'free will' thing that they preach from the bible.

  Regards,

  Jim TX
• 

  Scully

  Jim:

  The only thing worse (if that is possible) than the "I prayed for you" scenario, is the one where... upon hearing of some sort of success you have, the other person triumphantly declares, "Well, I have been praying for you." as if to let you know that your successes are directly related to some sort of prayer that they have made - rather than anything that you have been doing.

  This scenario is a no-win scenario. If you say "Well, I don't think your prayers have had anything to do with my success.", they may become offended

  You could always "kinda sorta" jokingly say "Oh well I guess I did all that hard work for nothing, then. Next time you're praying for me, tell me about it first, so I can just sit around on my lazy butt and let God do it all for me. By the way, how are your prayers workin' for those starving children in Africa?"

  Putting that in my Things I'd Like To Say But Don't Because We Can't Go Around Offending People file.
• 

  Jim_TX

  "Putting that in my Things I'd Like To Say But Don't Because We Can't Go Around Offending People file."

  Yes. I can't very well go round offending my 93-year old auntie, now can I?

  Regards,

  Jim TX
• 

  Country Girl

  On another note: How is it different when someone prays, and others just think "thoughts", or send "good vibes."? In the three scenarios, thought is being used to try to influence a deity or an outcome when there is no concrete proof that any of these strategies affects anything. Why are some of us praying for Dansk, and some of us are thinking good thoughts, and some are sending good vibes when they won't do any good?

  We are doing it as a show of support for a hurting fellow human being. If nothing, I think he gains a great amount of comfort and encouragement from these sessions. In that vein, I can think of nothing better to use these thoughts, prayers and vibes *for*.

  Used in the proper context, when showing love, humility and respect for a person's own tragedy, I find the words "I will pray for you" or "I have prayed for you" very comforting and loving. They can, as brought out by others, also be used in a condescending way as in: "You are really messing up. I will pray for you so that you are not such a pain in human kind's fanny." That's kinda wierd. I like to just say "Thanks, I appreciate that alot." Just like when someone says "Bless You!" when you sneeze. It's not rude, it's just nice.

  If someone offered to spread goat's blood in a chalk circle for me, I'd probably feel the same way: at least they were thinking of me. heheheh.