by Terry 21 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Okay, first you will need ten pennies.
Heads=Prayer Answered
Tails=Prayer Ineffective
You'll need a sheet of paper numbered 1 to 10.
Shake the pennies in a cup vigorously and toss them on a table.
Notate the results:
For Example:
1. Heads=6 Tails=4
2.Heads=8 Tails=2
Add up the results when you've done ten tosses.
Does PRAYER WORK?
What is the point of this.....really?
Think about it and post.
Prayer is the I-Ching?
Terry, Terry...
You'll never be able to run your own TV ministry that way. You've got to think bigger than pennies.
You've got to convince people to send you $10. Then, and only then, can their prayers be heard and answered. (And as a bonus, you'll send them a prayer cloth proving that their prayer was conveyed and answered).
NN - so then instead of I-Ching it becomes Cha-Ching$$!
The only point I can imagine trying to be made here is that people tend to see what they want to see. Obviously any kind of coin thing like this is an experiment in probability theory. The more "tosses" one does, the closer to 50/50 will be the outcome. Whatever some individual infers from that, if it's anything but that probability theory has a basis in fact, then it's a strange inference.
That said, I think it's kind of lame the way most people pray. "God, don't let so-and-so die." "God, let me afford to pay my bills." "God, make a giraffe appear on my ceiling." "Oh and God, snap to it. And after that, bring me some tea."
Feh. I pray rarely, and when I do it's usually to ask God to help me to do whatever it is myself, or to thank him when I have some understanding or resolution of a problem, or when something good and unexpected happens. I don't keep a "tally" of what works and what doesn't.
"NN - so then instead of I-Ching it becomes Cha-Ching$$!" .. that made me lol
Feh. I pray rarely, and when I do it's usually to ask God to help me to do whatever it is myself, or to thank him when I have some understanding or resolution of a problem, or when something good and unexpected happens. I don't keep a "tally" of what works and what doesn't.
You mean you like to talk to yourself and reassert to yourself that you made the best decision or happened to come across a streak of "good luck"???? Good 'ole "God" sure helped those voodoo heathens down in Haiti, now didn't he... :)
Terry, it doesn't work that way even if you were to concede the power of prayer. God isn't like a computer, where certain inputs will always generate certain outputs, or, to use another example, like a repeatable experiment. Not even you and I are deterministic like that.
BTS
I was reading..
That a University proved a coin toss could be manipulated..
........................... ...OUTLAW
With Prayer you get appear to DO without actually doing.
"I'll be praying for you" sounds incredibly kind and well-intentioned. But, mumbling isn't really helpful, is it?
I've often said I would far prefer a well-meaning person to tell me--"I'm so sorry to hear about your _______(fill in the problem____, I'll Dance the Hokey Pokey for you."
At least that would take a measure of commitment and skill!
Prayer is an act of charity which carries with it a tremendous public approval--and yet--has all the value of writing a check with $1,000,000 scribbled in.
It is uncashable, but, the sentiment is sparklingly generous!
The point of my Experiment is this.
No matter how many times you toss the coins (pray) there will be events you CAN INTERPRET afterward. Half the time you can count on an "Answer" and the other half an ineffective silence. The purpose of the silence is so that you can blame yourself for having NOT ENOUGH faith.
If this sounds cynical---it isn't.
Dancing the Hokey Pokey as been proved to be effective in double blind experiments when interpreted by Hokey Pokey experts.
So there.
Prayer, god, etal are ALL fantasys of the human mind. Prayer is nothing more than convincing yourself of a certain goal and subconsciously acting upon it. Thus you give credited to some fantasy deity, while the whole time you were the one who wanted something and addressed the goal, looking for opportunitys along the way...
I've often said I would far prefer a well-meaning person to tell me--"I'm so sorry to hear about your _______(fill in the problem____, I'll Dance the Hokey Pokey for you."
LOL @ Terry!
I love it.
