What intrigued me was the question ...that is before I came to the realization that it was a book cooked up by the Jews to keep themselves in line with their leaders's veiws....was the criteria Hobo used to choose good ole Abe and his progeny as His people. What I wondered at was how come there wasn't a single person on earth at the time who could match him for goodness? And what was so good about him? He almost let his wife have her virtue violated. Was willing to murder his son on hearing g a voice asking him to do so? Or was it an angel or a dream? Hell too effing immaterial to remember. Was it a piece if flaming lumber? Who cares . The book is so full of s***. The same flawed principle is carried through in the prayer business. Pick and choose who yu wanna listen to, who yu wanna make rich or famous or a criminal or a Judas.
There's a friend , catholic, who prayed to St. Anthony for the return of a lost ear ring. Two months ago. Expensive. Found it 3 dys later in the trash. Believes implicitly that prayers are answered. Similar to an example given in another post above. Prayer helps in finding an ear ring . But doesn't when asking in anguish for a terminal disease or malady or hunger to be ameliorated or ended.
Typical human traits pinned on to an imaginary sky pilot.