Could The Virus Lead To A Spiritual Revival?

[Khandro]

'Something is stirring in the souls of millions presently under lockdown. The number of people searching for the word ‘prayer’ on Google ‘skyrocketed’ last month, doubling with every 80,000 new registered cases of coronavirus, according to a University of Copenhagen study. A Pew poll found that 55 per cent of Americans have prayed for an end to the pandemic. And no, it’s not only the Bible Belt: researchers reported that 15 per cent of those who ‘seldom or never pray’ and 24 per cent of those who do not belong to any religion have prayed about the virus.'

Have you prayed - even in the simplest of terms - for someone's health?

[Mamyalynne]

Show me someone who prays for the well being of others or offers praise and thanks for help received then show me someone who casually calls other people mentally ill or deluded idiots.

I know which person I'll converse with.

[JimF]

"But what are memorials if not prayers for the dead?"

Memorials are there as reminders so that the sacrifice of the heroes to whom the memorials are dedicated is never allowed to be forgotten.

Nothing to do with prayer whatsoever.

[JimF]

"who prays for the well being of others or offers praise and thanks for help received"

With respect, those are two completely different things.

[Mamyalynne]

They are, there can be many different types of prayer - not all have to be asking for something.

[Peter Pedant]

// I do say “Please don’t let my dad catch it” quite often, though. Which is just as useless as praying.//

erm may not be - - if the wish not for dad to catch it is frequently brought to mind
is is more or less likely that you will go froo a safety ritual ( such as washing your hands that is!) which is make it harder to get the disease ?

and prayer oh
Sta Teresa de Avila ( she was a saintess she was!) thaid ( she was Thpanith she was!) - zair av been more problems from prayers answered zan sair has been from prayers unanswered !

soza Naomi full of needless forrin frazes
I am a sad burro !
( soy triste burro)

[Zacs-Master]

But Khandro’s original post clearly refers to praying and asking for someone’s health. He’s clearly realised what a bonkers OP he wrote and is now back-pedalling to save what little of his tattered rep’ remains.

[Mamyalynne]

My reason for returning to the thread was not to convince anyone to change their thoughts about prayer but to voice an objection to the disgraceful comments from Deskdiary.

I have been called worse on AB but still felt it needed to be challenged.

[naomi24]

Peter Pedant, why are you apologising to me?

[iluvmargie]

16:13 Excellent post and I agree.

[Khandro]

Zacs master; Why do you have so much continual aggression towards me? You seem incapable of ever dealing with the subject itself, instead on this thread alone you have felt the need to troll & insult me; you have brought in Donald Trump, Breitbart, & Morrissey, you now say I am back-pedalling & my reputation is in tatters - who says so?
You seem to be a much troubled individual - perhaps I should pray for you?
If you want to stand on your soapbox & shout insults, better find something coherent to say.

[rowanwitch]

To me prayer is a way for the conscious mind to find a focus for hope and desires.
A version of the concentrated meditations that seek internal rather than external answers and resources. Bearing in mind that humans are mostly energy then possibly external energy can be affected by changes in internal energy caused by the generation of thoughts... I don't therefore rule out tiny changes from prayers, but do not need the presence of deity for those changes to happen.

[Peter Pedant]

//
war memorials //Nothing to do with prayer whatsoever.//

god why do people write crap like this ? Nov 11 for the last 80 people have gone and prayed yes prayed at war memorials
duuurrrr - those men in dog collars are in fact praying

OK other than that - nothing to do with prayer

they even did it 490 BC
. and they brought things to the common grave at Marathon and crowned it and made sacrifices for those who died in behalf of freedom ,,,”

Brits are particularly attached to the Dia de los muertos in their own essex way
The belgians are used to hordes of Brits clumping over their fields weeping whilst they dont do it themselves ( but say they should)

dead warning - if you do go to FLanders Field to seek someones grave you WILL find it very emotional

[NickorWan]

//soy triste burro//

yeah but no but, them descriptive words we put after them words for things here in España!

[andy-hughes]

Theland - // I just can't be bothered getting into another round of toing and froing …

I bet you can if you put your mind to it ...

[JimF]

"those men in dog collars are in fact praying"

Yes they are, specifically praying to a god whom they firmly believe not only exists but actually has the power to do what they are praying for. If you truly can't perceive the difference between that and praying to the sky or to the ether or to the tooth fairy, then you either are profoundly ignorant or pretending to be so for some sort of personal agenda.

[Mamyalynne]

What I said was, you don't have to pray to a deity - many of course do.

[Mamyalynne]

Plus, I said that in reply to 10C, who wrote.

//I have prayed for someones health, but not to someone called god. Prayers don't have to be to god, do they?//

[Khandro]

Why do we take flowers to put on the graves of departed loved ones, what are these if not some form of offering & prayer to the dead?

To repeat: it isn't very "scientific" is it?

[rowanwitch]

A symbol of the pain of loss, a ritualized setting down of the burden A need to show that you cared Expression of guilt... Lots of reasons.

[naomi24]

Khandro, Flowers are some form of offering and prayer to the dead? Where on earth do you get it from? I lay flowers as a gesture of remembrance - that's all.