The problem with prayer

[igosaur]

The problem with prayer as I see it is that you are basically asking God to do something for you that he wasn't already planning to do.  Otherwise there would be very little point.

This would be fine if..

• God existed.
• He wasn't omniscient.
• And he was powerful enough to grant your wish.

However, every Christian I have tackled about this tells me that God is all powerful (omnipotent) and all seeing (omniscient).  If that is the case then God already knows the outcome of every possible event that has, will or can ever take place.

What then is the point of prayer because what ever happens was going to happen anyway and not even God could change that because of the obvious paradox of being omnipotent and omniscient at the same time.

[curiosityandthecat]

Hence the definition of "pray" in the Devil's Dictionary:

PRAY, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy.

 

[Wechtlein Uns]

Yep. I'd say that's a pretty big problem with prayer, all right.

[Sophus]

It's funny. I even recognized this problem way back when I was a Christian in Jr. High. If you really trust this god guy, why ask him for something if he supposedly has a plan for you and already knows what you want? So I didn't pray much as a theist. Must be why I fell to the dark side.  

[BadPoison]

Praying seems so selfish and illogical. If there was a god, why would you expect him to break the laws he programmed into this universe just for you?

You're praying for help on your math test? Well look at the starving kid in Africa destined to die of malaria! Is your prayer better than his?

[PipeBox]

No, no, no, guys!

Prayer isn't for getting us stuff!  Is for us to be closer to God!  He only tells us we'll get whatever we ask for because He knows it will motivate us to pray, and maybe eventually our prayers will focus on being content with what we already have and then praying to annul those original prayers, so that all of our prayers were answered all along.  Or, if you aren't a good enough Christian to do that, then you'll get everything you ever wanted in heaven, because God came through for your selfish ass anyway!

God could have said "Focus on being closer to Me, meditate on this," or "Ask Me only to be closer to Me, and rejoice in what you have and receive in the future from Me," but He clearly wrote it the way He actually did for a reason.  To bring more people to prayer, or to give those who pray more hope, we cannot know, but prayer just as it is clearly falls into God's perfect plan for us!!

*Cough*

[SSY]

I endorse this line of reasoning.

[Kylyssa]

"God always answers prayers - sometimes the answer is no."
^My favorite line about prayers from a Christian.^

[BadPoison]

"God always answers prayers - sometimes the answer is no."
^My favorite line about prayers from a Christian.^

"God never answers prayers, sometimes the outcome is just compatible with the request"

[dr.zalost]

I started getting much better results once I started praying to that jug of milk.

[Jonny the Saint]

"One pair of hands at work can accomplish more than a thousand in prayer"

[BadPoison]

"One pair of hands at work can accomplish more than a thousand in prayer"

I like it. It should be a bumper sticker, or a billboard.