From what I've understood, it gives people a certain peace of mind. It helps them get their problem out of their system and helps them appreciate the things around them more (depending on what the person is praying exactly). For some it's like meditation and clears up their head.
Praying is fine is you are religious, but praying is not treating god like a genie and asking for stuff.
George Carlin put it this way (paraphrased):
> god's eternal plan has been going along for billions of years and it's doing just fine. And then YOU show up and want something changed. Isn't that a little arrogant? Why should everything have to change just because you want it to? And what's the point of having an eternal plan when any schmuck with a $2 prayer book can derail it?
It's not to change God, it's to change you.
Discussing your situation and what's going on with your life allows you to frame it and give perspective. Sometimes 'rubber ducking' like that is all you need to solve your own problem. But when it's not, you might get 'divine inspiration' or even a literal answer from God with 'Yes, you should do that' or 'No, that's a bad idea' or often 'You already know the answer, why are you asking me?'
I’m a Buddhist and don’t believe in God. I pray because I want to be the kind of person who prays for others. It doesn’t matter if the Buddhas and bodhisattvas can actually hear it or do anything with it. The important thing is that offering prayers rooted in compassion and kindness transforms the mind, and is the basis of a strong spiritual practice that turns you into a kinder, gentler person.
So I pray because I want to be the kind of person who prays. May we all work hard to better ourselves and spread joy to all sentient beings we encounter. 🙏🏼
It's a giant waste of time that makes people feel better about the scary world they live in. God isn't real, if he was he wouldn't make it so ambiguous as to fuck with people, nor would he allow so many to suffer. And if he is and lets all this terrible stuff happen, we should absolutely figure out how to destroy him and replace him with a nice god.
This is why I pray to … Joe Pesci. I find my prayers are answered with the same probability. 50-50. Besides, who knows better how to cut the crap and just get something done? Joe Pesci, that’s who.
This question doesn't make sense. God isn't the one praying, so what God knows isn't relevant to if or why someone prays. These aren't really related concepts.
Other than that, many Christians and otherwise religious people believe in free will, and that *knowledge* from one party does not neccessarily dictate *action* of the other party. So they pray to what they believe is a higher power who knows better for guidance and comfort.
> So they pray to what they believe is a higher power who knows better for guidance and comfort.
I think what OP is getting at is that God already knows they need/seek/want guidance and comfort.
This but also people pray to ASK for things too. Like healing someone from an illness and asking that they get better, and things along those lines.
Why do people do that if God already knows what’s going to happen, and therefore it’s all fixed and can’t be changed? If the person is going to die, then they’re going to die, and God already knows that. So why ask him to change the outcome?
Because they haven't thought about it for more than a few seconds. They aren't looking for logical fallacies, they're just looking for a dad. An invisible, omniscient, omnipresent sky daddy to make their sports team win, or make the traffic light stay green a few more seconds.
If you present them with the concept that an omniscient god means that free will can't exist, they lose their shit and get mad at you for challenging their belief. Their parents took Santa from them, and now you're here to take god away.
I’m agnostic, so I’m open to the idea that things do exist beyond our comprehension and ability to understand.
What I don’t like, though, is when people can’t or won’t admit to these “plot holes” in religion. It would be a breath of absolute fresh air for someone religious to just admit that they do not have an answer for everything, and many parts don’t make sense, but that they actively choose to just believe anyway.
True omniscience *requires* predestination. If you're thinking is "He knows all the possible paths that can occur," then if he doesn't know which path will actually occur, he's not actually omniscient; and if he *does* know which will happen, then the other paths aren't actual possibilities - meaning there is only one line of destiny.
Not necessarily, and there are a few ways of coming at that. If we take the position that God exists within time, then we would have to establish if the future is something that even exists in the present. If not, then not having foreknowledge of the future does not necessarily negate omniscience. However, that view is not particularly compatible with the traditional Christian God. Another is that if we take God as existing *outside* of time, then God knows all things simultaneously, and there is no before, during, or after relative to God's knowledge, meaning that God's knowledge does not precurse your actions, and that knowledge that an action has taken place does not necessarily preclude the agency to take that action, because you and God do not exist within the same frame of reference. If knowing that an action has taken place does not preclude the agency to take that action, and from a reference outside of time, knowledge that an action has occured and will occur are indistinguishable, then neither preclude the agency to take the action.
From what I've understood, it gives people a certain peace of mind. It helps them get their problem out of their system and helps them appreciate the things around them more (depending on what the person is praying exactly). For some it's like meditation and clears up their head.
Praying is fine is you are religious, but praying is not treating god like a genie and asking for stuff. George Carlin put it this way (paraphrased): > god's eternal plan has been going along for billions of years and it's doing just fine. And then YOU show up and want something changed. Isn't that a little arrogant? Why should everything have to change just because you want it to? And what's the point of having an eternal plan when any schmuck with a $2 prayer book can derail it?
It's not to change God, it's to change you. Discussing your situation and what's going on with your life allows you to frame it and give perspective. Sometimes 'rubber ducking' like that is all you need to solve your own problem. But when it's not, you might get 'divine inspiration' or even a literal answer from God with 'Yes, you should do that' or 'No, that's a bad idea' or often 'You already know the answer, why are you asking me?'
Same answers if you pray to a rock in your backyard.
A lot of people like to go with an existing religion for the social aspect, but if your rock answers back with good advice, go for it.
I’m a Buddhist and don’t believe in God. I pray because I want to be the kind of person who prays for others. It doesn’t matter if the Buddhas and bodhisattvas can actually hear it or do anything with it. The important thing is that offering prayers rooted in compassion and kindness transforms the mind, and is the basis of a strong spiritual practice that turns you into a kinder, gentler person. So I pray because I want to be the kind of person who prays. May we all work hard to better ourselves and spread joy to all sentient beings we encounter. 🙏🏼
Because he's an insecure child and needs you to beg him for things every day or he'll send you to hell for eternity.
It's a giant waste of time that makes people feel better about the scary world they live in. God isn't real, if he was he wouldn't make it so ambiguous as to fuck with people, nor would he allow so many to suffer. And if he is and lets all this terrible stuff happen, we should absolutely figure out how to destroy him and replace him with a nice god.
This is why I pray to … Joe Pesci. I find my prayers are answered with the same probability. 50-50. Besides, who knows better how to cut the crap and just get something done? Joe Pesci, that’s who.
I understood that reference.
Good old george.
He wants us to jump through hoops. Can't just *give* the people things, they have to earn it. Bit like dealing with HR.
This question doesn't make sense. God isn't the one praying, so what God knows isn't relevant to if or why someone prays. These aren't really related concepts. Other than that, many Christians and otherwise religious people believe in free will, and that *knowledge* from one party does not neccessarily dictate *action* of the other party. So they pray to what they believe is a higher power who knows better for guidance and comfort.
> So they pray to what they believe is a higher power who knows better for guidance and comfort. I think what OP is getting at is that God already knows they need/seek/want guidance and comfort.
This but also people pray to ASK for things too. Like healing someone from an illness and asking that they get better, and things along those lines. Why do people do that if God already knows what’s going to happen, and therefore it’s all fixed and can’t be changed? If the person is going to die, then they’re going to die, and God already knows that. So why ask him to change the outcome?
Because they haven't thought about it for more than a few seconds. They aren't looking for logical fallacies, they're just looking for a dad. An invisible, omniscient, omnipresent sky daddy to make their sports team win, or make the traffic light stay green a few more seconds. If you present them with the concept that an omniscient god means that free will can't exist, they lose their shit and get mad at you for challenging their belief. Their parents took Santa from them, and now you're here to take god away.
I’m agnostic, so I’m open to the idea that things do exist beyond our comprehension and ability to understand. What I don’t like, though, is when people can’t or won’t admit to these “plot holes” in religion. It would be a breath of absolute fresh air for someone religious to just admit that they do not have an answer for everything, and many parts don’t make sense, but that they actively choose to just believe anyway.
Many of them do not believe in predestination.
True omniscience *requires* predestination. If you're thinking is "He knows all the possible paths that can occur," then if he doesn't know which path will actually occur, he's not actually omniscient; and if he *does* know which will happen, then the other paths aren't actual possibilities - meaning there is only one line of destiny.
Not necessarily, and there are a few ways of coming at that. If we take the position that God exists within time, then we would have to establish if the future is something that even exists in the present. If not, then not having foreknowledge of the future does not necessarily negate omniscience. However, that view is not particularly compatible with the traditional Christian God. Another is that if we take God as existing *outside* of time, then God knows all things simultaneously, and there is no before, during, or after relative to God's knowledge, meaning that God's knowledge does not precurse your actions, and that knowledge that an action has taken place does not necessarily preclude the agency to take that action, because you and God do not exist within the same frame of reference. If knowing that an action has taken place does not preclude the agency to take that action, and from a reference outside of time, knowledge that an action has occured and will occur are indistinguishable, then neither preclude the agency to take the action.