When was the last time u prayed ?

[gmloki]

As per the title. Don't worry im not getting all religious and sandal wearing or anything like that. I know a lot of people are currently atheist, agnostic or completely indifferent to religion. When was the last time you prayed and for what reason ?

 

[Ormorof]

was probably when in school, because we got it forced down our throats in assembly

 

[Ono]

I pray every single day.

Same type of contents in prayer - forgiveness, look after and bless my family, help me through the day, look after and bless my friends and also anything else that needs to be addressed.

I am religious but also am a person living in the real world.

End of the day, I see it like this - your belief in God costs very little (you are still who you are) but you will gain everything - eternal life in heaven rather than hell.

That is all I will add to this thread as many religion threads (which I stay out of as a rule of thumb) degenerate into blasphemous slagging off which I refuse to defend as it is futile.

It's your choice as it was mine. Full stop.

 

[Doh_boy]

Pretty much what ono said but I'm shite and only pray when I goto mass on sundays.

 

[Will]

End of the day, I see it like this - your belief in God costs very little (you are still who you are) but you will gain everything - eternal life in heaven rather than hell.

That is known as Pascal's Wager.

You may believe in God, and if God exists, you go to heaven: your gain is infinite.
You may believe in God, and if God doesn't exist, your loss is finite and therefore negligible.
You may not believe in God, and if God doesn't exist, your gain is finite and therefore negligible.
You may not believe in God, and if God exists, you will go to hell: your loss is infinite.

I'm pretty sure that's not the only reason you believe, I'm making comment rather than criticising.

Personally, my faith is fairly complex, but it doesn't include a God as such, and hence doesn't include prayer.

 

[RandomBastard]

Last time I prayed properly? Before my last exam so a week and a half ago.
I'm not very religous though, I don't go to church during term time cause all the places round here are hippy like.

 

[Trem]

When my son was born not breathing.

It wasn't so much a prayer it was more a threat.

I was maybe just asking my dad for help or something.

I don't believe by the way.

 

[Damini]

To answer a question with a question then - do you believe faith is a conscious choice? Quite often I see phrases that imply it is a willing decision made, like Ono said "it costs you little", or as in Pascal's wager, but surely faith by its definition is not something reasoned out, but something that exists purely for its own purpose. You can't manufacture it, or rationalise it, it's a leap. You either do, or you don't.

Am I the only one that thinks like this?

The last time I prayed was about 17 years ago. I used to be scared there was a ghost in my room.

 

[Will]

To answer a question with a question then - do you believe faith is a conscious choice? Quite often I see phrases that imply it is a willing decision made, like Ono said "it costs you little", or as in Pascal's wager, but surely faith by its definition is not something reasoned out, but something that exists purely for its own purpose. You can't manufacture it, or rationalise it, it's a leap. You either do, or you don't.

Am I the only one that thinks like this?

No, I agree, its one of the big flaws in Pascal's wager. What if God punishes such calculated belief, and is it really belief at all? Maybe he rewards an informed choice, no matter what you decide.

 

[Ono]

I've never heard of Pascal's wager before. My faith is founded on personal reasons and what has been done in my life and not based on the infinite/finite gain/loss thing.

 

[mank!]

i honestly don't think i've ever prayed in my life. at least not through my own free will.

i'm agnostic, i really want to believe but have a great deal of trouble finding myself capable of believing when there's so much shite in the world.

 

[Maljonic]

I sometime pray now and again, nothing regular and usually to wish that someone will be safe.

Last time was probably a few weeks ago when my mother-in-law was in hospital, though I might say a little prayer for her husband tonight who is now in hospital himself.

 

[Damini]

I've never heard of Pascal's wager before. My faith is founded on personal reasons and what has been done in my life and not based on the infinite/finite gain/loss thing.

But do you feel that you *chose* to believe? Or is it simply that you *do* believe? Sorry to pick on you personally, it's just something that I'm genuinely curious about.

 

[Wij]

Never in actuality, although I've gone through the motions when expected to as a child. The whole idea of a supernatural world seemed ridiculous to me from the moment I could work out what it meant.

(before school-age)

/edit: And I argued with my parents about it all the time

 

[Louster]

/edit: And I argued with my parents about it all the time

Respeck. Sadly my own upbringing was resolutely rational and mostly atheist, so I didn't really have to rebel against any authority figures in pointing out irrationality. I probably would have called myself agnostic for quite a while, but really that was just a way of avoiding confrontation/argument. I figure I'm atheist, in the sense of 'not believing by default'; as it's all completely irrelevant and untestable anyhow you have basically as much reason to believe in God as you would the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

And it continually surprises me just how many people are still religious even in this day and age.

 

[Wij]

hehe - I used to annoy my Mum by saying crap like, if God can hear everything and do everything then he should strike me with lightning and then singing "Jesus is a silly-bum !"

Got me into trouble when I swapped to a different school though where the head was a religious nut who liked to give the strap to the non-believers :/

 

[TdC]

um I think I last prayed when I was 6 or so. imo I was just copycatting other kids / doing what was expected of me. I don't remember getting any particular sign or feeling anything special, though I suppose that at the time I was rational enough to coin the thought that God must listen to little kids as much as he listens to everyone else.

I suppose I take the easy way out

 

[DaGaffer]

Respeck. Sadly my own upbringing was resolutely rational and mostly atheist, so I didn't really have to rebel against any authority figures in pointing out irrationality. I probably would have called myself agnostic for quite a while, but really that was just a way of avoiding confrontation/argument. I figure I'm atheist, in the sense of 'not believing by default'; as it's all completely irrelevant and untestable anyhow you have basically as much reason to believe in God as you would the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

And it continually surprises me just how many people are still religious even in this day and age.

My parents sent me and my younger brother to Sunday School, but unknown to us, they had an agreement that we wouldn't have to go if we came to them and said we thought it was silly or didn't want to go (my Dad's athiest, my Mum believes). After about two or three weeks we both got sent home for pointing out the obvious absurdities in Genesis (or rather we asked questions the Sunday School teacher couldn't answer, and she said we were a 'disruptive influence'). It's one of my earliest memories (I was about 6 and my brother was 5) because I still remember how proud my Dad was.

I routinely pray for my lottery numbers to come up but I recognise it for the piece of bad code that it is.

 

[DaGaffer]

To answer a question with a question then - do you believe faith is a conscious choice? Quite often I see phrases that imply it is a willing decision made, like Ono said "it costs you little", or as in Pascal's wager, but surely faith by its definition is not something reasoned out, but something that exists purely for its own purpose. You can't manufacture it, or rationalise it, it's a leap. You either do, or you don't.

Am I the only one that thinks like this?

The last time I prayed was about 17 years ago. I used to be scared there was a ghost in my room.

I think its part and parcel of the nature/nurture debate. Most religious faith (or lack of it) is part of the conditioning you receive when growing up. Some people go on to change their views when they get older, rejecting their religious development (or finding faith), but most people don't.

I personally think 'faith' is a learned behaviour, the the propensity to have faith is part of your brain chemistry.

 

[Ono]

Faith is a conscious choice. God gave us all free will.

I chose to believe in God (about 14 years ago). Not saying it was easy as not everything He does is tangible, but that is what faith is all about.

 

[Damini]

I think its part and parcel of the nature/nurture debate. Most religious faith (or lack of it) is part of the conditioning you receive when growing up. Some people go on to change their views when they get older, rejecting their religious development (or finding faith), but most people don't.

I personally think 'faith' is a learned behaviour, the the propensity to have faith is part of your brain chemistry.

I'm not sure - I was sent to Sunday School, and religious summer activity events, and so it wasn't as if I wasn't exposed to religion at a young age. I don't remember actually believing though - when I was four I was sent to a psychiatrist because I had a phobia of dying, and of other people dying, and not once do I remember thinking then I'd go to heaven. Perhaps that phobia is the reason why I was sent to sunday school by my parents, to give me some faith to balance out the worry, or because they wanted me to have the same growing up experience as they did - neither of them are practicing Christians. I don't recall ever believing - my memory of actively being turned against the church was when they made me read a Chick style comic when I was about eight, perhaps younger. I hated the sentiment expressed in it, and refused to go anymore. When I used to pray as a child, it was because that was what you were supposed to do in a given situation, rather than because I believed it went anywhere. When I was afraid of a ghost, I prayed because I thought ghosts were afraid of prayer, and so on. Not because I believed anyone was listening.

I'm being rambley. In summary, what I'm trying to say is that I suppose whilst not from a religious background per se, I was exposed to religion from an early age, and I don't recall ever having faith. It wasn't a choice, not a decision foisted on me by others, just something that never settled in me.

 

[GDW]

Last night I prayed to Crom....

..I prayed to see my enemies driven before me and for the lamentation of the women.




















(in an Arnie accent )

 

[old.Tohtori]

Said a lil wish to a few gods last night. Haven't today, but today's been need free. Have to throw one for the love god for a message from an old friend i got earlier.

 

[Lazarus]

cant remember when I actually prayed (went through the motions, but with no actual belief)

religion may be a little like opera - 3 types of people.

Those that love it (born to believe if you like)
Folk that grow to appreciate it (choose to believe)
folk that hate it (everyone else)

i dont believe, but have no problem respecting other peoples right to believe.

Father in Law prays 5 times a day

 

[ECA]

I'm pretty agnostic.
My take in organised religion is that if there is a god so powerful/mighty/just/blah, then why would he need such a cock up his ass that we all have to pray to him or believe in him, does he need some sort of lame self fulfillment? I suspect God would be pretty ambivalent either way and that our concepts of good and evil mean nothing.

Factor in that if he's created us and we're flawed its gods fault anyway so god gets gods jollies making us try to act against the flaws god made. gg.


Or are we just part of a really big game of the sims v82u9487298572389579257928

 

[~Yuckfou~]

I don't ever pray, except for saying 'Allahu Akbar' while on my knees facing east several times a day so as not to upset anyone.

 

[Guest]

are all the people who pray the ones that posted on the "i'm depressed" thread

 

[Ormorof]

i guess im agnostic though, i dont really pray, i honestly dont understand religion, to me it just makes no sense occupying so much of your time to praying when you could be getting on with your life..

also, i asked a priest who came visiting our school this once and he ignored me, but could anyone tell me why you are supposed to go to church to pray as a christian? if god is omnipotent all caring etc surely he can hear you just as well if you pray at home as in a church? (this isnt trying to stir shit im genuinely always been curious about this but everytime ive asked a christian they seem to take offence :s )

 

[Conchabar]

i have never prayed voluntarily, praying is futile, religion is made up. people need to beleive in something. praying is like talking to a wall. ive seen people pray there hearts out and still die

if god does exist and u pray to the wrong god that would be blasphemous, go figure, ure god, might be the wrong god ^^

end of the day all religions share a simular trait, its an early form of control, look whats happening with the current jihads of the world and crusade of george bush, religion is the most stupid thing that early man ever made.

i still laugh when people pray when they are about to die just to feel better haha

my opinion :touch:

 

[old.user4556]

I don't ever pray, except for saying 'Allahu Akbar' while on my knees facing east several times a day so as not to upset anyone.

Excellent point