Spindrift Experiment Summary

Firstly, the speaker, subject and audience are stated. The topic itself is the idea of praying and what scientists thought of the concept. Although the speaker is Albert Einstein, he didn’t use the complex words he would use when talking to a well-educated gentleman. Since the audience is a sixth grader, Einstein used simple sentences to make it more understandable to her at her reading

Prayer is an essential to any kind of religious faith. Over the years and years of believing in a higher power,

9 “So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.

The video titled Why People Believe Weird Things by Michael Shermer, was interesting to see. I recognize that antenna that he said was used to search for marijuana in schools. I remember seeing it on a show on television. They were in an abandoned house and calling spirits, if the antenna moved, they were getting closer. It seems that we believe in supernatural ideas since that is what we as humans are doing, we are seekers. Moreover, some of us realize that it is kooky or not true accordingly we move on, but others do not. One quote by Shermer, caught my attention, “You can say a miracle occurs, but it doesn’t explain anything or offer anything.” I believe it was last week when the Pope canonized Mother Teresa; she was made a saint. One step is a miracle or healing. I believe two different people/families stated they had prayed to her consequently their family member was cured. I always wondered how does anyone know that praying did indeed heal. No doubt, you ought to be a devout

He had watched me one day as I prayed at dusk. ‘’Why do you cry when you pray?” he asked, as though he knew me well. “I don 't know,” I answered, troubled. I had never asked myself that question. I cried because something inside me felt the need to cry. That was all I knew. “Why do you pray?” he asked after a moment. Why did I pray? Strange question. Why did I live? Why did I breathe? “I don 't know,” I told him, even more troubled and ill at ease. “I don 't know.” (Weisel, 1986, pg. 4)

In (Matthew 6:6 NIV), Jesus explains the merits of praying to the lord God and the reward of inner peace, “But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret: and your father who sees in secret will reward you.” It is through this conversation with God that Christians pursue peace in their lives. Prayer can either be private or communal, spontaneous prayer is one way that charismatic communities can come closer to God. The act of prayer allows believers to have a personal conversation with God; it alleviates stress attributed to the monotony of everyday life. Besides prayer, meditation is another way of attaining inner peace, it is an ancient practice within the Christian tradition, which has undertaken a recent revival, a global group that reaffirms the concept of praying and meditating for inner peace is Taizé. Not as popular as prayer and meditation, Lectio Divina, generally known as bible studies is a way for Christians to feel connected to God and to finally attain inner peace. The studying of the sacred scriptures on a day to day basis and reflecting on prayers also maintain a continual connection with God. It is vital to maintain equilibrium between prayer and service, whereby an individual fathoms the notion ‘ora et labora’, in order to equally partake in both prayer, and the concept of action whereby ora develops inner peace, which is mirrored through the

The third movement is from illusion to prayer. Nouwen (1986) indicated that most people live their lives in an illusion that they will never die. They believe that they hold the key to all that happens in their lives. They do not put God first in their lives and they do not realize that God is in control of every aspect of their lives. There are three essentials elements to a fulfilling prayer life; the Bible, silence, and spiritual guide (Nouwen, 1986). Reading the Bible, and being silence as we mediate on the word of God. We gain understanding through the power of the Holy Spirit. These spiritual references are able to help us work through the challenges we may encounter.

The patient is encouraged to focus on the “stream of experience,” and to think of his experiences as “real life,” never questioning what this real means. a) The patient’s feelings, Screwtape says, should be twisted in such a way that he gauges his prayer’s success by the amount which his desired feelings have been fufilled. b) Praying this way destroys real prayer because the patient will begin to see prayer as an

Screwtape uses psychology to manipulate the patient into replacing the intellect and will in prayer with imagination and emotion. To remind the patient of his childhood

Due to differences in worldview, speculation of the possibility of integration of Christianity and psychology exists. Although these differences seem to cause conflict, or undermine integration between psychology and Christianity, some scientific data can be complimentary to the Christian worldview and provide us with a better understanding of humans as a whole. Some problems can arise when attempting to integrate theology and science, such as some Christians having contempt for secular science or secular science believing the Christian worldview is based on irrational thought. Rather than throwing out a view over differences, the differences can be examined and good aspects of psychology that align with the Biblical truths can be found.

Cahn argues that when one is freed from the ball and chain of petitionary prayer,

The two experiments were a tested at different time periods and for different purposes. For instance, the Milgram experiment was originally tested to study obedience to authority, in response to Adolf Eichmann trial, a Nazi war criminal, that stated he,” was just stating orders under the Reich.” The experiment proved to be that under authority rule, actions, even if morally wrong and unethical can be still taken forward with due to a strict authority presence.

Each night, there is a point where the day falls to silence, a silence that encloses you in your own thoughts and reflections. For as long as I can remember, my dad always told me "that is when you pray." His words matched the ones of every Sunday school teacher, but their voices faded as my worries grew. It seemed there were some stresses a man on a cross could not eliminate. Bible stories where Jesus cures people from their pain and problems appeared no different from the storybooks I stopped reading years ago, unrealistic and improbable. I vacillated between the faith instilled in me and the plausibility of things occurring by chance, not by Christ. As each day came to a close, I struggled to thank a voiceless God for a day I wasn’t grateful

The model for our prayer lives is presented by Paul in Ephesians 6:18-20. In this passage,

Having been a Christian for many years I thought that I had a fair knowledge of what it meant to pray. I was amazed and humbled by the idea that through Jesus’ restorative act on the cross I am able to come into God’s presence - and not only come but be welcomed and even longed for. I believed that prayer is a powerful tool to petition God , a vehicle to praise Him , and an instrument to increase our intimacy with Him . I understood that people pray in a variety of ways, based on the teaching they have received, their experience, and even their personality. Most commonly, I engaged in prayer as a conversation with God.