Rick’s Rants and Raves

Georgia’s Governor asks citizens to pray for rain.

“I’m here today to appeal to you and to all Georgians and all people who believe in the power of prayer to ask God to shower our state, our region, our nation with the blessings of water,”

So I’ve already acknowledged I’m an Agnostic Atheist. I’m not writing this to bash people of faith. In fact, even when I was a Christian, I had a hard time believing that prayer could actually influence external events. I’m OK with the idea that prayer can influence individuals. Whether or not that influence is external or internal then becomes a matter of polite discussion.

But to actually implore people to pray for rain seems to beg a number of questions:

• Why would god allow the drought to persist, putting lives and livelihoods in danger, if a prayer is all it would take to end the drought?
• How soon must the rains come in order for it to be considered a successful prayer? Surely, it will rain. It will rain somewhere in “our state, our region, our nation”. Oh, wait, yesterday it rained in Michigan. Our prayers have been answered! DOH, we really should have been more specific…
• If it rains in only one part of the drought affected area, but not others, does that mean the residents who received rain prayed better than the residents who didn’t?
• Why is prayer the proper method to ask for rain? Why not a rain dance? Why not a rain pledge drive? I can just see it now. “Good Christians, God has told me that he’ll shower our state if only we demonstrate through our financial gifts just how much we love God. Give now, and the rains will begin. We’re only $300,000 short of our goal!”

“There’s no doubt in our minds,” a resident from Cumming, Georgia, said. “We came prepared with our umbrellas because we fully expected the heavens to open.”
So when the heavens didn’t open, did that shake your faith in God? Did it shake your faith in the power of prayer? If you really believe in the power of prayer, why did you have to go to this event at all? Shouldn’t your prayers have worked from home?

If you believe that God will answer a prayer for rain, then why won’t God heal amputees?