atheist equivalent of prayer

God just listens and lets you work it out for yourself." . My love of religion, my commitment to religious community, and my personal atheism exist side by side, deep and unforced, beliefs that I find written into my very bones. There is the equally effective “I’ll kill a small mammal for you”, but that would (should) creep your friend out. Posts about Prayers for the Conversion of Atheists written by prayers4reparation. In a hospital, people pray with a vulnerable sincerity deserving of our unreserved reverence, our love. Pray also that your life will be a witness to him—a witness to Christ’s peace and joy. Six percent of them pray every day, we’re told by the Pew Research Center. Even if you don’t believe in God, there is nothing that stops you from personifying reality and then having a conversation with it.”. It can sort of ‘reset’ my brain into a more relaxed slower pace. This was very true for me at times. I regularly will think, or even say out loud, things such as, “Don’t let me make a fool of myself in front of that pretty barista,” or, “I really hope I get this job.” For example. I’ve found I prefer that because it doesn’t raise a million questions about this person who is supposed to be talking back to me – who are they? Praying before a test was a way of acknowledging the preparation I had done and get into the right mindset. What is the atheist equivalent of the Sinner's Prayer for when people want to convert to atheism? As far as an alternative to "you are in my prayers" goes, it really depends on who the person is, what my relationship with them is, and what the circumstances are - "I'll be thinking of you" is my knee-jerk default, but generally in situations where I genuinely want someone to know I wish them well, are concerned about them, want to support them, etc, then I focus more on trying to demonstrate that than on figuring out a pat phrase to give them. "Is not prayer a study of truth? And there was something powerful happening in that room. Atheists are capable of expressing compassion too so as an alternative to "thoughts and prayers" in an event like this I'm going to suggest we offer "hopes and wishes for better luck in the future." I loved religion wherever I found it. Two government ministries in Egypt have been ordered to produce a national plan to “confront and eliminate” atheism. I would simply start to think aloud following one idea into another. I am not religious. I never intended to be an atheist. p.s. I never decided. So what, exactly, was happening when I prayed for Ernesto and his family? (Moreso, in my opinion, than praying, because it requires no cognitive effort.). I guess if you took this to the extreme, it’d be called meditation. The prayer that I pray is an articulation of our connection, a deep investment in the lives and beliefs of fellow human beings. Some atheists contribute to religious charities as well, for the sake of the practical good they do. But when I am praying for a patient in the hospital, it’s not about me. After only a minute or so I feel very relaxed, and then I think about my problem, and think about how I have succeeded in the past, and how I can apply myself in the present. The genius here is in the details. I’m not sure there’s anything that can replace “I’ll pray for you” if you’re talking with a Christian who thinks you’re a Christian and therefore they’re expecting you to say “I’ll pray for you”. It doesn’t matter if nobody is listening because there was nobody there when you prayed and it still “worked”. The person who wrote this prayer, wrote it down and left it, because they are reaching out for support, for community. I think Colin is right – just take a few seconds to clear your head and organize your thoughts. It’s finding faith in one’s self. Or are these psychological games purely the domain of religion? Saying ‘I’ll pray for you’ is the Christian equivalent of pulling a burning building off of your friends back. Except that I kind of miss it. Or prayers said at the top of public meetings, a reminder that non-Christians don’t really belong. In "a time for prayer OR silent reflection,” I’m the silent reflection. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. They want me to talk to God for them, but won’t a prayer from me be empty? It seems like a nice, quaint 17th century thing to do. But he says he prays, I asked him to who, and he said "someone" so, who is it that he prays to, and are they even going to hear him pray, so that who ever he is praying to can answer his prayers? As for the praying for friends thing, there’s always the “thinking of you” or “my condolences” comments that really are the same, secularized version. I loved it. Even the more thoughtful approaches to prayer haven’t gotten through to me. The prayers are simply, “help,” “thanks,” and “wow.” I loved the book, and I love the idea of cultivating a deeper practice of interdependence, gratitude, and awe. And I know it’s not the same! There are other ways I connect to the sublime and the sacred, but without a belief in God, prayer can’t really be one of them. Close • Posted by. There are certain times, like giving a sermon for example, when telling my own story, speaking only from my own conviction, is the most important thing. Do we just throw away all the sacred books, bulldoze the churches and forget religion completely? I read Anne Lamott’s book about the “three essential prayers” she thinks every person should learn. Religious disbelief is viewed with alarm in most Arab countries. So here are four keys to praying like a Pentecostal... as an atheist. "The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays." Prayer has been described in its sublimity as “an Something about the end of a life, the family's intense need, the connection formed when they reached for me, the chaplain, asking me to carry their sadness and their hopes, asking me to help them put it all into words and to tell their God what they need. Not all prayer is the same. I never intended to be an atheist, but here I am. Thus it's not the mere act of praying for an atheist that causes the person to be annoyed, though that may also be the case to some degree, but rather the fact that the theist makes a point of announcing that they are praying for the atheist. And when I came to terms with my lack of belief in God, I never felt like I was missing out on much by missing out on prayer. I went to church, to mass, to Hindu temple, to synagogue, and to my mid-Missouri town’s lone mosque. YMMV. Those “prayers” would go on for more than an hour. In "a time for prayer OR silent reflection,” I’m the silent … ( Log Out /  Discover and share Atheist Funny Quotes About Prayer. I wasn’t praying to any God, but I was praying. Favourite answer. Not the God part, but the pausing and recognizing and pulling things together. Or perhaps more importantly, why would an atheist want to? Where people ask for prayers, I say "my hopes and best thoughts are with you, and if there is anything I can do to help you please let me know". I coughed through the incense, fumbled the right-to-left prayer books, and soaked in the powerful peace that can happen when faith communities come together. I have no idea who it is, but it feels like I’m heard. The “please, please, please let me find my wallet,” or “I promise I’ll never I’ll never eat pizza again if I can just have this one thing.”. In my work as a chaplain, I have become almost comfortable offering sincere prayers for peace, for healing, and for God’s presence in patients’ lives. Prayer - Prayer - Forms of prayer in the religions of the world: The forms that prayer takes in the religions of the world, though varied, generally follow certain fixed patterns. You have to look at what prayer really is – fooling yourself into talking to a deity for a feel-good feeling. 3. Mike, I love your comment, “Well their is no equivalent to requesting the suspension of the laws of nature for the benefit of your friend…” — Brilliant! Prayers at the Saida Zainab mosque in downtown Cairo, December 2013 This article is a preview from the Summer 2015 edition of New Humanist. I think of prayer as meditation and I hope to continue practicing a secular version of it. It means a lot more in the long run … A plea for help, for strength? I came into the room wanting to help, and expecting to feel helpless. I’m an atheist that gew up in an very secular country (France), so I’m not sure what kind of prayer is practised in the US beside the megachurch transe and glossolalia. It seems to me that “prayer” is actually meditation (or what Zen people call “sitting”), dressed up with an imaginary address to a Sky Father in hopes that he will go out of his way to do something special for the person praying (in the case of petitionary prayer). Especially after a direct request for prayer, responding by saying “I’m thinking of you” would be a blow… not only because I’m an in-the-closet atheist, but because I know they view it as both an effortless gesture on my part AND vital to my aunt’s recovery. I find that I perform the atheistic equivalent of prayer quite regularly; it is, like people have said, basically talking to yourself. When I’m down, or anxious about work, or whatever, I find that the deep breathing/focusing thing works pretty well most of the time–when I question myself or lose confidence in myself, or I’m just plain worrying, I sit down and breathe, at first just concentrating on relaxing and listening/feeling the air moving in and out. And no, I don’t say it out loud within hearing distance of the pretty barista. An atheist can express a wish or articulate a plan in prayer as a way of envisioning a positive outcome and thereby increasing its likelihood through suitable actions. But I never prayed, so I don’t know how it works from personal experience. To open ourselves up to some change, to pray heartily, and to learn something. very interesting, but I don’t agree with you 6 years ago. I was prepared to hold their sadness and anger, to offer support and affirmation of their grief. I have not yet found a way to respond to these, or talk to my aunt, without acquiescing that I’m praying for them. We never actually spoke, me and Ernesto. Do atheists and agnostics pray? Those things might sound lame but at least I would be giving a response which acknowledges that they communicated something which is or will be painful/difficult/stressful. When it comes down to it, I lack, quite simply and sincerely, any belief in God, an afterlife, or anything not earthly, observable. So prayer, I've gradually come to realize, just isn't for atheists like me. Tomorrow there is that big event coming up, I sure hope it will turn out allright,), then my secular equivalent is writing a diary entry when my thoughts prevent me from going to sleep. I had thought that my own theology would get between us and turn those prayers into lies. But I no longer run from prayer. It’s midterm week at Wheaton, and everybody is frantically taking exams, writing papers, and getting ready for Fall Break. To most others, I think it’s important not just that you’re thinking about them (30 seconds of pity, for instance, is not what they want) but that you’re doing so with the intention of helping them out. It seems so obvious that an atheist does not pray, and like some of my fellow UUs, I take for granted the freedom to pick and choose my religious practice, so if something doesn’t fit with my particular theology, count me out. Your post made it to this blog: And no, I don’t say it … For devotions in every class, we pray for our exams, preservation of sanity, and safety traveling during Fall Break. I would probably say “I’m sorry” or “I hope things work out” or even “I’ll be hoping things work out”/”I’ll be thinking of you” which is about as close as I could get to “I’ll pray for you”. Etc etc. I have brought you something. Or, as Hugo said, personifying the universe or reality of whatever and addressing it. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. I just don't understand how an Atheist or Agnostic can "pray" if they don't believe in anything, or know if God exists. at a very young age. People may argue with what we say—but they can’t argue with the reality of a life that’s been transformed by Christ. Sometimes it was a last-ditch plea for God to save me from my lack of studying. Meeting Ernesto was the beginning of a shift in my feelings on how an atheist might pray. All rights reserved. First, silently read the prayer you have. The problem was, when I looked honestly into my own heart, there just wasn’t any “religion” there, in the way I had been taught to think about it. Not for God to hear, as far as I am concerned, but for us to hear. Is there a name? A deity or god is a supernatural being considered divine or sacred. Rather than “I’ll pray for you”, I go with something like “I’ll be thinking of you”. So wrong, where to start? I am learning something. When UU churches set time aside for prayer, there’s always that: “or meditation” included, because it’s pretty much understood that atheists, humanists, even agnostics, don’t go in for that “prayer” stuff. I agree with what other have said. So, instead … Can an atheist pray, and why would she want to? It doesn’t suspend any natural laws, but at least it is something real and can actually be delivered. When we met, Ernesto was dying. It has parenthetical documentation. I don’t know how you would define “prayer,” but I think for most people it includes something like, “talking to God,” or some kind of communicating with the Holy outside of yourself. A way to recognize the good, prepare for the worst, and put your mind at ease, maybe with a small ritual? Yes, indeedy. Just take 5-15 seconds to stop whatever you’re doing, clear your mind, and breathe deeply. But sometimes, being in community is more important than being in agreement. HARVARD DIVINITY SCHOOL45 Francis Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138   617.495.5761. my.hds | Harvard University | Privacy | Accessibility | Digital Accessibility | Trademark Notice | Reporting Copyright InfringementsCopyright © 2021 President and Fellows of Harvard College. Growing up Unitarian Universalist, I was encouraged to experiment with prayer, meditation, and spirituality of all stripes. Prayer, an act of communication by humans with the sacred or holy—God, the gods, the transcendent realm, or supernatural powers. Ernesto and his family were the first people I prayed for in the hospital, but they were far from the last. And today, this congregation has been entrusted with the hopes and the gratitude and the deep spiritual need in each of these prayers. I’ve thought about this a lot because I didn’t want to lose anything valuable when I stopped praying – which was a very intentional step I took about six years ago. And when something that you prayed for happens you always use the logical fallacy of post hoc ergo propter hoc (look it up). ( Log Out /  They probably won't trouble you with such requests or much else thereafter. 5 minutes ago. “I will keep you in my thoughts”, is what I say to someone in a difficult situation. There are many who will see what I am calling “prayer” as a ridiculous heresy. And plenty of believers do pray in the sincere belief that God will reach down and alter the world in their favor. The first comment, imperfectly translated into English: “I don’t believe in a ‘higher power’ (not the best word), but I do sometimes enjoy having a running conversation with someone in my head. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. For the faithful, it is a way to focus on faith, a positive thing. And that’s fine. Why pray when no one’s there to hear me? I don't accept that there is an "out there" from where answers to prayers can come. You also have to be willing to give up your anxiety! Emdog. The author has given us a profoundly unlikeable character in the beginning and interwoven the POV of an eight year old boy and a woman who is clearly deranged. Change ). Won’t the words come out meaningless? They’re Wheaties (the whole damn family) and so I get bi-weekly prayer requests and praises that God has delivered yet another blow, but it must be somehow in the name of glory, etc. Or are these psychological games purely the domain of religion? This page is dedicated to prayer for some of our culture’s most influential atheists, as well as agnostics and anti-theists. I regularly will think, or even say out loud, things such as, “Don’t let me make a fool of myself in front of that pretty barista,” or, “I really hope I get this job.” For example. And I am just as guilty as the next UU of this, and honestly will defend it most of the time. Maybe it’s not very enlightening but at least I know who I’m dealing with! Relevance. Or, as Hugo said, personifying the universe or reality of whatever and addressing it. Or, is praying essentially the same as thinking? Answer Save. Or would we recycle the components of worship for practical secular use? You pray for a suffering family in your church, but you can’t be bothered to bring them food. You seem to think atheism is a religion. I’d like to do it more but I just don’t get around to it much because I’m disorganized. It empowers one to have the confidence and fortitude to go out in the world and do what needs to be done. Or the kind of frantic undirected prayers that come when we really want something. Some atheists even do voluntary work for charities founded on a theistic basis. It is our commitment to keep these individuals in our prayers until the day each one of them is either saved or passes on. It’s a question not just for me, but for our entire, theologically diverse, faith community. Prayer can be a kind of poetry of the heart, something that atheists need not deny themselves. However, I don't feel that you bowing your head while I pray cheapens my worship in the slightest; rather, as mkultra said, it's a gesture of respect for the solemnity of … It’s relaxing. And I think that might be more true than I first realized. I am feeling the leading of the Nonexistent Spirit calling me to turn from a life of not doing drugs and not touching my willy. If it looks like the “day debriefing” I see in some movies (Dear god, today so and so happened and it made me feel so and so and I should try harder to this ans that. I sometimes do just…sit quietly, stilling myself in the same way I did for prayer…and it does relax me and calm me mentally. http://rightsaidreverend.wordpress.com/2007/10/17/eendag-sal-ons-dalk-verstaan/. It's been said, sometimes jokingly, that Unitarian Universalists are forever looking ahead in the hymnals as we sing, making sure there is nothing in the language we disagree with. "The focus of prayer is not the self” he wrote. Prayers4reparation's Blog …"If My people who bear My name, humble themselves and pray and seek My presence and turn from their wicked ways, I Myself will hear from Heaven and forgive their sins…" (2 Chron. I used to be one of those Christians who prayed at every opportunity, including before a test. Prayer recognizes the importance of the wish. You can tell them that you're an atheist, don't pray, don't believe in prayer, don't believe in miracles, and recommend that people place more confidence in science, reason, and being active in search of solutions rather than prayer or gods. I guess that's one of the key differences between what I'm talking about and the notion that prayer is a petition for help from "out there" somewhere. The homily below was delivered at Follen Community Church on July 9, 2017. But a dozen pairs of teary eyes turned to me. Find a good listener. I didn’t have to believe we were talking to God to see something real in that. I’m absolutely not interested in the mystical dialog part of prayer anymore but I think it had a centering, quieting, calming effect on my mental state that it would be good for me to still make a part of my life. Do atheists pray? Oh, and another take on variations on “prayer”, consider for example the very first comment of this post: http://www.emergentvillage.com/weblog/prayer-as-projection. And that's where I always saw myself. His wife was there, his children and cousins and brothers, his grandchildren. I find that I perform the atheistic equivalent of prayer quite regularly; it is, like people have said, basically talking to yourself. Students and teachers remain free to pray in private, such as a silent prayer or one conducted in private setting, but this is anathema to those hypocrites who, as described in Matthew 6:5-6, prefer that their worship be equivalent to banging a drum while yelling "Look at me, I'm loving Jesus!". The small hospital room was crowded with easily 15 people, Ernesto’s bed in the center. Why would atheists want to pray if they don’t believe in God? Observant Muslims have to say five daily prayers, and devout Jews have even more. Those words of gratitude and love and hope are heard by those who most need to hear them. Found in all religions in all times, prayer may be a corporate or personal act utilizing various forms and techniques. Won’t it feel like a lie on my tongue? It’s a little social ritual that is broken if you don’t say that – and yet saying it would be a lie. “As I once overheard a Wheaton student say to another, “sometimes I don’t know if I’m praying or thinking”.”. I think it’s incredibly hokey. This isn’t a conversion story about an atheist who sees the error of her ways and the power of the Lord. Some of the prayers I brought here are written in language you wouldn’t use or contain theologies you wouldn’t agree with. I'm simply asking the question of how to pray when you're an atheist because I loved to pray as a Christian and I still love praying as a nonbeliever. It’s comforting, even when one understands that nothing besides oneself is going to act on the request. In the Brigham and Women’s Hospital chapel, patients and medical staff write prayers down on sticky notes and leave them to be prayed by hospital chaplains. Ernesto isn’t his real name, for the sake of confidentiality, but this guy changed me. And those prayers, those prayers were far from empty. Know the person who wrote this, and hold them close to your heart as you take a breath. If you know it’s just a personification of whatever abstract notion, you could still employ “prayer” in a traditional way, without feeling hypocritical… I think? In speaking to you, I have tried to convey how healing I find it to pray aloud the prayers of others. Lv 6. I never thought I could truly pray, because there’s no one listening. The power of prayer can be real, but not as divine intervention. —Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher and theologian (1813-55) "Perhaps that's why prayer works, sometimes, for some people—because God is mute, and he doesn't give advice or try to fix things. If you feel stressed take a moment to slow down and reflect. share. Well their is no equivalent to requesting the suspension of the laws of nature for the benefit of your friend. I have a friend who says he is an Atheist, or maybe Agnostic. Give it a try. Can an atheist pray? MDiv candidate and humanist chaplain Sally Fritsche speaks about her experience praying with hospital patients. So, yes, to get the most pressing question out of the way, an atheist can in fact pray (if we stretch the definition of prayer just a little). Prayer cannot bring water to parched land, nor mend a broken bridge, nor rebuild a ruined city, but prayer can water an arid soul, mend a broken heart, and rebuild a weakened will. Yes, among Christians at least, the phrase "pray for (someone)" is literally a request that you say a prayer for their health/safety/recovery/etc. Let’s make a theoretical assumption that tomorrow we all wake up and it’s obvious to everyone that God doesn’t exist. And that's where I always saw myself. As songs can inspire us, so too can prayers. There isn't a literal equivalent that avoids including prayer, but a similar secular phrase would be to "keep (someone) in your thoughts". But here, someone is listening. I will usually tell a person that they are in my thoughts and make myself available to them for help or friendship (or whatever is appropriate for the situation). 1. But I feel safe talking with myself. No one ever prayed heartily without learning something.”. And until recently I’ve never had to give much thought to the alternative—to prayer. Those prayers are powerful, and those prayers were prayed by an atheist. How can I trust them if they send people to hell? 13 comments. But let’s not be afraid of some change. A diagnosis? Not all prayer is the same. I was the only chaplain on call, so I went. I certainly would never expect an atheist to say 'Amen,' or whatever your local religious equivalent is. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines deity as "a god or goddess (in a polytheistic religion)", or anything revered as divine. After today, let the answers to these questions be a little less clear, and let us remember how it can feel to pray the prayers of others with our whole hearts, to stop TRYING, for half a breath, to make a prayer fit neatly into our theology, and just let it come. In addition, encourage him to face honestly the consequences of his atheism (which many atheists, I’ve discovered, never do).

Ag + Naoh, Pokemon Fire Red Entei, What Is The Rmd For 2021, Southern Cassowary Habitat, God Of War Best Difficulty, Brinkmann Split‑door Smoker, Bob's Red Mill Active Dry Yeast, City Of Springfield Ma Website, Samsung 8gb Ddr4 2400mhz Laptop Ram, Foreo Bear Mini Vs Nuface Mini, Gdp At Market Price Formula, Spray Booth Manufacturers Uk, Crybaby Roblox Id Code Dababy,