From: David Lucifer (david@lucifer.com)
Date: Fri Oct 24 2003 - 12:24:37 MDT
[Jonathan Davis] The world's largest study into the effects of prayer on patients
undergoing heart surgery has found it appears to make no difference.
[Lucifer] What kind of implications does this study have? I'm inclined to take this as evidence against the existence of certain classes of gods through the use of modus tollens (mentioned on another thread recently).
Something along the lines of:
1. If God exists, then God answers prayers.
2. If God answers prayers, then prayers make a difference.
3. Prayers don't make a difference. (results of the study)
4. Therefore God does not exist.
Of course a theist could dispute any of the premises, maybe God doesn't answer prayers. Maybe prayers aren't supposed to make a difference. Maybe the study is flawed. If the study is flawed, it should be possible to point out exactly why. If the theist is forced to retreat on either of the first two premises, that would be interesting too as it clarifies what they believe and what kind of claims they can make.
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