The Social Science Research Council has just announced the launch of a major new project and grants program entitled “New Directions in the Study of Prayer.”
Posts Tagged ‘prayer’
July 11th, 2011
Prayer is technology. I think.
posted by Jeffrey GuhinMy dissertation is a comparison of the use of prayer, scripture, science education, and “high technology” in four religious high schools, and I’m rather provocatively labeling these four categories “moral technologies”: that is, tools created by (or provided to) humans that are used to accomplish certain moral goals. This definition builds upon Mitcham’s more expansive understanding of technology, and it is obviously deeply indebted to Foucault.
July 21st, 2010
Should one pray for an atheist?
posted by Jake AlterThe health of Christopher Hitchens, an outspoken atheist and critic of religion, has become a major news story. Hitchens is in treatment for esophageal cancer and his debilitating health has caused many to ask: should one pray for an atheist? Courtney Bender, professor of religion at Columbia University, discusses the question and whether “atheists have joined a religiously plural grid as another ‘religious’ minority, taking up a place alongside the Muslims and Sikhs and Zoroastrians.”
March 23rd, 2010
Should prayer be covered by health insurance?
posted by Grace YukichAccording to Christian Scientists, the answer is yes. A New York Times report states that “[t]he church has been lobbying in recent years to convince lawmakers that its approach is an alternative way of tending to the sick, and that its costs should be covered by insurance companies and included in health care legislation.” Still, they are moving beyond their traditional view that members should only use prayer to combat illness. Instead, their position is increasingly to see prayer as one form of health care among many, encouraging members to see a physician when they deem it necessary.
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