Prickly City by Scott Stantis for May 25, 2022

^ ”Sending” one’s ‘thoughts and prayers’ may result in some sort of positive feedback for the sender ^^, but a person or persons identified as recipients never have any idea what the sender thinks or feels.

And as for the supposed entity prayer is supposed to impact, well, A) prove it exists, and we’ll proceed from that event; B) such entity as presented in the Abrahamic religious ideology supposedly is 1) omnipotent and 2) omniscient [“HE” obviously has been aware that this Robb Elementary shooting is on his schedule of events] so, as Epicurus asked some 2300 years ago, ‘Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.’

And what is prayer supposed to accomplish in this instance (or ever, for that matter), anyway? Isn’t “God” aware not only of the shooting in the school, but also the entirety of its aftermath, including its effects on the schoolchildren, their families/friends, and all the others in the building?

Is your prayer a plea to “God” to change any post-shooting scenario already known to “God” from the instant at the “beginning” when he created everything which exists using his omniscience along with all his other faculties?

Isn’t your prayer an insult to the omniscience of “God”?

Does your prayer risk the wrath of this “God”, who in accordance with the Biblical “historical” account could well be enraged by the fact that you try to exert some sort of post hoc influence on “Him” following an event that is obviously a part of “His” eternal plan?

I don’t think Christians have thought this whole “prayers” thing through in any way sufficiently. And don’t get me started on the stupid “thoughts” cliche.