OPINIONS UPON PRAYER BY A SCIENTIST AND A DIVINE.

White Ribbon, Volume 32, Issue 369, 18 March 1926, Page 6

OPINIONS UPON PRAYER BY A SCIENTIST AND A DIVINE.

In a recent magazine article, aiys the “New Orleans Christian Advocate,” on * of the most distinguished nerve specialists in this country declared that he recommends prayer to those who arc threateneet with a nervous breakdown. He* was speaking primarily as a man of science, and not as a theologian; his words, therefore, are specially signifl cant to those who *l**mand a scientific bass for the*ii religion. His striking words are: “Prayer in the sense* of com munion with tin* infinite is a universal need. The question of whether or not you area firm believer in some particu lar cie*e*d is not involved in this. One might hope you are a professing Chris tian, and that you can pray with the* Christian’s faith; but whether or not this be so, I must te*ll you that both the man with strong nerves and the* man with w**ak ones find new resource's an*l strength in prayer.” THE MYSTERY OF PRAYER. It is sometim**s urged that prayer ts mysterious. So is everything else if we stop to think about it. Matter is a mystery, Nobody knows what matter is. Force is a mystery. Nobody knows w l at force is. gravitation is a mystery. Nobexlv knows what takes place when we drop a lump of sugar into a cup of coffee. Whether the change is mechanical or chemical, the very wisest men are not able to say. We know just one te ing. that by dropping sugar into the col.ee the coffee is sweetened. For most of us that is enough. We know that dropping a prayer Into a day we sweeten the day. How this is brought about we do not know. Who has sight so keen and strong that it can follow the flight of song or flight of prayer? Why should we not be as reasonnb’** and practical in our religion as we are at our dinner tables? — Charles E. Jefferson, D.D.