Does prayer help?

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XGH posted about whether prayer really helps heal the sick.

Here’s what I wrote in a comment to his post:

I have no logical reason for believing in God, but I do nonetheless.

Within that system of belief, it similarly doesn't make sense that God would be swayed by prayer to help a sick child, but I believe in the power of tefilla nevertheless.

I can't articulate why. And I won't cheapen my concept of God by asserting that he is somehow greedy for our prayers.

It's just a gut feeling that putting out tefilla helps somehow - that the mass concentration by hundreds or thousands of individuals creates something in the divine universe that has the potential to alter the equation when it comes to that sick child.

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