Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1872-09-25
The Remedial Agency of Prayer.

The religious newspapers have been some
what agltated recently over a suggestion
made by some scientists in England, to test
he efficacy of prayer in healing diseases.
Professors Huxley and Tyndal have propos-
ed, a test, that some ward of hospital
-uould be selt cted, and especial prayers
-hOuld be offered for a specified time Tor the
recovery OF the patients 10 that ward Then
, com parson OF the death rate in such ward
sIth the death rate in other similar wards
~ which were patients similarly diseased
nd under like treatment except the use OF
-pecial prayer } was to be IN ide, and the re-
suit 70 be received as evidence of the rene
dial effect of prayers for the recovery Of
che sick. The challenge has not, as yet g,
been accepted, and is not likely to be but it
mas ei to a variety of discourse, and in some
-asos of denunciation of the skepticism that
could propose such a test. We presume the
prayers offered in the churches of England
bout year ago, for the recovery of the
Prince of Wal s, with the thanks after
wards Offered for his recovery-as though
that recovery had been brought about by
the operation of other than natural causes -
may have led to the discussion out of which
this challenge grew.
An editorial article in last weeks Watch
man and Journal, (written we presume, by
an orthodox clergyman while it seems to US
to mIsapprehend partially, at least, the
scope Of the test proposed by Professors
Huxley and Tyndal, is yet valuable as a
contribution from an orthodox standpoint
20 proper understanding of the Office of
prayer The writer says
/ The obvious objections to this guage to
measure prayer seem not to occur to these
I minent men. Ii Is possible that natural and
spiritual forces are governed by laws utterly
dssImilar, and that either will refuse to
work ID the realm of the other. There are
certain purely spiritual elements, such as
/ kindness. mercy, gratitude, aspiration, an
ger, fear, faith and love, that cannot be
weighed in scales or measured by the ordl-
nary tests OF dyDamics. 1t is quite well to
say that steam engine has forty horse pow
er, but to say that a man loves or hates by
80 much horse power would be the bodesu
possible figure of speech. Now we imagine
that prayer, growing as it does out of the
spiritual sentiments Its elements being faith
gratitude, fear, hope and love, could hardly
be set natura ly TO any physical or mechan-
zeal work. A broken leg can be set with
spllnts by skiliul surgsJn, when he would
ut erly waste his breath in trying to set it
by prayer. We do not take natural causes
to produce spiritual effects, nor spiritual
causes to produce natural effects. Spiritual
causes may sometimes come in to aid natur-
al, as when anger or love increase the power
OF the body to destroy hated object or to
save beloved object. But no man. unless
be Is distinguished scientist, would think
of putting love and faith to do the work of
drugs and medicines, to binding broken
limbs or curing tumors and levers
This seems to be a just discrimination be-
tween the Office of prayer as spiritua
agent and as natural agent. Prayers for
rain or fair weather are not likely to change
tie conditions of the atmosphere in the