don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

When John Kerry and George W. Bush delivered what Maureen Dowd called bouquets of uxoriousness and spirituality ("Courting the Finicky Women," New York Times, October 15, 2004) in their third presidential debate at Arizona State, I was no longer "the master of my own domain," so to speak. I had to engage in the self-abuse of commenting on prayer, from a wellness perspective. MY wellness perspective.

Being an infidel, my perspective on prayer is both predictable and controversial. Most won't agree with it. Nevertheless, I do have a strong sense (like six-year old "Calvin" of the late, lamented comic strip "Calvin and Hobbes" by Bill Watterson), that everyone is richly entitled to my opinions, including this one.  

In any event, both candidates, but particularly Mr. Bush, talked about their religiosity in general and how much they pray in particular. Bush: I pray a lot...I pray for strength. I pray for wisdom. I pray for our troops in harm's way. I pray for my family. I pray for my little girls...I love the fact that people pray for me and my family all around the country. Somebody asked me one time, 'How do you know?' I said, 'I just feel it.

Well, that's just swell. Under most circumstances, I would never object nor even pay much attention to professions of how someone loves to pray. Fine. I have no problem with someone doing anything he likes that has no affect on me and seems to invite no harm to anyone else. I certainly believe everyone has a right to worship any god (or no gods) anyway he/she likes. Respecting freedoms for others is just a sensible way to protect the chances that they will respect mine. 

Yet, this was palpably different. This was the commander-in-chief, the head of (my) state and the man sworn to uphold the secular US Constitution professing to be guided by and dependent on one-way communications with a deity that may or may not exist. If the deity does exist, he/she or it may or may not respond to (some kind of) importuning by believers. Basically, I believe the best route to strength is wise behavior, the best paths to wisdom involve study and critical thinking and the most sensible approach to safeguarding the best interests of our troops is not to send them into harm's way unnecessarily or under false pretenses. 

Praying about these kinds of things, especially if it involves seeking favors, seems an end run around personal responsibility for one's decisions, policies and actions.

In this case, the person doing all the praying is the head of state, and all that praying takes time, energy or focus away from the time that could be spent thinking rationally about the business of running the country. Bush's words call to mind a scene in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part I. Glendower boasts that he can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hotspur replies, Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them?

Therein lies the rub. Do "they" ever come when you call for them? Are prayers ever answered? If not, it might be a very bad thing to have a head of state calling on his version of spirits from the vasty deep or wherever when he should be absorbed and engaged in minding the secular affairs of government. 

Personally, I want someone in the Oval Office who will at all times think and act rationally in the Nation's best interests. I would rather the president be thinking, not praying.   

To be frank, I can only pray that Bush (and candidate Kerry) are pandering to the voters, that they are carrying on in this fashion to woo segments of the population who love this stuff. If, alas, they are serious about all this praying, we're all in deep doo doo. In that case, given all the problems in the world that rely on a wise and engaged president grounded in the realities of THIS world, all I can say, in despair, is, Yike. God help us.

In Part Two of this essay, I'll address the controversial topic of whether there is sound evidence, as many believers claim, that prayer can heal illness.

Meanwhile, be sure to always look on the bright side of life--and be well.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the MENTAL DOMAIN under the skill area of emotional intelligence. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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