I don't know what someone said here, but I realized that I was assuming that "magical thinking" was a negative term.

I think I started that (and then ran away to do work. bleah). I tried to explain that I didn't mean it dismissively and can see where that might play an important part in people's lives. Though I came back here and saw Plei, Jess and ita made my arguments for me and did it better than I likely would have.

I'd also like to point out that I do live in Texas, and yeah the religiosity can be absolutely stifling.

Yeah, I work at a largely African-American institution, and people of color tend to be more overt about their religiosity, so I get told to "have a blessed day" and get emails with bible verses in the sig line. I'm all for people having their faith (or not!), but it's not appropriate at work.

"Prayer is real" doesn't tweak me, really, not because I do pray, but because I hear it with more of a concrete meaning behind it.

See this makes me twinge a bit. The idea that prayer is magical thinking is concrete. It is thinking that has no root in science. I'm not dismissing the role it has in people's lives.

I think it's completely different from telling someone they'll go to hell or what is or isn't a sin. I am not saying anything bad will happen to you for praying.

The idea that prayer is magical thinking is concrete.

That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying I play a semantics game in my head.

emails with bible verses in the sig line. I'm all for people having their faith (or not!), but it's not appropriate at work.

Oh, that drives me batshit.

I know I've mentioned that one of my direct reports is highly religious in some flavor of evangelical. I'm so grateful that we have the kind of dynamic we have. It's meant that my talking about anything even vaguely political or religous is off limits at work, which sucks sometimes. But at the same time she's not talking about religion, except in a practical sense. (Like, if she's talking about someone from church or something that's happening there she's not pretending it's not.) And I know she goes to church on a couple of weeknights, and Sundays especially are difficult for her to work so I do my best to not need to require it of her. But it's a delicate balance to be sure.

The idea that prayer is magical thinking is concrete. It is thinking that has no root in science.

But that's only if you assume that everybody who prays is thinking the same thing.

I once was at a brunch for a GOVERNMENT AGENCY where they said grace before the brunch!

Several weeks ago I was at a charity gala where there was some sort of televangelist-like moment that made me, my semi-religious friend, and our Jewish seat mates really uncomfortable. (Of course the whole thing was weird. It was for a children's charity in Plano, and as part of the entertainment they bussed in more...ethnically diverse kids from Fort Worth.)

But that's only if you assume that everybody who prays is thinking the same thing.

Why? Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional connection to some greater power in the universe through deliberate intentional practice (from wikipedia, but I think it works).

The idea that prayer is magical thinking is concrete. It is thinking that has no root in science.

Non-scientific /= magic. It *can,* but it isn't axiomatic. Prayer is totally unscientific. *Faith,* by its very definition, is unscientific. But not magic, IMO.

We did a "chip in and send a bunch of stuff to soldiers in Iraq" thing this year instead of a Secret Santa exchange and the card they got to go with it was explicitly Merry Christmas and it made me really uncomfortable. I mean, yeah, this country being what it is that's going to be fine for the majority of people on the receiving end. But you know, for some it's not, and the assumption that Christmas and Christianity are blanketly applicable to all is something I just can't stop objecting to. Ugh. I was not much in the spirit of any holiday w/r/t this project, I don't think.

(As an aside, can I say how much I despise the phrase "The Troops"? There something so falsely intimate and borderline propagandic about it.

(See above re Grinchliness)