True dat: Eno, I think both Jonah's question and the medical study point out a major problem with some people's interpretation of religion (though to be fair, some of Jonah's readers get it, and I think he does as well). If the basis of your creed is to have access to a power that can right a wrong or save a life, you're wasting your time. One doesn't pray with a tit for tat attitude. If there's any benefit to prayer, it's the opportunity it provides to search within to order one's priorities, to determine what is important in life. For that reason, it doesn't matter whether we pray alone or en masse or if our prayers are ever answered. And keep in mind, as one of Jonah's reader's pointed out, if you believe in God, then all prayers are answered. But sometimes the answer is no.