Would this be a good empirical test for God?

Question

To create a study that would correlate faith with luck/chance/karma in the most extreme but meaningfully intense circumstance.

Could such a study be done? It cant be controlled very well, since testing meaningless outcomes that are meaningless to God wont indicate anything. The only factors would be how faith of the individual correlates to the most outrageous luck in the most desperate of situations. And how that compares to similar situations in which atheists needed Gods help the same.

It would be a test of Gods will and righteousness in prayer and faith.

Answer 1

WHY? if you believe, you believe, if you don't, that's fine.

Answer 2

Similar studies have been done -

I have read about an experiment where the sick have had people pray for them knowning that they were being prayed for, and the sick who were prayed for unknowingly, versus the sick persons who were not prayed for at all. If my memory serves me correctly, knowing you were being prayed for helped a tid-bit, but those who were prayed for and didn't know versus those who weren't prayed for at all, had similar results. So, this implies that those who *knew* they were prayed for had a better chance at recovery versus those who were prayed for and did not know that they were being prayed for....So, then we ask, why would God favor those people who knew that they are being prayed for versus the ones who are being prayed for, but don't know it? The simple answer is that it would be arbitrary for God to make a distincition (if such a being exists): If prayer has any effect at all, then it seems the beneficiaries *must* know that they are being prayed for....

The question, though, is whether or not your test would be a good test for God. No, I'm afraid it wouldn't.

Even if there were a very strong correlation between a persons having faith and also having good things come of it, it would nonetheless remain the question 'Does God exist?' open. In fact, your study would be rather irrelevant to the existence of God.

An atheist need not ask for God's help, as they don't believe in such a being.

During the holocaust, the Jewish prisoners had much faith that they would be helped. I'm sure they had lots of faith, it was probably the only thing the kept up a persons moral'. Yet, most of them died horrible deaths.... They probably all had faith, yet most of them perished in a vile manner. This fact looks pretty threatening to your impending study...

Any way, if you did carry out this study, the findings, no matter what they were, would be interesting!

Answer 3

there is no empirical test you can do to affirm or deny the existence of god, only strong logical arguments.

which is in itself a strong indication god doesn't exist, since nobody could have discovered it with any test or anything.

but something can be said for the psychological effect of believing in god or not, and this can be tested.

Answer 4

No, a good empirical test would be to lock a virgin in a room, guarded by multiple armed female atheist guards, and entreating a "God" to get her pregnant...

...with kittens.

Within  a specified period of time, say, a month.  If one God fails, you move on to the next one,  Might as well give them all a chance.

That'd be about the only thing that a "God" could do, that wouldn't be possible any other way and not likely to be assignable to random chance..

Well, unless there are Q from "Star Trek" running around.

Let me know how that works out for you, huh?  I'll even put $10 in the pool on my favorite God, Coyote, to win.

Answer 5

you can't measure any of the variables, so no. the results would be both inconclusive and interpretative

Answer 6

How do you expect to measure faith, luck, chance, and karma?  Everyone has different levels as far as faith and karma is concerned.

Those with "faith" have a different "perception" on things than those without.  If they believe there is a God capable of helping them in a situation, then their eyes will be open to any "positive" result and hold on to it (considering it a SIGN or MIRACLE.)  Where as an atheist or pessimist for example may cling to logic and lose all hope or in this case "faith" leaving them emotionally/mentally vulnerable.

I think it's all about a person's "out look" and whether the person is "positive" or "negative."

Answer 7

Why would you bother to test the existance of God?  Religion is meant to be faith based, not scientific.  "Proving" God would mean that everyone would behave in a given way because they know that they'd go to h**l if they sinned.  It removes faith from the equation.  It's like people who obey the law when they know the cops are watching versus people who obey they law because they believe it to be the right thing to do.  Whose the better person?  Proving God would eliminate morality.

Answer 8

There has been a scientific test on faith, with rats.

They put a bunch of rats and left them to swim until they got tired, and then they took them out of the water. I believe they swam for about 9 hours.

Time passed...

Then they put the same rats in the water and left them to swim until they got tired. They didn't swim for 9 hours, but continued on for 16 hours!!! They kept swimming for so long because they had faith someone was going to save them soon.

p.s. Im not sure if these are the exact hours, but very close.

Answer 9

This is pretty good.

http://www.mckenziestudycenter.org/bible...