"The government has spent more than $2.3 million on prayer research since 2000."
Reminds of the 20+ year program the CIA had to research psychics, detailed by US News and World Report here: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/culture/articles/030127/27stargate.htm
Like Ambrose Bierce said in the Devil's Dictionary: "Pray, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy."
-B.
Jim Devine wrote:
"From the Washington POST's on-line SLATE new summary: The NY [TIMES] fronts and the [Washington POST] and LA [TIMES] go inside with a study finding that prayer doesn't materially affect the rate of healing in sick people. In fact, those people who were told they were being prayed for actually got worse. Next on the agenda: examining the truth behind the contention that the family that prays together stays together."