NEH Enduring Questions Course on "What Does Prayer Do?"

FAIN: AQ-50860-13

Le Moyne College (Syracuse, NY 13214-1300)
Jennifer A. Glancy (Project Director: September 2012 to August 2016)
Karmen MacKendrick (Co Project Director: May 2016 to August 2016)

The development by two faculty members of a general education course for undergraduate students that asks, What does prayer do?

The practice of prayer seems to stretch back to human pre-history, yet an understanding of prayer remains oddly elusive. This interdisciplinary course, planned as part of Le Moyne's Core curriculum, explores some aspects of that puzzle by asking what prayer does, or is intended to do. The class is designed to lead students through a range of approaches to that question, approaches drawn from the humanities (philosophy, religious studies, theology, poetry), the performing arts (music and dance), and the natural and social sciences (medicine, psychology, sociology, constitutional law). Some of our sources are prayers or texts by those who pray, others take a skeptical approach, and still others are neutral as to prayer's effectiveness. Readings will be supplemented by an annual public lecture funded by Le Moyne's McDevitt Center for Creativity and Innovation, a trip to a nearby monastery, and a publicly available website.

Associated Products

What does prayer do? (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: What does prayer do?
Author: Karmen MacKendrick
Author: Jennifer A. Glancy
Abstract: The monk, the poet, the neuroscientist, the constitutional lawyer—all hear the question what does prayer do from their own perspectives. Students will approach this enduring question from multiple disciplinary perspectives, including theology, philosophy, religious studies, medicine, the social sciences, law, and the arts. Readings will be chosen from major wisdom traditions, with some emphasis on Christian examples.
Year: 2013
Primary URL: http://www.whatdoesprayerdo.net
Primary URL Description: Website designed to support teaching of course, What does prayer do?
Audience: K - 12
Audience: Undergraduate

---