Prayer did not help heart patients

From an AP story on cnn.com:

In the largest study of its kind, researchers found that having people pray for heart bypass surgery patients had no effect on their recovery. In fact, patients who knew they were being prayed for had a slightly higher rate of complications. Researchers emphasized their work does not address whether God exists or answers prayers made on another's behalf. The study can only look for an effect from prayers offered as part of the research, they said. They also said they had no explanation for the higher complication rate in patients who knew they were being prayed for, in comparison to patients who only knew it was possible prayers were being said for them. The work, which followed about 1,800 patients at six medical centers, was financed by the Templeton Foundation, which supports research into science and religion. It will appear in the American Heart Journal. Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard Medical School and other scientists tested the effect of having three Christian groups pray for particular patients, starting the night before surgery and continuing for two weeks. The volunteers prayed for "a successful surgery with a quick, healthy recovery and no complications" for specific patients, for whom they were given the first name and first initial of the last name.

James 5:16 says that "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." Also, I've never felt too comfortable/motivated praying for someone that I didn't know at all, someone I had no connection to. I guess I have to generally agree with the perspective of the dude from Duke:

Dr. Harold G. Koenig, director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health at the Duke University Medical Center, who did not take part in the study, said the results did not surprise him. "There are no scientific grounds to expect a result and there are no real theological grounds to expect a result either," he said. Science, he said, "is not designed to study the supernatural."

Update: April 2, 2006 10:24 PM:
Of all coincidences and all places, the power of prayer to heal was quoted to Tony Soprano tonight...