I live in southeastern Pennsylvania, which has been suffering through the worst drought in thirty years, or sixty years, or 100 years, depending on who you talk to. Almost three weeks before this was written, Gov. Tom Ridge offically declared a "drought emergency" in 55 counties, which is over two thirds of the state. So now there are restictions on how much water we can use on the lawn or to wash the car.

Last Saturday (August 7), I saw an article in my local newspaper stating that Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua has called on the Roman Catholics of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to pray for an end to the drought, and for his priests to work this into the Intercessions given during a Mass. We do need the rain around here-- we really need the rain-- but not more so than this guy's parade needs to be rained on.

First of all, why the hell did he wait so long? Droughts do not happen overnight. The farmers could see how little rain there has been in the past year, and I'm sure most of them have been praying long before Holy Mother Church advised them to. God hasn't exactly heard them, has He? Of course some would say that God is punishing us for our "sins," but it hardly seems fair to make everybody suffer instead of going after the "sinners" individually. It would be like a father saying to his 5-year-old son, "I'm going to send you to bed without any dinner because I'm mad at your older brother for wrecking the car."

Then of course, there's the whole nature of prayer itself. How many times have theists made prayers that were nothing more than begging and pleading to rearrange the universe for their own personal benefit? "Please God, let it rain so my garden can grow." " Don't let my wife die of cancer because I don't want to lose her." I've even heard of requests for parking spaces! (Actually, that was from a New Ager, not a Christian.) But the worst offenders are the prayers to "St. Jude" or the "Blessed Virgin" that appear in the classifieds almost every day. I'm sure you've seen them. Follow the precise formula, and perform the proper actions to appease, and you will get whatever you want, no matter how impossible it may seem. There's a word for that type of ritual: sorcery.

Now I know that many of those who are praying would deny that there's any selfishness in their wishing for rain. The newspaper article quoted one priest who said that his church had been praying for "so many people who don't have air conditioning or fans, especially in Philadelphia." But have they provided fans for those people? For that matter, has any Catholic church provided any kind of assistance to those suffering the most from the drought? No, because the archdiocese hasn't approved yet. I guess Cardinal Bevilacqua is too busy asking his flock to pray.

If you think that's as selfish as one can get, consider this: one of the latest arguments in favor of prayer is the claim that it's beneficial for our physical well-being. People who pray and attend church regularly are supposedly healthier and happier than those who don't. Well, DUH! Naturally those who are healthy would be happier than someone with a chronic condition like multiple sclerosis. They would also find it easier to go to church in the first place. Other studies have established that people with a lot of social contacts tend to be healthier, and for all its numerous faults, church is still a place to meet people. As for the so-called studies which allegedly "prove" that intercessory prayer can heal, they're so flawed that it would take another two or three articles to go over all their mistakes. However, you can find more information here.

Praying to end a drought is about as scientific as doing a rain dance, and with as much chance of success. Of course, sometimes you do get lucky. The day after I saw that newspaper article, it did indeed rain in my area. So now the lawns and gardens will have some water, but it's just a drop in the bucket for our lowered reservoirs. And it's too little, too late for most of the local farmers. According to the weather experts, nothing short of a hurricane will bring enough water to lift the restrictions placed on us because of the drought.

I wonder if Cardinal Bevilacqua thought about that. Remember that old saying about being careful what you wish for?