The somewhat twisted debate in the USA about the impact of religion in healthcare goes on – so much so that one of America’s best known academic institutions – Harvard University – has entered the fray to try to give a definitive answer to whether people praying for them helps patients to recover from heart bypass operations. You can read the article detailing the team’s conclusions here.

The survey covered more than 1800 patients, and those being prayed for and those not being prayed for all did remarkably similarly in the investigation. In fact, those who received prayers actually fared slightly better – presumably that if the patients felt they had to rely on God to survive, they were better just giving up? Now, you do have to wonder why it took one of the world’s best universities to come up with a study to prove the answer to this issue, but let’s at least be content for this solid report of reason in the face of the onslaught of evangelism.