Researcher Uffe Schjoedt and colleagues (2009) measured brain functioning of Danish Lutherans as they prayed either formalized (the Lord’s Prayer) or spontaneous prayers. As controls, the research participants’ brains were also scanned while they recited a well-rehearsed nursery rhyme and made wishes to Santa Claus. Brain images revealed that when people prayed the Lord’s Prayer and recited nursery rhymes both activated regions of the frontal cortex and cerebellum associated with rehearsal and retrieval of information. Spontaneous prayer activated three regions of the cortex associated with interpersonal interaction, but making wishes to Santa did not. All participants reported belief in God and in God’s response to prayers. This means our brains process spontaneous prayers as conversations between real, active participants.
So what can we do with this information? We can start (and/or) end each day with the Lord’s Prayer, as Martin Luther suggested. That reminds us of God’s qualities and our relationship to the divine, now and forever. We can then strengthen that relationship through our personal prayers—engaging in conversation with God about ourselves, our neighbors, and the world.
