Rutgers University

- In the introduction, Bentzen proposes that people pray to help them with coping. This idea is highlighted on page 4, where she talks about the idea of prayer, and how it helps people cope with adversity. People pray for "relief" for their loved ones, or if they are struggling with cancer, etc. Adversity is also used in the "form of Natural disasters" (Bentzen, 4) where the people that are affected turn to religion for coping. 


Why do people pray? (In Crisis we Pray, Introduction) 

Bentzen, Jeanet, In Crisis, We Pray: Religiosity and the COVID-19 Pandemic (May 2020). CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP14824, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3615587

In Crisis We Pray: Religiousity and the COVID-19 Pandemic 

According to the WHO (World Health Organization) we pray in times of crisis. Becuase of the world wide emergency, churches all over the world have shut down to stop the spread of COVID-19. This causes a major issue, as people have felt that Sunday services could not be fulfilled, and it was hard to do religious coping without the services that were provided before the pandemic.
         - People use private prayer in order to further enhance their connection with God. 

In the COVID-19 Pandemic

This is the google search for prayer before the COVID-19 Pandemic- this shows results from the past four years. 

Learn Before

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