Save the prayers.

A suicide bomber blew himself up at the Manchester Arena after a concert last night and took 22 innocent people, including children, with him. Words cannot express the despair and revulsion felt across the world this morning at this tragic and horrifying news. However, thousands of (admittedly well-meaning) people have been on social media all day, posting and tweeting that their “thoughts and prayers” are with the people of Manchester. Of course our thoughts are with them – how could they not be? But please, spare us the “prayers”. Because isn’t it religion, or a twisted distortion of it, that got us into this mess in the first place?