Why did the WCTU hold prayer vigils during the 1920s in the USA while campaigning for Prohibition?
Simple. They believed that Prohibition would be a good thing, and they also believed in the power of prayer. It’s not a great leap at all to conclude that they would be praying for what they were trying to accomplish to actually happen. In other words, they were invoking divine influence in conjunction with their earthly efforts. Also, in holding meetings, they were making people aware of their position and why they believed in it – kind of like a candidate for public office going from town to town, neighborhood to neighborhood, meeting people and telling them about him/herself in order to get votes. That’s also not unusual at all, and it worked fine for President Obama!
