No, priests just cast spells. They don't need to pray in order for their magick to work
Yes, but we're talking about what makes a priest a priest. Spells (healing services, for example) are just a non-obligatory addition to being a priest rather than the essence of it. What makes a priest is worshipping a god, praying to him, tending to his altar/temple and asking for his blessing if special enough occasions come along.
Gilbert Bates is the technologist I was thinking of: He doesn't place much stock in religious ramblings himself.
Amusing how given the highly supernatural setting of Arcanum, Bates' rational approach means that he's either an ignorant or a fool.
Anyway, if magick is equivalent to the so-called power of faith
It's equivalent to the power of will.
what commentary does the Arcanum story have on the debate of religion versus science.
The closest Arcanum goes to commenting on religion is with giving us the Panarii church, Arcanum equivalent of the Catholic church, and adding a hidden background which, when revealed (with the aid of the science of archaeology), proved the belief to be erroneous altogether. The message I received here was "Be a sceptic, question your Church."
[spoiler]Did a more technologically advanced city best a less advanced city on the battlefield? I cannot remember.[/spoiler]
Tarant defeated Cumbria.