Post by Cindy on Oct 30, 2018 10:41:01 GMT -5
Here's some info from one of my books:
What is mind–body medicine?
Mind–body medicine explores the influence of people’s thoughts and emotions on the health of their bodies. Most ancient healing systems operated by this mechanism. As modern science revealed the causes of many illnesses to be physical in nature (bacteria, viruses, genes, and so forth), the role of the mind was minimized. Even gastric ulcers, once firmly believed to be caused by stress alone, are now known to be linked to certain bacteria and therefore to be treatable with antibiotics. Only if a physical cause cannot be found for an illness are the mind or emotions typically believed to play a role in these so-called psychosomatic illnesses.
However, this is not the only contemporary illustration of the mind–body connection. The placebo effect remains an enduring evidence of the importance of mind–body interactions. Moreover, increased stress contributes significantly to the development of some illnesses, especially heart disease, although not to others, such as cancer. The body’s immune and hormonal systems are also affected by stress.
Numerous ways to alleviate stress by eliciting the “relaxation response” have been examined by Herbert Benson at Harvard Medical School. Some of the most popular mind–body therapies are biofeedback, hypnosis, meditation, visualization, Yoga, and breathing exercises. The common belief is that the body will benefit from training or manipulating the mind in various ways. Health insurance companies are actively promoting mind–body therapies as cost-effective, safe ways to reduce stress. While many of these bring relaxation, the degree to which they actually improve health or prevent illness is just beginning to be explored.
Claims about mind–body medicine often confuse causation and correlation. For example, many patients with a certain disease might be found to have a very high stress level. Stress and this disease are correlated, but this does not necessarily imply that stress caused the disease. Relieving stress might help the patient, yet it may not change the course of the physical disease. A serious danger here is that patients receiving the benefit of stress reduction might conclude that their disease is also being cured and therefore be less inclined to pursue treatments for the physical disease.
Mind–body therapies emphasize the role of personal responsibility in health, sometimes to the point of blaming patients for their illnesses. If the mind is crucial to curing disease, many conclude that the mind similarly caused the disease. The developer of the Simonton method of visualization notes: “If we are going to believe that we have the power in our own bodies to overcome cancer, then we have to admit that we also had the power to bring on the disease in the first place.” This outlook can lead to significant and unnecessary guilt feelings that have no basis in reality.
Mind–body therapies may alleviate some of life’s stress and bring relief during illness. They may even help prevent the onset of an illness. However, their potentially comforting and preventive roles do not necessarily entail a curative role. Therefore, by all means, pursue appropriate ways to reduce the inevitable stress of daily life—always avoiding any influence from occult or other anti-Christian philosophies and practices. However, when an illness develops, be careful not to use mind–body therapies in place of more effective conventional therapies.
Is alternative medicine in harmony with Christian tradition?
Christian tradition has always emphasized the importance of bringing healing to those who are ill. God declared Himself to be Israel’s Healer (Exod. 15:26), and part of Jesus’ ministry was to heal the sick. The early church continued this tradition of involvement in healing. Historians of medicine have concluded that the early church’s impact on illness and health care was profound. This impact continued through the centuries.
The healing that Christianity supports is holistic in the broadest sense, encompassing physical, emotional, spiritual, moral, and relational healing. The compassionate care given by Christians over the centuries is a far cry from the cold, impersonal ways patients are sometimes treated in modern health-care facilities. In fact, both Christianity and modern alternative therapy respond negatively to any delivery of medicine that focuses on physical and psychological needs at the expense or exclusion of the spiritual.
However, Christian tradition is also at odds with the kind of spirituality that alternative therapies promote. The early church fathers frequently addressed illegitimate, magical means of healing that were especially popular with the cult of Asclepius, the Greek and Roman god of healing. For example, Augustine approved of taking herbs for stomach pain but disapproved of wearing them as charms for the same purpose.
The early church also responded negatively to physicians who, in addition to healing, would promote anti-Christian philosophies. Early Christian leaders were noted for discouraging their disciples from visiting “philosopher-physicians.” In the third century, Origen complained that physicians too often used their influence and position to teach philosophies that contradicted Christianity. He had in mind teachings about reincarnation and the view that human beings and all other forms of life have the same type of spirit—ideas that are common among today’s promoters of alternative therapies.
In contrast to magical or energy healing, the healing power of God is not an inanimate supernatural force. God is a personal, compassionate Being who sympathizes with our suffering and to whom we can bring all our concerns, including physical health (James 5:14–16). When our physical health and well-being are threatened, we go to Him in prayer, dependent on Him even though He may not bring healing. While we actively pursue medications and therapies that have been graciously provided to us in this world by God, we must never subject ourselves to any spiritual force—no matter what its claim—that contradicts the guidelines given to us by God in His holy Word. In the fourth century, John Chrysostom lauds a Christian woman for refusing to recite magical incantations and put magical amulets on her sick child. Unwilling to disobey the Lord, “she chose rather to see her child dead, than to put up with idolatry.” She knew that to turn to magic instead of to the Lord would undermine her testimony to others about the importance of trusting God—and would perhaps have eternal consequences for her in heaven as well.
Living in this fallen world is a guarantee that each of us will die from some injury or illness. How should we live in light of such a reality? Christians must live by faith. We must trust in the Creator whose love for the world provided a complete remedy for physical and spiritual death in the person of His only Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Though we will all die in this world, those who trust in Him will never die again but will live eternally with God. However, even in this world, our faith in God will strengthen and sustain us.
A famous fourth-century leader of the church, Jerome, described in his Letters (39.2) how Christians could cope effectively with illness: “Am I in good health? I thank my Creator. Am I sick? In this also I praise God’s will. For ‘When I am weak, then I am strong,’ and the strength of the spirit is made perfect in the weakness of the flesh.” This faithful outlook was expressed when little was available to help overcome illness. May we who have been blessed with the best health care and public-health resources ever available express such an unfailing faith no matter what challenges to our health we face. We must not forsake the One who has promised never to forsake us (John 14:15–18, 27–28; Heb. 13:5).
Stewart, G. (1998). Basic questions on alternative medicine: What is good and what is not?.
See also Alternative/ Blended/ Complementary/ Integrated Healing
IN THE IMAGE OF MAN:AN OVERVIEW OF THE HUMAN POTENTIAL MOVEMENT AND MOTIVATIONAL SEMINARS
Mindfulness: taming the monkey
What is mind–body medicine?
Mind–body medicine explores the influence of people’s thoughts and emotions on the health of their bodies. Most ancient healing systems operated by this mechanism. As modern science revealed the causes of many illnesses to be physical in nature (bacteria, viruses, genes, and so forth), the role of the mind was minimized. Even gastric ulcers, once firmly believed to be caused by stress alone, are now known to be linked to certain bacteria and therefore to be treatable with antibiotics. Only if a physical cause cannot be found for an illness are the mind or emotions typically believed to play a role in these so-called psychosomatic illnesses.
However, this is not the only contemporary illustration of the mind–body connection. The placebo effect remains an enduring evidence of the importance of mind–body interactions. Moreover, increased stress contributes significantly to the development of some illnesses, especially heart disease, although not to others, such as cancer. The body’s immune and hormonal systems are also affected by stress.
Numerous ways to alleviate stress by eliciting the “relaxation response” have been examined by Herbert Benson at Harvard Medical School. Some of the most popular mind–body therapies are biofeedback, hypnosis, meditation, visualization, Yoga, and breathing exercises. The common belief is that the body will benefit from training or manipulating the mind in various ways. Health insurance companies are actively promoting mind–body therapies as cost-effective, safe ways to reduce stress. While many of these bring relaxation, the degree to which they actually improve health or prevent illness is just beginning to be explored.
Claims about mind–body medicine often confuse causation and correlation. For example, many patients with a certain disease might be found to have a very high stress level. Stress and this disease are correlated, but this does not necessarily imply that stress caused the disease. Relieving stress might help the patient, yet it may not change the course of the physical disease. A serious danger here is that patients receiving the benefit of stress reduction might conclude that their disease is also being cured and therefore be less inclined to pursue treatments for the physical disease.
Mind–body therapies emphasize the role of personal responsibility in health, sometimes to the point of blaming patients for their illnesses. If the mind is crucial to curing disease, many conclude that the mind similarly caused the disease. The developer of the Simonton method of visualization notes: “If we are going to believe that we have the power in our own bodies to overcome cancer, then we have to admit that we also had the power to bring on the disease in the first place.” This outlook can lead to significant and unnecessary guilt feelings that have no basis in reality.
Mind–body therapies may alleviate some of life’s stress and bring relief during illness. They may even help prevent the onset of an illness. However, their potentially comforting and preventive roles do not necessarily entail a curative role. Therefore, by all means, pursue appropriate ways to reduce the inevitable stress of daily life—always avoiding any influence from occult or other anti-Christian philosophies and practices. However, when an illness develops, be careful not to use mind–body therapies in place of more effective conventional therapies.
Is alternative medicine in harmony with Christian tradition?
Christian tradition has always emphasized the importance of bringing healing to those who are ill. God declared Himself to be Israel’s Healer (Exod. 15:26), and part of Jesus’ ministry was to heal the sick. The early church continued this tradition of involvement in healing. Historians of medicine have concluded that the early church’s impact on illness and health care was profound. This impact continued through the centuries.
The healing that Christianity supports is holistic in the broadest sense, encompassing physical, emotional, spiritual, moral, and relational healing. The compassionate care given by Christians over the centuries is a far cry from the cold, impersonal ways patients are sometimes treated in modern health-care facilities. In fact, both Christianity and modern alternative therapy respond negatively to any delivery of medicine that focuses on physical and psychological needs at the expense or exclusion of the spiritual.
However, Christian tradition is also at odds with the kind of spirituality that alternative therapies promote. The early church fathers frequently addressed illegitimate, magical means of healing that were especially popular with the cult of Asclepius, the Greek and Roman god of healing. For example, Augustine approved of taking herbs for stomach pain but disapproved of wearing them as charms for the same purpose.
The early church also responded negatively to physicians who, in addition to healing, would promote anti-Christian philosophies. Early Christian leaders were noted for discouraging their disciples from visiting “philosopher-physicians.” In the third century, Origen complained that physicians too often used their influence and position to teach philosophies that contradicted Christianity. He had in mind teachings about reincarnation and the view that human beings and all other forms of life have the same type of spirit—ideas that are common among today’s promoters of alternative therapies.
In contrast to magical or energy healing, the healing power of God is not an inanimate supernatural force. God is a personal, compassionate Being who sympathizes with our suffering and to whom we can bring all our concerns, including physical health (James 5:14–16). When our physical health and well-being are threatened, we go to Him in prayer, dependent on Him even though He may not bring healing. While we actively pursue medications and therapies that have been graciously provided to us in this world by God, we must never subject ourselves to any spiritual force—no matter what its claim—that contradicts the guidelines given to us by God in His holy Word. In the fourth century, John Chrysostom lauds a Christian woman for refusing to recite magical incantations and put magical amulets on her sick child. Unwilling to disobey the Lord, “she chose rather to see her child dead, than to put up with idolatry.” She knew that to turn to magic instead of to the Lord would undermine her testimony to others about the importance of trusting God—and would perhaps have eternal consequences for her in heaven as well.
Living in this fallen world is a guarantee that each of us will die from some injury or illness. How should we live in light of such a reality? Christians must live by faith. We must trust in the Creator whose love for the world provided a complete remedy for physical and spiritual death in the person of His only Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Though we will all die in this world, those who trust in Him will never die again but will live eternally with God. However, even in this world, our faith in God will strengthen and sustain us.
A famous fourth-century leader of the church, Jerome, described in his Letters (39.2) how Christians could cope effectively with illness: “Am I in good health? I thank my Creator. Am I sick? In this also I praise God’s will. For ‘When I am weak, then I am strong,’ and the strength of the spirit is made perfect in the weakness of the flesh.” This faithful outlook was expressed when little was available to help overcome illness. May we who have been blessed with the best health care and public-health resources ever available express such an unfailing faith no matter what challenges to our health we face. We must not forsake the One who has promised never to forsake us (John 14:15–18, 27–28; Heb. 13:5).
Stewart, G. (1998). Basic questions on alternative medicine: What is good and what is not?.
See also Alternative/ Blended/ Complementary/ Integrated Healing
IN THE IMAGE OF MAN:AN OVERVIEW OF THE HUMAN POTENTIAL MOVEMENT AND MOTIVATIONAL SEMINARS
Mindfulness: taming the monkey
!!
