9/26/2024

Even in the US, far too many people do not have access to the basics of what they need to be healthy. In my last blog post I mentioned that many people, including myself, struggle to find medical “providers”. This is nerve wracking, especially when someone is experiencing worrying symptoms. We need more medical professionals. We need more accessibility. We need to remediate the relationship between doctor and patient so that the doctor is not simply an elite drug dealer. We also need to treat doctors and other medical professionals as healers and as human beings. Even modern medicine is an art requiring intuition.

However modern industrialized for-profit medicine can never be enough. No pill or procedure can make up for neglecting basic physical and spiritual needs. Nourishing the body is essential. Prayer is irreplaceable. Cultivating family, church, and community ties helps us find meaning in ways that no psychoactive prescription or street drug can emulate.

But how do we eat healthfully when we are bombarded with conflicting advertisements? How do we pray in the age of Siri and Alexa? Finally, how should we cultivate community when apps are quickly replacing real interactions?

We are at serious risk of losing this knowledge.

Modern medicine is not a stand-alone solution to our health needs. This growing facet of society is dehumanizing to patients as well as medical professionals. We are not biochemical automaton. Medical professionals are not robots. We are ensouled human beings living in relationship with one another. Let’s not forget the time-tested ways of thinking, praying, healing, and being together.