Christianity and traditional medicine

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KingdomBuilder
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Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by KingdomBuilder »

One area that really fascinates me is how Christians today relate to sciences that do not align with the "modern" practices and accepted beliefs.

While at a retreat this summer I met quite a few Mennonites who were very firm that the practices and associations of different traditional medicine systems were wrong and/ or dangerous for Christians to partake of. By the way, I know plenty of non-anabaptist Christians who hold the same views. Now, I could agree with them to an extent on some areas, but overall their worldview on this caught me by surprise.
One group of individuals I talked to all shared the conclusion that "if it works, and we do not know why, then it's working by some spiritual/ demonic force... we should have nothing to do with it. It's dangerous". They applied this to acupuncture especially.

My personal view is that there are a lot of medically valuable "traditional" practices that do have some relations to cultures and religions that are not our own. Many of these cultures sought to explain whatever was working in some way, and it's these very old explanations that make many uncomfortable. But does a flawed understanding of how something works actually change the legitimate reasons for it's working? Surely not.
If one is going to deny certain time-tested medical practices due to their associations with certain beliefs, then surely they'd have to deny all such practices, right? Problem is, most Christians do not. Many of those herbal supplements in your cabinet were once explained using very magical and superstitious beliefs, but we can now see that they work for actual, natural reasons.

Just because something is a bit mysterious and it cannot be explained using the current, Western scientific mindset does not necessarily make it magical, witchery, or false. Perhaps we simply do not know why it works (yet).

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I'm curious, where do such beliefs come from? How/ why are they perpetuated? What does it say about Western Christians and their views on science overall? How can one respond (assuming you see the need to)?
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Neto
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by Neto »

Living among remote tribal people gave us the opportunity to see various 'medical' practices, some of which are real, and others (like mixing dried up dog feces with water & drinking it as treatment for - I've forgotten which disease it was) are just plain nonsense.

Theologically, though, I ask myself what conclusions I'm assuming if I take one position or the other. So, for instance, if I see a 'natural cure' used on a fairly certain medical case (where we could be pretty certain of the medical cause), and I am inclined to conclude the 'cure' is a work of the devil, what doctrinal presupposition am I working from? My answer has been that if we witness a real cure, and assume that it was the Satan's work, then we are concluding that the Satan can and does, do good things. But this belief is not supported by anything in the Scripture. In fact, the contrary is pretty clearly illustrated & stated.So I would then take the other position you mentioned, that it is simply something that science does not yet understand. (It is also possible that there are other influences bringing about the cure, something we have not noticed.)
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appleman2006
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by appleman2006 »

Here is the thing though. Modern science has in fact looked at many of these things in depth and cannot explain them. I agree that modern science still does not know nor ever will know everything. But many of these practices only work with certain rituals or with the right person doing those rituals. And other than the ritual prescribed in James chapter 5 which clearly gives God the credit for that healing I am very leery of non scientifically supported rituals.

There are only two powers. God has told us how to approach him for healing. He has given us a brain and provided ways through modern medicine that were also created by him. As to many of the others. If it has a dark spiritualistic past I think it is better left there.
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Hats Off
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by Hats Off »

I have some very strong beliefs about some of these practices and would not consider acupuncture or any related treatment. I am convinced that just because something works, it does not mean that the source of the help is good. A friend related how a non-christian asked him on the phone "so how are you today?" My friend was honest and told him that he had a sore back or headache, i forget which. The man said "Oh that isn't good nor is it necessary. Just do what I tell you to; you will feel a warmth and then experience healing." My friend did as he was told and experienced just what he was told he would. He said "I did not feel comfortable with the outcome so I said asked God to - please undo what i experienced." he still has headaches or back aches whichever it was but he is content. He did not want healing from a suspect source over the phone.
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KingdomBuilder
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by KingdomBuilder »

appleman2006 wrote:But many of these practices only work with certain rituals or with the right person doing those rituals.
Yes. These are the types of healings I believe we'd better abstain from. The same goes for HatsOff example... A big no from me.

I just think some people are too quick to discount some valuable things we can learn from medical and scientific traditions outside of our own
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KingdomBuilder
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by KingdomBuilder »

Well... It seems folks aren't too interested in this thread.
Nevertheless, here is a fascinating read on TCM. It addresses some views and misconceptions that I've even held of TCM.

https://chriskresser.com/chinese-medici ... -identity/

Thoughts?
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Hats Off
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by Hats Off »

This is a topic I have tried several times to initiate as it is of great concern to me. Alternative health practices are not well understood among plain people and so they get into many very questionable and some definitely not so questionable practices. I was hoping to see this conversation take off.

It is a complex issue - and it seems modern conventional healing methods are drifting into some of what we would consider unacceptable. Someone said they had a child in hospital and one of the methods they were going to try seemed very close to something he would have considered unacceptable. He said he left the room, and just prayed "God, this does not look right to me but I will leave this matter in Your hands."
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Joy
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by Joy »

What I would like to know about some practices frowned on is why they are wrong.
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2Tim. 3:16,17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
KingdomBuilder
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by KingdomBuilder »

Hats Off wrote:Alternative health practices are not well understood among plain people and so they get into many very questionable and some definitely not so questionable practices.
Do you think there may be a tendency to over-spiritualize this area? I realize that we shouldn't make areas of life anti-spiritual, but perhaps some take it too far, too fast? It's easy to do with something unfamiliar.

I actually just watched a film on homeopathy and the doctor was shown treating some Amish (I think...) folks in PA. Homeopathy is still very mysterious, but maybe people look at it less spiritually because it originated in Germany..
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KingdomBuilder
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Re: Christianity and traditional medicine

Post by KingdomBuilder »

Joy wrote:What I would like to know about some practices frowned on is why they are wrong.
Preferably with some scriptural citations.
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