Faith and Medicine: Healing Prayer

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Faith and MedicineHealing Prayer

• Kent K. Ishihara (VMS III)
• Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
• January 28, 2000

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The Faith that Heals

• Nothing in life is more wonderful than
  faith--the one great moving force which we can
  neither weigh in the balance nor test in the
  crucible. Intangible as the ether, ineluctable
  as gravitation, the radium of the moral and
  mental spheres, mysterious, indefinable, known
  only by its effect, faith pours out an unfailing
  stream of energy while abating nor jot nor tittle
  of its potency...

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• Faith is indeed one of the miracles of human
  nature which science is as ready to accept as it
  is to study its marvelous effects. When we
  realize what a vast asset it has been in history,
  the part which it has played in the healing art
  seems insignificant, and yet there is no
  department of knowledge more favourable to an
  impartial study of its effects and this brings
  me to my subject--the faith that heals.

--Sir William Osler (1910)
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Can We Ignore Faith?

• In one study
• 80 of Americans believe in the power of God or
  prayer to improve the course of illness
• 70 of physicians report religious inquiries for
  counseling on terminal illness.

Only 10 of physicians ever inquire about
patients beliefs or practices.
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Ignoring Faith

• In another study
• 77 of patients said physicians should consider
  patients spiritual needs.
• 37 wanted their physicians to discuss religious
  beliefs with them more openly
• 48 wanted their physicians to pray with them

68 said their physician had never discussed
religious beliefs with them.
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The Bible on Faith

• Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, Dont be
  afraid just believe, and she will be healed.
  (Luke 850)
• He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul
  looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to
  be healed and called out, Stand up on your
  feet! At that, the man jumped up and began to
  walk. (Acts 149-10)
• Jesus turned and saw her. Take heart, daughter,
  he said, your faith has healed you. And the
  woman was healed from that moment. (Matthew 922)

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Healing Faith

• Physical
• ? use of hospital services
• ? risk of cirrhosis
• ? risk of emphysema
• ? risk of death from ischemic heart disease
• ? risk of hypertension
• Better post-surgery outcome
• ? immunity

• Emotional
• ? emotional well-being
• ? self-esteem
• ? anxiety
• ? depression
• ? risk of suicide
• ? health-compromising behavior

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Shall we pray?

• This is what the Lord, the God of your father
  David, says I have heard your prayer and seen
  your tears I will heal you. (2 Kings 205)
• His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever
  and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and,
  after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed
  him. (Acts 283)
• Is any one of you sick? He should call the
  elders of the church to pray over him and anoint
  him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the
  prayer offered in faith shall make the sick
  person well. (James 514-15)

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Healing Prayer?

• Byrd (1988)
• 393 patients admitted to the CCU in a prospective
  double-blind randomized protocol
• 3-7 born again Christians were selected to pray
  for a rapid recover, prevention of complications
  and death

Congestive heart failure, cardiopulmonary arrest,
pneumonia, diuretics, antibiotics, and
intubation/ventilation were seen less frequently
in the prayer group, and in general, the prayer
group had a better outcome.
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More Healing Prayer?

• Harris, et. al. (1999)
• 990 consecutive patients who were newly admitted
  to the CCU were randomized to receive remote,
  intercessory prayer or not.
• Patients did not know they were being prayed for.
• 5 Christians prayed for 28 days for each patient
  in the prayer group. Only given the name of the
  patient.

11 better outcome in the prayer group using the
MAHI-CCU scoring system.
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What Does This Mean?

• Can we really test faith?
• Can we really test prayer?
• Is there something to explain all this?...
• or Are we really testing God?

These studies seem to have shown some positive
effect. Others have shown no effect NO study
has shown a NEGATIVE effect!
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• Let us pray...