‘ why a ry ’ Osi bo " a on Jitter oa Seater Pare ah of hh uy , wH ino. Sage yon ny Ti ve hae | ae) tay he he iY ka eats erie Seen setae sts gh zi rie Ye ry tet | | ° ie t t htt x4 ara e % Ms. F } i Petals eu hays | au iB ‘ * ak % Ebb ea te 1 Ni ag # tif pha hehheS hota! * ‘ * ii ti + hs hy Nin het j oy j t oer ibs uf, Wy ys yekcke 2 eat Matas hs <4) SL? ashy hnas LIBRARY OF THE THEOLOGICAL PRINCETON, N. J. PRESENTED BY ites Aerts. Division... sre Section....04..4..8 SEMINARY : Fah as ‘ : a } ‘ Vv ! % ' ‘ 1g NPR bee ot oh a ; ‘eve Cee Po hs is eh i ii Dicitizel by the Internet archival un | : al Bn _ in 2022 with funding from eae . Theological Seminary Library Pie hy by a ‘ H fae - TN rd! ¥ es ie M ‘i wat Ky fj : : % . 4 ae Ta Saw a AL ee yy { ri Bebe aN ‘ { } if - »' i i i tae ¥ ' ‘ ' On iy bay i Or rin ae £ ba . . tas hy ye ‘ vies : maha ing hf F iy. HB) 3 rae NES i a he kerala Tia) (rant wae J . ; FP en ries abies eu, ai 4 te rr. pani eit: tj TF os wee aN, > ah i ‘\ . ‘ FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Edwin A. McAlpin DORAN’S MODERN READERS’ BOOKSHELF Edited by Sidney Dark and John Farrar FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Edwin A. McAlphin INTELLECTUAL VAGABONDAGE Floyd Dell HOW TO UNDERSTAND PHILOSOPHY A.E. Baker HOW TO ENJOY LIFE Sidney Dark HOW TO ENJOY THE BIBLE Anthony C. Deane, M.A. THE HERITAGE OF GREECE AND THE LEGACY OF ROME E. B. Osborn ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI Gilbert K. Chesterton THE STORY OF THE RENAISSANCE Sidney Dark HOW TO READ HISTORY W. Watkin Davies VICTORIAN POETRY John Drinkwater THE POETRY OF ARCHITECTURE Frank Rutter ATOMS AND ELECTRONS J.W.N. Sullivan EVERYDAY BIOLOGY J. Arthur Thomson Other Volumes in Preparation rs etnosrnrnssesnesnuunsnstssenesnanstecunersewsemene aN SW 8 Ot Oe Cr : hall ei FAITH, HEALTH sale 49 WS AND COMMON SENSE BY EDWIN A. McALPIN AUTHOR OF “ON TO CHRIST” COPYRIGHT, 1926, BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY DD FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Bae PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA TO THE CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF MADISON, NEW JERSEY whose sympathy and loyalty never fal- tered while their Pastor felt his way through strange subjects to a deeper ap- preciation of the Gospel of Christ GENERAL INTRODUCTION Of all human ambitions an open mind eagerly expectant of new discov- eries and ready to remold convictions in the light of added knowledge and dispelled ignorances and misapprehen- sions, 1s the noblest, the rarest and the most dificult to achieve. James Harvey Rosinson, in “The Humanizing of Knowledge.” It is the purpose of Doran’s Mopern Reap- ERS’ BooksHeELr to bring together in brief, stimulating form a group of books that will be fresh appraisals of many things that interest modern men and women. Much of History, Literature, Biography and Science is of intense fascination for readers to-day and is lost to them by reason of being surrounded by a for- bidding and meticulous scholarship. These books are designed to be simple, short, authoritative, and such as would arouse the interest of intelligent readers. As nearly as pos- sible they will be intended, in Professor Robin- [ vii] GENERAL INTRODUCTION son’s words quoted above, “to remold convic- tions in the light of added knowledge.” This “adding of knowledge’ and a wide- spread eagerness for it are two of the chief characteristics of our time. Never before, probably, has there been so great a desire to know, or so many exciting discoveries of truth of one sort or another. Knowledge and the quest for it has now about it the glamour of an adventure. To the quickening of this spirit in our day Doran’s Mopern Reapers’ Boox- SHELF hopes to contribute. In addition to the volumes announced here others are in preparation for early publication. The Editors will welcome suggestions for the BooxsHELF and will be glad to consider any manuscripts suitable for inclusion. Tue Epirors. [ viii] INTRODUCTION This book is an effort to work out a practical method of applying faith to health. It is not a polemic treatise but a guide to the use of the best elements in the different methods of heal- ing, including scientific medicine, faith healing and mental science. In Book I, the relations of religion to health are dealt with and a pro- gram is suggested to indicate how religion may be used to improve health. In Book II, the only kind of religion which heals the body is defined and the discipline necessary for cul- tivating such religion is outlined. With this brief introduction the text should explain itself. The study of religion as applied to health and the collateral reading it required has de- veloped my faith in Christ as a Saviour and made the Gospel message of more compelling interest to me than any other work I have ever done. If religion is in truth an important heal- [ix] INTRODUCTION ing agency, its message has a practical value little understood and neglected to the Church’s serious loss. While I accept full responsibility for all the conclusions I reach, I must express my apprecia- tion to the many friends who have helped me gather the facts on which these conclusions are based. It is impossible to name all these friends, but some have done so much that their kindness must be recognized. Dr. John M. T. Finney of Baltimore and Dr. Richard C. Cabot of Bos- ton read and criticized the material on which Chapter I of Book I is based. This chapter contains the scientific foundation upon which the whole argument is built up. Dr. F. I. Krauss of Chatham, N. J., and Dr. Kenneth R. McAlpin of the Presbyterian Hospital, New York, have read the whole manuscript and pointed out passages where my limited knowledge of medicine had led me to make unwise statements. None of these men is re- sponsible for or necessarily agrees with all the deductions the author has drawn from the facts. Thanks must be given to the Editors of the [x] INTRODUCTION Continent, the Presbyterian Advance, and the Presbyterian Banner for permission to use material which has appeared in these maga- zines. Epwin A. McAtrin. Madison, N. J., February, 1920. [xi] CONTENTS Boox One: A STUDY OF HEALTH AND RELIGION CHAPTER PAGE I RELIGION AND HEALTH . : 17 II SIN AND SICKNESS . : : ne III WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE! . 54 Iv SINCE FAITH CAN HEAL, WHY DOES IT SOME- TIMES FAIL TO HEAL! , WP OMS V THE BLESSINGS AND PERILS OF FAITH HEALING 82 VI A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION TO HEALTH. ; go VII SCRIPTURE LESSONS WHICH ASSIST IN HEALING ILLNESS Serhan UA AVes Roe hI LOSS Boox Two: THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND HOW TO CULTIVATE IT I CHRISTIANITY AND LIFE Ns II THE IMPORTANCE OF FAITH . ‘ f E23 Ill BIBLE STUDY AND SPIRITUAL STRENGTH itso WVorePRAYER: : l AES V MEDITATION . Wiis OZ VI WORSHIP AND HEALTH . : A Vie Ry | VII CONCLUSIONS . : : ; { ” iatss SUPPLEMENT: THE MINISTER AND FAITH HEALING. : PRL SG BIBLIOGRAPHY ; i Wieder: INDEX. } Wir Zo7 Book One: A STUDY OF HEALTH AND RELIGION ne, om as a ee ‘: ‘ a z ) .) 4 ry ; i PAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Chapter I Religion and Health ANY people have faith and every one desires health, but it seems hard to apply faith to health and retain common sense. Everyone has heard of sick people being treated by Christian Science, New Thought, Mr. Hick- son or some other society or individual that. claims to heal the body by spiritual means or -mental powers. These healing cults, which from the student’s point of view are all differ- ent manifestations of the same fundamental principle, have been laughed at by some people, greeted with enthusiasm by others and treated — with indifference by the great majority. There has been enough of ridicule and prop- aganda, and what we need now is an intelli- gent comprehension of the facts and fallacies, [17] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE problems and fantasies, which have led thou- sands of people to believe that religion can be used to heal disease. The solution of this prob- lem lies in discovering some way of applying religious faith so as to satisfy not only man’s ethical needs and spiritual aspirations but also his desire for physical health, without outraging the intelligence which is and ever has been humanity’s best friend. Belief in the ability of religion to heal the body did not originate with Mrs. Eddy or Dr. Quimby, but is found in the very dawn of his- tory. It was the first therapeutic agent used to alleviate suffering. Primitive people in all parts of the world believed that sickness was caused by evil spirits who had taken possession of the sufferer’s body. This theory of sick- ness has been disproved, but medicine men and priests did work cures. The testimony of dis- interested observers, such as missionaries of a new faith and travelers from an alien people, prove this fact. How could medicine men heal the sick when their idea of medicine was based on an erroneous theory of what sickness was? ‘The incantations and fetishes they used [18] RELIGION AND HEALTH must have stimulated the patient’s faith and brought into action a mental power that was dormant in human nature, just as the old fam- ily physician cured some ills with bread pills; in both cases the physical benefit derived was due to psychological forces rather than to the agents used. While we admit this element of value in the practice of medicine men and priests, we have to recognize another truth that: supplements it. They failed to understand diseases and could not stop a plague or control an epidemic and these failures inspired the scientific study of medicine. Materia medica and the modern pharma- copeeia did not come into being full grown. When men of analytical minds lost faith in the priest as a physician and gave up the idea that all illness was due to the presence of an evil spirit they started to experiment with the hu- man body to see what results could be at- tained by the administrations of drugs and herbs, either locally or internally; they tried the effects of hot and cold applications; they made ointments out of all sorts of ingredients. Our modern pharmacopeeia is the result of past [19] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE experiments and an occasional fortunate ac- cident, and is always being enlarged, modi- fied and corrected as the scientists improve their methods of observation and the instru- ments in their laboratories. The criticism so frequently voiced by advocates of faith healing that medicine fails to cure disease is most mis- leading, as doctors only claim to assist the pa- tients as much as they can with the knowledge they have acquired by experience. While the laity have an exalted idea of med- icine, outstanding physicians are the most humble minded of men. Dr. Joseph D. Bry- ant, who enjoyed an enviable reputation as a surgeon some twenty-five years ago, once said, “We are like children groping our way in the dark. We make some progress and then we are called away and another takes up our work. He cannot begin where we left off but of ne- cessity must make his start somewhere along the path we traveled. It is slow work but we are making progress.” A realization of the limitations of medicine comes as a shock to the lay mind. It weakens a man’s faith to know that while medicine has been able to overcome [20] RELIGION AND HEALTH some of the most fearful scourges that have ever swept the earth, there are still diseases and whole classes of disease that it does not under- stand and cannot cure. The shock that follows is apt to destroy all faith in medicine, and in the hopelessness of a lost faith an atavistic trait of the human mind asserts itself and turns many people back to the ideas of primitive men. They yearn for a panacea that will cure every human ill without apology and without fail. The spirit of dis- couragement leads many people to accept some form of mental healing or faith cure. They have lost confidence in medicine and found a new faith in religion. There is another trait of the human mind _ which makes people of high ideals susceptible to this belief. When the body is physically well and functioning properly men forget they have a body, but when the body is racked by pain, it is only the strong character that is able to think of anything else. The idea that the mind can be used to heal the body fascinates these sufferers. The finest characters are most susceptible to this belief, [21] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE as the spiritual side of man’s nature rebels at being made the scapegoat of his bodily weak- ness. This is the reason why so many high- minded individuals are accepting some form of faith cure. Their bodies, because of the pain that racks them, fill far too much of their life, and they are striving to use their minds to bring their bodies into the place where they will be instruments of the soul’s activity, rather than the masters of their destiny. | This belief that religion and health are vi- tally connected is not an idle assumption but is based on undeniable facts. A large percent- age of all physical suffering is the result of per- sonal indulgence which Christianity has stigma- tized as sin, for viciousness and self-indul- gence have created all the venereal diseases which cause directly or indirectly as much suf- fering as any other class of disease known. Many centuries ago a man who was either in- spired of God or else a keen observer of human affairs stated that “God is a jealous God, visit- ing the iniquity of the fathers upon the chil- dren.” Critics of religion have found much fault with the character of God thus defined, [22] RELIGION AND HEALTH but we are discussing health rather than theo- logy. The fact remains that this old observer spoke the truth. Self-indulgence causes inno- cent children to become infected with syphilis while still in the uterus, and other diseases are contracted immediately after or at birth. The blindness of gonorrhea is a good illustration of this kind of suffering, as it blights a child’s life before the child has had a chance to live. These children are innocent but they have to suffer for their parents’ sin. Alcohol has a bad effect on physical health. Dr. Oscar H. Rogers, chief medical director of the New York Life Insurance Company, claims that there is no boundary within which the use of alcohol is entirely harmless; the damage done persists a long time after its use has been discontinued; and any one who uses it or has used it in the past, all other things being equal, is a less desirable risk than a total abstainer. Overeating and indulgence in rich foods, in plainer speech gluttony, are recognized as caus- ing many physical ills. In other words, if a man follows the law of self-control, or what religion calls the law of [23] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE God, he, his wife and his children have a better chance of enjoying physical health than if he disregards them. ‘The God that the old ob- server said visited the sins of the fathers on their children also said, “I will show loving-kindness unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.” God is here pictured as exhorting men to follow the moral law for their own good and the good of their loved ones. Religion is something more than personal morality and to win the allegiance of men it has to show an interest in the common good. When men, women and children live or work in unsanitary and badly ventilated shops, fac- tories or homes, they are afflicted with sickness. Ignorance, filth and unwholesome living condi- tions spread typhoid, typhus and tuberculosis. If we classify disease by the environment which causes it rather than by its symptoms or the parts of the anatomy it affects, we find that there is a class that might be called the social diseases, made up of those we have just men- tioned and others of a like nature. They are not confined to factory workers or tenement dwellers. They are a constant menace to every [24] RELIGION AND HEALTH person in the community. This peril is well illustrated by Charles Kingsley’s story of the lady’s riding habit made in a tenement and used, for lack of other covering, as a blanket for a girl suffering from typhus fever. The riding habit then carried the vermin infected with the germs of this fever to the home of wealth in a distant part of the city. Proper light, air and sanitation could overcome all this kind of disease. An application of a social re- ligion which teaches every man to be his brother’s keeper is the best therapeutic agency for combating this kind of illness. In recent years the science of medicine has discovered that disordered nerves are as real a disease as any caused by germs. Modern life with its constant speeding up of business, city conditions where the tension never relaxes, and the different forms of recreation indulged in by the mass of people, all act on the nerves. The result is a constant increase in the number of people suffering from nervous trouble. The scientific treatment of disordered nerves is com- paratively young. Two things are of unquestionable benefit to [25] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE these sufferers: the first is a cheerful disposition and the second an ability to control the fear mania. Faith is able to create a cheerful and brave spirit, and faith is one of the funda- mental principles of religion. Faith in a lov- ing and able God develops a sound mind and a courageous outlook, and a sound mind and a courageous outlook are good medicines for nervous troubles. Religion and health in these cases actually cover the same ground. Morality, the social conscience and faith are elementary characteristics of religion and all these things have a direct influence on health. A recognition of these facts gives an undeniable foundation for saying that religion affects health. Many people who believe in mental or spiritual healing are unable to explain the real cause of their belief, as it is a half or un- conscious reaction of the mind to a thought it can hardly express. This conviction is founded on a truth, but the truth is usually misunder- stood by those who most ardently preach it. The thing we now want to discover is the common denominator, if such a thing exists, in these efforts to heal the body by spiritual [26] RELIGION AND HEALTH means. Some of the religious cults advocate quietness, others prayer or relaxation or the denial of suffering. An analysis of the methods used indicates that the common element under- lying all their work is some application of the principle of faith. For example, consider Emile Coue’s dictum, “Day by day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” This is nothing more than an original and unique application of the principle _of prayer tohealth. The emphasis is gained by repetition and the avowed object is to stimu- late and make active the subconscious mind. The healing may come from the activity of the subconscious mind or it may come from the conscious mind because of the faith in physical improvement it develops. That is what I mean by saying that in the last analysis the healing principle is always some form of faith. It is faith either in a system, person or a sym- bol; and while it is sometimes avowed, it is frequently used without being recognized. Faith, to have any therapeutic value, must be an attitude of life and not merely a sporadic effort of the mind to meet an emergency. No [27] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE one who is living a selfish or sensual life can create the spiritual atmosphere that reflects on bodily ailments. This life of faith comes only by cultivation. It is the yielding of the ego to spiritual ideals and is accompanied by simple living. Faith is not the anguish of mind due to suffering caused by sin, but it is the abhorrence of evil because it is evil. It cannot be created by an emergency prayer of- fered in a moment of fear. Faith is the soul’s growth through a desire to assimilate the high- est known ideals at all cost. It is not a sure cure for all diseases, but it is a splendid spiritual stimulant that gives strength to the weak and proves itself an unfailing source of comfort in times of suffering and sorrow. It is always a good medicine and sometimes works wonders. Every physician recognizes the therapeutic value of faith. It is one of the first things he seeks to develop in his patient, as without it the best medicine is limited in its effects. I have been told by a prominent surgeon that he would not operate on persons who had defi- nitely made up their minds that their case was hopeless, as their mental attitude worked as an [28] RELIGION AND HEALTH actual barrier to health. These patients may not be neurasthenics, but the conviction that they cannot get well is sure to increase the difficulty of recovery. Religion is the mother of faith. It either develops a faith in God that sustains a person in hours of suffering or it cultivates confidence in an unseen power that is working for the in- dividual’s well-being. In either case it lays a foundation on which medicine can do its best work. Religion as the only therapeutic has had its day. It held the field for many centuries and sradually lost its power through its inability to create a panacea for every humanill. It has a place and an important one in the sphere of human health as a supplement to medicine. Personal morality, the social conscience and faith are all good medicines. They can conquer the majority of ills from which mankind suf- fers, but there are some diseases that have no immorality or lack of faith as a cause. The advice and guidance of the man of trained ex- perience is still necessary. It would be a sad day for the world if we gave up the methods [29] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE of investigation and the means used to control typhoid, yellow fever and other scourges that in olden times swept the earth like devastating floods. We may not like the vaccine used to prevent typhoid, but those who talk against its use blind their eyes to the suffering typhoid has caused in the past. Years ago I had the privilege of going through the yellow fever camp near Havana where Dr. Walter Reed was carrying on the investigations which finally conquered this scourge of the tropics. He had a theory as a foundation for his research, but he promised no sure cure for yellow fever. By his careful investigation and numerous experi- ments he finally proved that the mosquito car- ried the fever and in his discovery laid the foundations for the victory over it. By con- trolling the mosquitoes the spread of the fever was stopped, and society benefited even more than if a method of curing the disease had been found. In this connection it is necessary to speak of those separate or individual cases where a complete cure has been affected by mental effort, an act of faith or a genuine prayer. [30] RELIGION AND HEALTH That such cases exist is more than probable. In this strange world of ours it would be either a very Wise man or a very self-opinionated man that would dare say what can or cannot’ be. The law of probability may seem to be against them, but no one yet knows all about the hu- man body or all the power begotten by faith. Many things must be considered in connec- tion with these cures. The first is the possibil- ity of a wrong diagnosis. The patient may not have had the disease the doctors said he had. Many symptoms are so accurately imi- tated by disordered nerves that even special- ists sometimes err. The second is the number of physical disorders that cure themselves in time. The body has tremendous recuperative power and in many cases all medical science claims to do is to assist the recuperative activi- ties inherent inhuman nature. Dr. Richard C. Cabot says there are only eight out of two hun- dred and fifteen classified diseases directly cur- able by drugs. The physician assists the pa- tient afflicted with a disorder for which no known remedy exists by building up his resist- ance and stimulating his courage. Many cures [31] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE reported by religious cults are merely the re- sult of this natural resistance assisted by spirit- ual and mental stimulants. Another important point to be remembered is the number of physical troubles that come from disordered nerves. Dr. Paul DuBois claims that ninety percent of all digestive trou- bles are due to disordered nerves and not to physical causes. All these things must be given due consideration before there can be any jus- tification for claiming miraculous help. One weakness inherent in all these cults must be recognized. Sometimes they fail to administer the treatment or drug that is de- manded to heal sickness because of loyalty to their faith. They admit but one means to heal the body and so not only fail to work wonders but cause needless suffering and sometimes are responsible for the patient’s death. Before vouching for the truth of any faith cure it is necessary to know its whole history— not only its past history but its future history as well. People are too prone to talk of mir- acles performed in their behalf. Sometimes the sufferers only enjoy a temporary allevia- [32] RELIGION AND HEALTH tion of their ailment, which they believe to be a permanent cure. One April day some years ago, a lady, who had some months previously shown symptoms of cancer, told me she had been cured by a man who professed to heal dis- ease by faith instead of by medicine or opera- tions. The following June her trouble became so acute she was forced to seek a physician’s advice. A doctor who attended the operation told me the surgeon in charge after making the incision turned to him and said, “This cancer has gone too far for an operation to be success- ful. All we can do is to let nature take its course.” The patient died in November. This incident indicates the necessity of knowing the future developments of a case as well as the as- sertions made by the patient. Any one who had talked to this individual in April would have had her own word for saying she had been healed of cancer by faith. Time proved that the statement was a mistake. Medicine and religion should work hand in hand for health. In Bergson’s treatment of the intellect and emotions we find a philosophi- cal foundation for this dual treatment of [33 ] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE disease. He claims the intellect is man’s in- strument for dealing with matter and for this purpose it has been developed to its present state of efficiency. It has had to meet every problem that has arisen and it has been strengthened by struggling with hard questions until a solution was found. The emotions give man his contact with ultimate reality. Let us apply these ideas to the treatment of dis- ease. Some forms of ill health are caused by the wounds inflicted on human tissues by ani- mate or inanimate matter. For example, the bite of a bull dog, or the action of tubercle bacilli in the lungs, causes wounds in different parts of a man’s anatomy. A bullet wound that tears the flesh or a blow that breaks a bone causes suffering of essentially the same order. In every one of these cases the ill health comes from wounded tissues that have been attacked by a foreign substance. They are impairments of the soul’s dwelling place that should be dealt with by the intellect—the part of man’s equip- ment that deals with all his relations with matter. For healing they need an application [34] RELIGION AND HEALTH of the things the intellect deals with—material things. The health of an individual is sometimes affected by disordered emotions or nervous troubles. This kind of affliction is as real and causes as much suffering as the purely physical. It is possible to cure these ailments by reorganizing the emotional nature. This is often best done by religion, which is always connected with the emotional side of human nature. Even in cases when foreign substances have attacked the organism it is possible to ease pain and stimulate recovery by strength- ening the natural resistance of the body by the action of the mind. This mental attitude as- sists in healing the body and it is developed _ by a religious faith. Besides intellect and emotions man has a balance wheel that acts as judge and arbiter between these primary elements of human na- ture. It is called common sense and functions just as well among illiterate people as in uni- versity graduates. Common sense should be the final judge between scientific medicine and [35] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE faith healing. An application of scientific med- icine to a physical disorder is no indication of a lack of faith and no proof of irreligion. Many people who use medicine believe that the cure is due to God, who acts through medi- cine, even as He nourishes the body with food. Faith codperates with materia medica in the alleviation of suffering and in improving health. The physician and the theologian may define its influence and activity in different ways but the layman can thank God for the doctor and also give thanks that there is a God who helps. Religion and medicine do not occupy mutually exclusive fields in human life. Prayers and pills both affect health. [36] Chapter II Sin and Sickness N this chapter we have to consider an un- pleasant and unpopular subject. Any dis- cussion of sin is disagreeable, as it has to deal with the darkest element of human nature and no juggling of words or beauty of diction can change the facts. Sin is a comprehensive term which defines the things men are prone to do in spite of the protests of their conscience. It has to include the vagaries of the mind and its tendency to brood on unclean things; the lusts of the flesh; selfish disregard of others; the animal desire for satisfaction, no matter what it costs; and the unethical, unjust or unwhole- some relations of the individual to society. Sin is not a mistake in judgment. It is a dis- obedience to the individual’s conscience and a disregard of society’s standard of conduct. Sin [37] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE is the gratification of some desire without re- gard to the ethics or morals involved in attain- ing the thing sought for. With this definition of sin it follows that all sin retards the moral and spiritual improve- ment of the race, perpetuates unwholesome customs and practices and injures both individ- uals and society. Sin destroys the inherent desire of men for religion: it comes between the individual and God, and hides God. The loss of God destroys mental poise and thereby injures the nerves. It also injures physical health by excessive indulgence in unwholesome things. The effect of sin on health may be summed up as follows: Sin has a bad effect on the mind through evil thoughts and unwholesome de- sires; the mind reacts on the nerves and the nerves, when they are irritated or overstimu- lated, disorganize the functions of the body and develop physical weakness or illness. Any recognition of the power and universal- ity of sin is unpopular. The tendency of some modern thinkers and of others who claim to be religious leaders is to ignore or speak lightly [38] SIN AND SICKNESS of sin. They call it an atavistic trait of human nature. Unquestionably some of its mani- festations show a reversion to an earlier social life and a crude moral code. These things are the survival of a brutish age which established habits of thought and ideals of conduct not yet outgrown. The people who emphasize this atavistic element of sin frequently go further and assert sin has no positively bad effects, and they say it is merely the absence of good. The exponents of this school speak of sin as “‘not good.” This is a juggling of words and accom- plishes nothing. The fact is, sin has disastrous effects on character, health and religious faith and any effort to evade the issue leads to con- fusion and danger. Any one who doubts the ability of sin to wreck lives and homes, ruin health and de- stroy reputations is advised to make a first-hand study of the subject. This cannot be made in the quiet atmosphere of a study or public li- brary. It has to be done in those places where sin can be seen and its effects tabulated. Go to the courts and prisons, the hospitals and insane asylums and then, with the actual facts in hand, [39] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE estimate how many of the cases found are either the direct or indirect result of impurity, dishonesty, unclean thinking or selfish indul- gence. Such an investigation will prove be- yond a question of doubt that sin is the great destroyer of physical health, mental peace, wholesome living and human happiness. While admitting these facts the author claims no kinship with the old Scotch woman who be- lieved the doctrine of total depravity was the most comforting of all doctrines because it was so easy to live up to. It is easily lived up to because mankind is weak; and that is often overlooked. ‘The modern tendency to disre- gard the strength of sin and the suffering it causes is dangerous because it gives a relentless enemy an opportunity to destroy the best things in life while the conscience is dulled by a false sense of security and the attention is absorbed in other things. A frank and fearless recognition of both the destructive and constructive elements of the mind does not lead to pessimism and despair, but it shows the student the nature of the things which need to be controlled or overcome, and [40] SIN AND SICKNESS it makes clear the means at man’s disposal for attaining this end. Sin works most effectively in the darkness or behind the scenes. It is not able to with- stand the light of day or public criticism. If a man’s thought-life could only be reviewed and criticized by his family and friends before the thoughts had borne fruit in evil deeds, many a convict would have been spared his prison sentence, and many a physical wreck would still be enjoying health and strength. Sin has been able to warp the minds of these sufferers and then after it has become vigorous in the obscurity of their minds, it has wrecked their lives. The object of this chapter is to show the destructive power of evil. In the latter part of the book it will be shown how a vital Chris- tian faith can overcome the power of evil. Some general statements have already been made in both this and the previous chapter showing how much sickness is caused by sin. It is now necessary to develop the subject more fully. After a good deal of investigation, ob- servation and consideration, the author is pre- [41] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE pared to assert his firm conviction that the vast majority of all the physical suffering which afflicts mankind is either directly or indirectly due to sin. This assertion is made without hesitation but it is true only when sin is defined in a comprehensive way. Besides the elements of sin already mentioned it is necessary to rec- ognize the sin of overindulgence in whole- some things. In this connection it is not so much the thing indulged in but the amount of indulgence which is practiced. We will now endeavor to clinch our argument by referring to specific cases which illustrate the point we are trying to prove. No one denies venereal diseases are the direct result of sin. It is such bad taste to talk of these loathesome afflictions people often con- sider them as rare and unusual forms of sick- ness. The exact-opposite is the truth. When a large proportion of the entire male popula- tion of the country was subjected to a medical examination for the Army in 1917, the wide extent of these diseases wasshown. The author worked in one camp where there were 7,000 [42] SIN AND SICKNESS venereal cases. Years ago he was connected with a social settlement and one day the physi- cal director told him the young men in the athletic club thought very little more of a case of gonorrhea than they did of a cold in the head, “And the one is just about as common as the other,” he said. If the effects of venereal disease were limited to the men who contracted them by self-indulgence they would be bad enough and worthy of careful study, but the suffering they cause reaches far beyond the patient’s own life. Some of these diseases may remain dormant in a man’s body for years and then manifest themselves by ruining the health of an innocent wife. Parents should point out this danger to their daughters and no woman should be permitted to marry a man who has had a venereal disease without first knowing the danger she is running. There is some rea- son to believe these diseases may affect the health of the sufferer’s children. The evidence here is open to question but it is possible that the lives and health of innocent children may be endangered. They may not develop the [43] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE specific disease their father had, but it may reveal its presence in a lowered vitality, dis- ordered nerves or a weakened intelligence. As a class venereal diseases cause about as much suffering as any other form of illness. They are so widely scattered over the country as to make them a menace to the innocent as well as the guilty. Since these diseases are the direct result of sin, it follows that a religion which teaches chastity, self-control and purity can eradicate them by preventive measures. _ The excessive indulgence in innocent recrea- tions on the part of young people may seriously injure their own and their children’s health. Do not consider the author puritanical when he proclaims the danger of late hours, exces- sive dancing, the continual stirring up of the emotions by moving pictures and _ theaters. None of these things is physically harmful when used in moderation. A strong case may be made out for their usefulness as a whole- some relaxation from hard work and the mo- notony of life. The danger comes from exces- sive indulgence. The danger is aggravated by the use of alcohol and nicotine, as these [44] SIN AND SICKNESS drugs act on the nerves and the nerves are al- ready overwrought. Young people who burn up their nervous energy in this or any other way, are shocked after marriage to discover their children are afflicted with disordered nerves, or are handicapped for their life’s work by a lowered vitality. The parents’ sin is the direct cause of the children’s ill health and yet many people blame God for their children’s weakness! The suffering which results in these cases may continue for two or three generations. The sufferer is innocent but the nervous trou- bles which afflict him or her are a direct result of a parent’s sin. I do not intend to defend these laws of nature or explain why they exist. They may seem fair or unfair to human minds. The only thing of interest to us is to discover the facts and then try and discover how human- ity can deal with them in its efforts to over- come ill health. The same nervous tension and lowered vital- ity may be bequeathed to children by a parent’s excessive indulgence in business. A man may be so ambitious to earn money, win recognition of his fellow men and attain the chimera of [45 ] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE success as to burn up his nervous force to such a degree that he seriously injures his offspring. A woman may be caught in the whirl of society, social work or intensive application to the task of earning her daily bread to the injury of her functions of motherhood. Men and women who expect to have families should conserve their physical and nervous strength so as to guaran- tee, as far as possible, to their offspring sound bodies, nerves and physical vigor. It is the height of folly to ignore these truths and blame God for sickness. Life is ruled by immutable laws. The ignoring of these Jaws is sinful. Broken laws result in ill health and injure the innocent as well as the guilty. There are some sins which directly injure the nerves and, therefore, injure health. These are worry, anger and fear. Let us consider each of these separately. Many people consider worry a virtue and ob- ject to classifying it as a sin. They make the mistake of classifying worry as “forethought.” These two mental activities are entirely differ- ent in both their purpose and the effect they have on the mind. Forethought is the whole- [46] SIN AND SICKNESS some planning of a wise man to meet future conditions or emergencies. It has no element of fear or unrest in it, as it only includes an estimation of the individual’s probable require- ments and the resources he will have at his dis- posal at a future time. Worry always contains an element of fear, which includes an irritation of the nervous system. It is the fretting of the nerves over actual or imaginary troubles. It is sometimes used as a lazy man’s substitute for hard work, as he finds it easier to worry over his difficulties than to undertake the hard task of solving them by clear thinking, actual work or self-sacrifice. It must be admitted some people find a peculiar pleasure in worry- ing. They do not realize how much they en- joy it but nevertheless they obtain real thrills from imagining all sorts of unpleasant and difficult situations which never come to pass. Christians ought to recognize the sin of worry- ing as Christ in the Sermon on the Mount re- peatedly warned His disciples against it (Matt. 6: 19-34). Worry generates a poison in the body which injures the nervous system, and healthy nerves are essential to physical health. [47] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Disordered nerves are one of the most preva- lent causes of suffering we know anything about. Nervous troubles only occasionally re- sult in death but they are certainly the cham- pion of all illness when it comes to destroying the joy of living. Unhealthy nerves upset the digestive organs, cause insomnia and head- aches; create aches and pains which are none the less real and harmful because they lack any organic reality; darken the mind; and re- flect themselves in innumerable ways impossi- ble to specify here. Anger has the same effect on the nerves as worry and also destroys health. The meek- ness of Christ seems to be an exaggeration of a human trait of character which does not appeal to the average man. ‘The fact remains, the meek man or the one who is not always stand- ing up for his rights, fighting for his ideals, or sensitive about his own reputation is the one who has developed a mental poise and thus freed himself from a destructive force which sometimes ruins both character and health. This poison is generated by the loss of temper, and its ability to injure both the body and soul [48] SIN AND SICKNESS is great. The loss of temper may be a violent and uncontrollable outburst or it may be sup- pressed. Probably the suppression of the tem- per is as bad, if not worse, for physical health than the violent outburst. The outburst is condemned by social custom but it burns it- self up and is gone. Suppressed anger may be pushed into the subconscious mind and de- velop hidden complexes which later bear fruit in nervous disorders which ruin health. These complexes have only recently been discovered but they probably cause many cases of nervous trouble and seriously injure the mind. Both nervous disorders and insanity have increased to such an alarming degree in recent years that any means of overcoming them would be wel- comed by the medical world. The evil effects of anger are not confined to the individual who loses his temper, but it may injure an innocent bystander or the individual with whom he is angry. Any one who comes into contact with a violently angry person has his nerves, the cir- culation of his blood and his digestion disor- ganized. Physical well-being depends on the regular and automatic functioning of the [49] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE nerves, heart and digestion; therefore although a person may be innocent of any wrongdoing he suffers from the effects of another’s sin, when he has to submit to or observe his anger. Fear is a disturber of the nerves and a cause of ill health. Acute fear acts directly on the heart. It causes shock and faintness. It up- sets the nerves and makes them register pains and aches which have no reality. The pains and aches are as real and cause as much suffer- ing as if they were the result of some physical disturbance or injury. Fear is due to a lack of faith. Religion creates faith and it is a sin to cultivate, yield to, or harbor fear. Christ said to His disciples, “Fear not” (Luke 12:5). To round out our study of sin two other forms of illness must now be considered: the first are those which are caused by intemper- ance, and the second is the group which we called the “social diseases” in the preceding chapter. | Intemperance in all its forms is considered a sin by Christians. Many religious people limit their idea of intemperance to the use of alcohol as a beverage. This is a mistaken con- [50] SIN AND SICKNESS ception of intemperance which must be cuarded against, as doctors say more people die from overeating than from overdrinking. Gluttony, under a less offensive name, is a common fault. People eat for the pleasure of eating rather than for nourishment Over- loading the stomach with rich food is gluttony, and gluttony is a sin. The dependence on ca- thartics and digestive tablets destroys nature’s ability to care for the assimilation of food and the elimination of the waste products. Stom- ach and intestinal disorders follow. Ill health in all such cases is directly due to sin. The use of alcohol as a beverage is playing with poison. The body can assimilate a mod- erate amount of this poison, but, as we have al- ready seen, Dr. Oscar H. Rogers claims it is never harmless. Moderation in both eating and drinking, which is the temperate life ad- vocated by true religion, would prevent many forms of ill health which are now prevalent. The statements already made about “social diseases,” by which we mean typhoid, diph- theria and the like, fits right into this discus- sion. It is only necessary to add: Sin, as it is Badly FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE conceived of in this chapter, is the direct cause in every one of these cases.* Society has some responsibility to babies born within its borders. They should have at least a chance for health and happiness. We do not want a paternalistic government, but it is a sin of pharisaism entirely to ignore this obligation, as the malnutrition of children and overwork while they are still immature weak- ens their bodies and assures them of ill health in their mature years. Every child should be given a chance to develop a vigorous body, as physical weakness makes men and women im- moral, dishonest and lazy, and causes much antisocial propaganda. These people have bod- ily aches and pains, irritated nerves and de- spair in their hearts. Give them vigorous bod- ies which find enjoyment in hard work and the social atmosphere will be clarified. Sin, as it acts on the physical man, is a social menace which is overlooked, but none the less real. In the early part of the chapter the state- * Of course a sporadic case of typhoid or diphtheria may be developed by a situation not yet known about, but a careful application of the Golden Rule would eliminate even these cases, [52] SIN AND SICKNESS ment was made that sin directly or indirectly caused the bulk of suffering which afflicts hu- manity. Was that an overstatement? We have shown that all venereal diseases, a great many nervous disorders, all the physical ail- ments which come from intemperance in both eating and drinking, the burdens placed on families and society by typhoid and diphtheria, are all the result of some form of sin. The reader’s own intelligence must act as the judge in this matter, but enough has been said to make even a thoughtless man stop and think. When people start to think seriously on these questions, they will commence to appreciate their need of religion. An appreciation of the value of religion is a step towards a spiritual life, and that is the goal we are groping our way toward. [33] Chapter III What Kind of Illness Can Faith Cure? N the previous chapters we have gathered together some of the facts which show the connection between religion and health. If we admit, and I believe the evidence presented justifies this admission, that religion does af- fect health, the question immediately arises, What kind of illness can faith cure? We have just been considering the amount of sickness and ill health caused by sin. It seems logical to deduct from the facts we have presented a hypothesis which might be ex- pressed in this way: any sickness which is caused by sin can be either prevented or helped by a proper use of religious faith. ‘True reli- gion is at war with sin. If sin could be elimi- nated from human nature the health of indi- viduals and society would be improved. For some diseases, such as syphilis and tuberculosis, [54] WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE? to consider two extreme cases, the benefit of a religious faith is like preventive medicine. Re- ligion may not cure these diseases after they have developed, but it could eradicate them from human experience, even in the same way as yellow fever is being conquered by the de- struction of the mosquito. Other forms of ill health, due to nervous dis- orders, may be helped or cured by the strength- ening and healing activities of a religious faith, which stimulates the mind, and, through the mind, affects the body. The ability of faith or mental treatments to assist in curing func- tional disorders and nervous troubles has al- ready won a wide recognition in medical sci- ence. We have already emphasized both the extent and the actuality of these ailments. It is a mistake to call them imaginary diseases, as the suffering they cause is real, and the loss of health is positive. If religion as a preventive medicine can wipe out venereal disease, tuber- culosis, and other ailments which develop from social carelessness, and by acting on the mind through faith heal functional disorders and as- sist In curing nervous troubles, it has an impor- [53] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE tant place in a scientific pharmacopceia. That is an important statement which should be noted, as it prepares the reader’s mind for the constructive program which is outlined in the latter part of the book. The intellect must recognize both the healing element of faith and also the scientific facts on which it rests before any one of intelligence can accept a re- ligious program as a means of assisting in heal- ing sickness. It is now necessary, while still keeping close. to undeniable facts, to bring the imagination into play. Many successful methods of heal- ing sickness have been discovered by men who had the courage to follow their imagination into new fields of research. As long as the im- agination is guarded by common sense and keeps close to actual facts, such adventuring cannot be harmful, and may lead to new dis- coveries. And I am ready to admit there are some indications that religious faith may be used in dealing with organic troubles. These suggestions are made tentatively, and it is cons ceded at once they are not conclusive. The ob- ject of this book is to show how faith healing, [56] WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE? in its best form, does not outrage common sense, and the reader is asked to be patient and consider carefully the suggestions offered. Religious faith, acting through the mind, does have a direct effect on the physical or- gans, and may be used to alleviate suffering and even cure disease. Just how this is done we may not be able to tabulate in a scientific formula, but the power of religious faith is as real and as important as that of any known drug. Consider for a moment some of the things which may be done by religious faith and the possible effects these things have in combating an organic trouble. Religious faith is able to affect the circula- tion of the blood, by stimulating a person’s vitality. It reveals its effectiveness in some cases by raising a subnormal temperature, and in other cases by controlling or lessening fever ; it affects the secretions of the glands; it may not heal a broken bone, but it soothes the nerves so that nature can do its work more easily. Any mental discipline which is able to do these things has as important a place in a scientific pharmacopoeia as drugs, for some [57] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE drugs are used to do the same things which we have just seen faith does. Nature is always healing, and medicines only assist and codper- ate in this work. Faith also can be used in a wise and constructive way as a supplementary and coéperating agency. Now let us consider an organic trouble which appears at first sight to be beyond the reach of any form of mental therapeutics. We will take a case of organic heart trouble. Physi- cians tell patients who have heart trouble to guard against worry, anger, and fear, as these emotions have a bad effect on the action of the heart. A personal and vital religious faith calms the spirit and gives a confident outlook on life which destroys fear and worry, and re- veals its power by an improvement in the or- ganic condition of the patient. Faith certainly, is beneficial in these cases. Religious faith may have an important place in dealing with contagious and infectious dis- eases. As a general rule, people who are un- afraid of a disease are less susceptible to it than those who are afraid of it. It does not follow that fear always brings on the disease, [58] WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE? nor is absence of fear a sure protection, but there seems to be some connection between fear and the physical condition of the body which must be reckoned with. This relationship may be slight, but it is worth investigation. Faith develops a quiet mind, and a quiet mind is able to lessen fever. While fever is only a symptom, it weakens the constitution and retards recovery. As yet we have no knowledge of how faith could eliminate germs, but religion eliminates fear, which frequently ageravates fever, and may be a valuable sup- plementary agency in dealing with these cases. It may be possible to stimulate the circulation of the blood, gland activities, and other func- tions of the body by faith to such a degree as to make them antagonistic to germ attacks and thus directly assist recovery. It may be pos- sible through religious faith to build up a phys- ical resistance to the attacks of these organisms which is as yet unrealized. Some physicians doubt the possibility of accomplishing any- thing in this way, but it is suggested here in an effort to show how the intellect may inter- pret the effects of faith and still accept the re- [59] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE sults of medical science. It is a mistake arbi- trarily to limit the possibilities of faith by a prioré reasoning when we know it has remark- able effects on physical health which are not yet fully understood. It may be possible to use religious faith in the treatment of mental disorders to a degree not yet recognized. This assertion is made while it is admitted mental disease often takes the form of a religious mania. The overem- phasis of emotional religion leads to mental disturbances but does not alter the fact of the constructive and quieting effects of a sound religious faith. A case came under the writer’s attention which illustrates this point. An individual with a strong Christian character was afflicted with “a paranoid condition.” His case was diagnosed by several leading specialists, who said it was hopeless. The patient went to a sanatorium for some months and was finally discharged as an arrested case. The physician in charge of this patient at the sanatorium said it was one of the most encouraging cases he had ever had. He believed that the arresting [60] WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE®% of the disease (just notice that he did not say the patient was cured) was due to the fact that the sufferer had an unusually fine character and was willing to follow the advice of his physi- cian in all details. According to the doctor the improvement was due to character and educa- tion.* Christian friends of the sufferer believe his improvement was due to faith. The reader can form his own opinion as to which is cor- tect. But we must not forget that the charac- ter which was the means of arresting the trou- ble was due to a Christian faith. If education and character are useful in conquering mental troubles, the door is opened for saying religion has a place in dealing with them. Mental diseases frequently develop from the breaking down of the individual’s self-control. * The physician’s explanation of this case is interesting. “Of course from the standpoint of dynamic psychology our characters or personalities are developed along evolution- ary lines and show the effect of our early guiding and environment. Accordingly all of us have some personality defects and each one of us deals with his or her defects in a different manner. In this particular case I believe that education and the strong sense of right and wrong were the things that enabled the patient to suppress those tensions which caused his troubles and made it possible for him, again, to adjust himself to his environment. His religious faith, in my opinion, served as an outlet and made the sublimation of those tensions possible.” FRANKLIN C. Youne, M.D. [61] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE Day dreams preoccupy the mind to the exclu- sion of the real world. Paroxysms of anger sweep the mind with devastating force; im- moral and lascivious thinking undermine con- science, character, and the ability to properly apply mental processes to everyday conditions. Everything that builds up character and but- tresses self-control tends to strengthen the mind. The Christian faith, when it is properly understood and rightly applied to physical and mental life, has this result; therefore, religious faith can help in stopping the increase of the mental disorders which at the present time are increasing at a rate to give thoughtful people serious concern for the future. The immense value of religion as a form of preventive medicine has been spoken of sev- eral times. It is only necessary now to remind the reader that all forms of ill health which come directly or indirectly from immorality, intemperance, or any such cause, could in time be eliminated by a proper application of reli- gion to human conduct. Bad ventilation, poor sanitation, and unwholesome living conditions cause much illness. A thoroughgoing applica- [62] WHAT KIND OF ILLNESS CAN FAITH CURE? tion of the social gospel would wipe out all disease which results from these things. When due emphasis is given to all the facts we have been considering we are forced to ad- mit religion is not a mere question of personal opinion, but instead it is one of the most tre- mendous forces men have at their disposal for cultivating both personal and social health. The time has not yet come, and I doubt if it ever will come, when mankind can dispense with scientific medicine. God does not bless willful ignorance or careless thinking. He has given men intelligent minds to help them live healthy and useful lives. Men have been so carried away with their conquest of the mate- rial world they have overlooked and forgotten the importance of the spiritual. But enough pioneer work has been done to indicate the pos- sibility of adding spiritual discipline to the pharmacopeeia. Faith may believe a day will come when it will be possible to accomplish, through religion, more than is now dreamed of, but it is the part of wisdom and common sense to move slowly in all cases dealing with physi- cal health. Every one must guard against ex- [63] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE travagant and unreasonable claims. There is no reason why the man of faith cannot apply his religion to all forms of ill health as a sup- plement to scientific medicine, but care must be taken to prevent an enthusiastic faith sweeping him off his feet and leading him to unjustified conclusions which may permanently injure both his own body and the health of his family. Do not give up a doctor because of a belief in faith healing. Medicine and faith attain the best results when they are joined in double har- ness. As a team they give promise of aiding man to win his age-long struggle against sick- ness, suffering, and sorrow. [64] Chapter IV Since Faith Can Heal, Why Does It Sometimes Fail to Heal? HRIST healed the sick. His ministry of healing is so interwoven with His preach- ing and teaching in the gospel story that it is impossible to cut it out without destroying the whole narrative. He used faith as a therapeu- tic agency. This assumption is justified by the number of times faith is specifically men- tioned as the direct cause of the sufferer’s re- covery and also by the fact that it is distinctly stated He was unable to do any mighty works in His own country “because of their unbelief,” or lack of faith. To understand how faith can heal the sick it is necessary to have a clear defi- nition of what we mean by faith. Many people think of faith as a substitute for their own efforts. It seems to be a state of mind which takes the place of human initia- tive and hard work. This idea destroys its [65] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE power and prevents the individual from mak- ing the effort necessary for its cultivation. Faith is a spiritual attitude that takes pos- session of the mind, and it is a hard thing to develop. It requires a transference of man’s interests in and dependence on material things to spiritual. A person with a physical body and animal passions with a universe of mate- rial things pressing on his senses has a difficult task to lift his interests into the atmosphere of the spiritual. A man who knows the direct relations of cause and effect running through the whole realm of science from astronomy to chemistry, and from physics to medicine, has to cultivate an entirely new point of view be- fore he can comprehend the power of faith and the way it acts. The mental point of view of an individual has to be guided, developed, and set to work in a new channel before faith be- comes a power with force enough to affect health. To be effective faith must be culti- vated and thoroughly developed before we ap- ply it to physical health. It is impossible to create the type of mind or the sort of interests required immediately. They demand nurture [66] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL ¢ before they reach their full growth and strength. The individual whose life is domi- nated by physical interests and the enjoyment of stimulating his senses by the attractive ele- ments of animal life does not have the back- ground and cannot create the mental atmos- phere necessary for the effective use of faith. A faith that will help an illness must be culti- vated while the individual is enjoying vigorous health and strength. Pain and the nervous de- pression that accompany sickness are so real that the sufferer must have a strong spiritual foundation of faith or it will be shaken and perhaps destroyed by these physical conditions he cannot ignore or control. It is necessary for the individual who wants to enjoy the benefits of faith on his health to realize that he must seek faith as an end in it- self and not merely as a therapeutic agent. The object of life and point of view must be changed or faith does not really exist. " Faith is not an idle word nor something with a vague meaning. It stands for that mental and spiritual attitude towards life which was brought to the world by Jesus Christ. It [67] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE changes the objects, interests, activities, and dy- namics of existence. Material things, animal interests, the stimulation of emotions and sen- sations by pleasing tastes, sounds, and activi- ties are no longer matters of supreme impor- tance. The soul, ideals, helpfulness to others, and interest in God have taken their place. There is some evidence to believe that Christ intended His disciples to have healing power, and it is hard to discover any scriptural founda- tion for the belief that this ministry would be confined to his own age. Many intelligent people believe faith still heals. Investigation shows the number of these people to be much larger than it is often considered to be. It is made up of Christian Scientists, those who accept Mental Science and Psychotherapy, and many members of the Christian Church. These latter people do not object to taking medicine, but also use prayer in a more or less intelligent way to assist in healing their bodies. They are not all members of the Society of the Nazarene or any other group which advocates faith healing, and, therefore, it is hard to estimate their number. [68] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL? The persistence of belief in faith healing is an interesting phenomenon, especially when the character and intelligence of those who ac- cept it is given due consideration. Many of these people report instances in their own lives or those of their friends where faith has shown its healing ability. Percy Dearmer, in “Body and Soul,” tabulates in the appendix forty- three cases of such healings which he claims are “typical, interesting, and well authenticated,” and all of which occurred in the lives of well- known men and women from the Seventh Cen- tury to the present day. Every investigator discovers new and inter- esting illustrations of healing influence of faith. Two incidents have come to my notice which are worthy of consideration. Some years ago a friend of mine, who is a physician with a large practice, had a daugh- ter who was desperately ill. One evening I called on him and found him despairing of his child’s recovery. “I have faith to believe that God works through the mind and sometimes heals the body,” he said, “‘but this is a different case. My child is being attacked and torn to [69] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE pieces by angry little organisms that are just as real as bulldogs. I cannot reach them to drive them away, and I do not see how it is possible for her to recover. This is the kind of case where our medical knowledge gives us no help, but only causes despair.” The physician was a man of faith besides being a scientific doctor. His home was sur- rounded and filled with an atmosphere of prayer. | Some years after his daughter’s illness the doctor wrote out for me just what happened, and his own mental and spiritual reaction to these events. He said, “After my talk with you about my attitude on prayer and my feeling or belief (?) that prayer could not change the course of an infection of such virulence and your agreement with me that faith would at least give one strength to bear with the im- pending loss, I seemed to feel a new security. Mind you, I did not pray. I was too honest with myself to feel that I, an infinitesimal atom in this universe of millions of years, had either a right or the presumption to ask a spirit so vast as God's to change, even if possible, the [70] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL ®% course of a natural conflict. But I sat with the Bible on my knee and read the 23rd Psalm and that wonderful chapter in Job which has always set forth my ideal of what a physician should be; then some scattered passages in the New Testament. And I got a new grip on my- self. “Then, a day or two later, when the surgeon refused to operate unless I stayed in the operat- ing room, as he expected my daughter to die on the table, I had enough faith to believe that she would recover, and I said, ‘Go ahead.’ Twice we thought she might die, and the sec- ond time when the surgeon said she could stand no more, I was so determined that I answered, “Then we may just as well have our autopsy now. And he went on to the very last spot of infection. I do not know how this reads; it sounds cruel; but I believe I was guided by some new source of life or faith which I did not possess before. The child recovered from that moment. “The other side of the picture is this: that while I had a belief that the child would or might get well, I also had a tranquillity of [71] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE spirit that assured me if she did not get well her little span of life had not been lived in vain.” Some years later we were traveling together on a railroad and we were discussing the effect of faith in healing the sick. ““There is some- thing mysterious about the influence of religion in illness,” the doctor said. “Some time ago I had the case of a child which had tubercular meningitis. I know the little girl suffered from this trouble, and that there was no mistake in the diagnosis. The number of cases of this disease that have been reported cured is so small scientific men have doubts as to the ac- curacy of the diagnosis when a cure has been effected. It is reasonable to suppose that in some of these cases there was a mistake on the part of the physician, and the patient did not really have this disease. The medical profes- sion tends to the belief that an actual case is incurable. Now I know that there was no mis- take in the diagnosis of the case I am citing, as the tubercular organisms were found in the spinal fluid. I took it for granted that the pa- tient would die. Her parents were devout [72] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL? Christians, and they had many friends who were deeply religious. The home was filled with and surrounded by an atmosphere of prayer. The child recovered.” He paused for a moment, and we both looked out of the win- dow while the train went rushing through the forests. “I don’t know,” he continued. “By all the knowledge that medical science pos- sesses my own child and this other little patient of mine should both have died. The only thing that was different in these cases that I can put my hand on was the religious faith that sur- rounded them. Such incidents make a man pause.” When I submitted this manuscript to the doctor so as to be sure I had quoted him cor- rectly, he returned it with these words: ““These two cases are so unique in my experience that I am willing and glad to have you use them. They are substantiated by scientific fact, there- fore the harder to believe. I am convinced that I have given this material world altogether too much consideration in the past.” My friend is a highly trained, scientific phy- sician. He had come to the end of the things [73] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE he could tabulate and understand, and felt something beyond. The man of faith can ac- cept all that science gives but he also reaches out to that which is beyond. He believes the ~~ spirit of God not only acts through the chan- nels charted out by the method we call science, : but also acts in ways not contrary to science, but beyond the reach of our present knowledge. Such incidents are tremendously inspiring, but they only illustrate one side of the truth. There are other cases where parents have had faith, and spiritually minded friends who filled their home where there was a sick child with the atmosphere of prayer, faith, and hope, but the child died. It is unjust.to say that these latter cases lacked the right formula, had a se- cret sin in their heart, or did not have enough faith. Frequently there is no basis for such a charge. They had the faith, they prayed, they yearned over the loved one, but they failed to ward off death.* Several years ago, when I was first inter- ested in the study of the effect of religion on * See “The Man from an African Jungle, "by Wa Wilcox, Chapter XVII, “Divine Healing.” [74] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL? health, I was asked to attend a small meeting at which the Rev. Henry B. Wilson, of Boon- ton, New Jersey, the founder of the Society of the Nazarene, was to tell of his healing minis- try. This meeting was held in December, and Mr. Wilson was apparently in the best of health. He presented his subject interestingly and clearly. In the discussion that followed he was asked if he could explain how faith sometimes seemed to work miracles and at other times failed to get any results. He an- swered that death should only come after life was rounded out and completed, just as the ripened fruit drops from the tree in harvest time, and he expressed his belief that as faith increased this end would be reached. At that time he was steadily increasing his circle of friends and followers. His faith in the healing power of the gospel had helped many find health and strength. He believed in and ap- plied prayer to physical health. And yet sud- denly, a few months later, a weak heart ended his life on this earth.* * Since writing this chapter I have learned the Rev. Henry B. Wilson had suffered from a weak heart for years. His work was all done under this serious handicap. 75) FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE I hope no one will misunderstand this refer- ence to Mr. Wilson. His life was so useful, his faith was so vital, and his purpose so exalted, that his death is inexplicable. The cause of his death is immaterial to the point at issue. Such cases, and there are many of them, indicate there are definite limits to curing illness with religion beyond which man cannot reach. The most we can claim for faith healing is, it sometimes works. There is no evidence for saying it is always successful. It cannot be a panacea, for all men die. It is so difficult to tabulate cases and differentiate between the effects of faith on functional disorders and or- ganic troubles that even the most careful and sympathetic investigator is left in a maze of uncertainties. When due consideration is given to these uncertainties about faith healing, one thing can be definitely stated. It is the height of folly to disregard medical science and to place confidence in faith healing alone. When used as a supplement to medicine, it is a bless- ing and no evil results follow. Intelligent people want to find some solution to this problem. The only way this can be [76] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL ® done is to apply a philosophical interpretation to the questions of life, death, and suffering. Consider for a2 moment the three accounts the Gospels give of Christ’s raising the dead. For the moment let them stand without ques- tion or criticism. He raised Jairus’ daughter, the son of the widow of Nain, and Lazarus. The most that these accounts give justification for is that Christ in these cases simply retarded death. Some years ago I visited the Lake of Galilee, rode across the plain of Esdraelon, and over the hills of Samaria down to Jerusalem. I did not see or hear of any persons who were still living because Christ had conquered death for them and given them eternal life in a phys- ical body. JI have read many books on Pales- tine, and the accounts of travelers who have visited that country, but I have never come across a suggestion that any one Christ healed or raised from the dead was still living. We must use our intelligence when we read the Gospels. According to those narratives, Christ healed the sick and raised the dead, but every one of these individuals for whom a mir- acle was performed finally went the way of all [77] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE flesh. According to Paul’s interpretation, as found in I Cor. 15, death is merely mortality putting on immortality, and corruption put- ting on incorruption. It is the laying aside of an animal body which is limited by weaknesses or racked by pains and tempted by the lusts of the flesh, for a spiritual body where limitations, pains and weaknesses, temptations and stains are left behind. The soul comes into its own. To the man who has nothing but an animal ex- istence, death is the great and final catastrophe. He has lived for the gratification of his emo- tions and senses, and the emotions and senses die. To the soul that has known Christ, death is not a catastrophe, it is the gateway to victory. When we are freed from the limitations of the sense perceptions and see life as it really is, then we realize that death is the transition from time to eternity and not the tragedy we con- sider it. The one who has gone is not the one to be pitied, it is only the ones left behind. It is true that hearts are burdened by the loss of loved ones, and life loses some of its richness and beauty when they are taken. Parents have aspirations for their children. There are pure [78] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL? ties of human affection the breaking of which causes grief and heartache. We recognize and admit all this, but we are talking of death as a personal experience, and as such the man of faith recognizes it is not an evil but simply a transition of the soul from its material setting to a spiritual existence. To the human mind suffering is always evil. I believe that Christ by His constant effort to relieve it recognized how it marred human ex- istence. One of the hardest verses in the Bible to comprehend is the one in which we are told that “even Christ was made perfect by the things he suffered.”” The Son of God, He who was without sin or stain, had to be perfected by suffering! In the economy of God, beyond human experience and knowledge, it is prob- able that suffering has an important place. I cannot understand it or comprehend it. Many years ago an inspired interpreter struggled with this problem in the book of Job. That book is one of the grandest poems ever penned by the hand of man, but after the author is through, the same old problem remains, and man cannot see why he must suffer. On the basis of these [79] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE two general statements as to the place of death in the development of the soul in its transition from this earth into the spiritual world and the fact that there is reason to believe that suffer- ing has a real place in the economy of God, we are prepared to offer a solution to the problem we are considering. God knows human nature is not strong enough or wise enough to use discreetly a spir- itual formula which could always heal the body and restore health. Much suffering and sick- ness come from broken laws. There is no for- mula that can be used that will always heal the sick. Every sect, cult, or church that teaches and practices mental or faith healing can point to individuals who have been helped and others who have been cured, and yet if you investigate further you will find each of them has to admit failures. If faith does not always cure, I believe it al- ways helps the sick. Faith can be cultivated to the place where it soothes the nerves, quiets anxieties, and eases bodily suffering. The fear of death can be removed, and this in many [80] WHY DOES IT SOMETIMES FAIL TO HEAL? cases is the darkest shadow the sick have to face. I think we are justified in concluding that while faith sometimes works miracles, it always helps, and is worth all that it costs in the way of time, strength, and consecration. [81] Chapter V, The Blessings and Perils of Faith Healing ANY blessings spring from a belief in and practice of faith healing. The person who accepts this statement need not give up the use of medicine and dismiss the family physician. The object of this book, which has been repeated until it has become wearisome, is to point out some way to codrdi- nate faith and medicine so that humanity may enjoy the benefit of both these healing agen- cles. It has already been indicated in several places how much faith can do to relieve anx- iety, relax nervous strain, banish fear, control irritation and anger, reduce -pain, and stimu- late general health. Every one of these things eases burdens from tired shoulders, increases the joy of living, and brightens darkened lives. They are all blessings which enrich human ex- [82] THE BLESSINGS AND PERILS OF FAITH HEALING perience. These are some of the things which come to man when he applies religion to his physical health. Daily experience is filled with disappointments. Men fail to attain the goal they strive for; death comes to all, and broken home ties sadden many a life. Faith in God brings a light to humanity. A mother who has faith may mourn the death of her child as much as the mother who has no religious foundation in her life, but the grief of the woman of faith lacks the hopelessness and final- ity of the one who has no faith. The differ- ence in these two cases is not merely one of de- gree, it is also a difference in quality. There is a resiliency and recuperative power in the woman who has learned to apply her faith to her sorrows which the other lacks. If the ap- plication of faith to health could do no more than ease pain, quiet nerves, tone up the mind, improve the moral life, and give strength and hope to grief-laden hearts, it would be one of the most precious elements of religion man pos- sesses. But a little investigation and consid- eration proves it does much more. By applying faith to health men are able [83] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE to make religion more practical and vital. No matter how much any individual may dislike or deny the assertion, it is nevertheless true that man is inherently a religious being. The mass of men need a religion to help them live. Any- thing which improves his religious ideas, makes them applicable to life or shows how they are an integral part of existence is valuable to man. A knowledge of the part faith plays in improv- ing health does this. It teaches people to realize that life is a unity and religion is not an adjunct of existence, but rather an integral part of a well-rounded plan. It increases joy in the use of the opportunities God has given mankind. Religion is not a destroyer of pleas- ure. It is the door through which every one can enter into the best things life offers. In the second part of this book it will be shown how the practices and discipline advocated by the churches enable the Christian to attain the de- sired end. When a person realizes how much help can be received from reading the Bible devotionally, this old and much criticized book becomes prices less. Any one who so desires can leave the [84] THE BLESSINGS AND PERILS OF FAITH HEALING critical study of the Bible to scholars and in- vestigators; the value of its text for quieting nerves, healing aches and pains, is neither in- creased nor lessened by this research work; critical Bible study has an important place in the world of scholarship and the author is in sympathy with its attainments. But it has no place in applying the Bible’s spiritual mes- sage to hungry hearts and burdened minds. When an individual recognizes the possible usefulness of meditation and prayer as means of healing bodies and preventing illness, these spiritual exercises become more vital and the time they consume is not thought of as wasted, even by the very practical Christian. The greatest blessing of all comes from the combined influence of the things we have just outlined. When faith is recognized as having a vital place in humanity’s fight with sin, sick- ness, pain, and sorrow, the way is opened for spiritualizing the whole of life. The one thing needed by mankind to attain a joyous existence, is to learn how discord and friction can be ban- ished from the intelligence. Christ said, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon,”’ and yet thou- [85] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE sands of people are struggling hard to do this impossible thing. As long as religion is con- sidered a single department of life, dealing with morals and spiritual ideals, it lacks the comprehensive and compelling qualities neces- sary for making it the governing principle of all existence. When the mind realizes the im- portance of religion as a means of preventing sickness, healing disease and relieving pain, re- ligion takes on a new meaning, as its effects are’ of daily importance and universal appeal. When the significance of these facts has been assimilated by the mind, society can be trusted to solve its problems according to the law of God and all forms of prohibitory laws will be- come obsolete. Religion will come into its rightful place as the unifying principle on which all good, wholesome and _ profitable things depend. I wish it were possible to stop right here and close this subject with the valedictory just given on the blessings which come from faith healing. Unfortunately that is impossible as many dangers lurk in this fascinating subject. Instead of unifying life on a spiritual prin- [86] THE BLESSINGS AND PERILS OF FAITH HEALING ciple, it is possible to so misuse faith healing as to rob life of true spirituality and reduce religion to the dimensions of a patent medicine. When faith healing becomes merely a formula to relieve pain and cure illness the man who practices it is in serious danger. Faith healing in its true sense is the application of spiritual power to meet humanity’s needs. The spiritual power must be sought as a goal in itself. Its application to the body’s needs is a legitimate use of God’s gift for man’s well-being, but self-indulgence, sensuality, greed, and all sin must be banished from the heart to make this possible. Faith healing is such a fascinating subject it frequently warps an individual’s common sense and good judgment. When the author first be- came interested in this subject he was warned by many friends to look out or he would lose all sense of reality and become absorbed in some group of fanatics who practice faith heal- ing in an extreme way. This danger is a real one and the reader must be warned to keep his common sense, at all costs. God has given men sane minds to protect themselves against fakirs [87] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE and pseudo prophets. Common sense is like the mariner’s compass, it guides us over the track- less ocean of experience and if we follow its directions it finally leads us safely to the harbor we seek. With a full recognition of the danger there is no reason why a sane man should not investigate faith healing and finally discover the way to apply it to human needs. There was danger in studying yellow fever. Dr. Reed and several of the physicians connected with | his research work in Cuba died in their experi- ments, but the sacrifice of these lives has saved thousands of people from this scourge of the tropics. A brave man must recognize and dis- count these dangers and then go ahead trusting in God for guidance. Faith healing frequently destroys a person’s belief in medicine. This is a real danger, as contagious disease, unsanitary conditions and the health of children require obedience to cer- tain principles advocated by physicians. If any word in this book appears to any reader to be derogatory to the medical profession or to discredit the family physician, he has mistaken the author’s meaning. I have the highest re- [88] THE BLESSINGS AND PERILS OF FAITH HEALING spect for the attainments of physicians and wish them God’s blessing on their work. Men can use both medicine and faith for healing their bodies. The last danger Christians must be warned against is the possibility of becoming so ab- sorbed in the healing of their bodies as to ex- clude other valuable elements of life from their thoughts and activities. We have bodies, souls, minds, and social relationships. The well rounded and complete life gives due regard to all these different elements of existence. Do not become a one-sided fanatic. The Gospel of Christ and the spiritual atmosphere of the Bible recognizes and deals with all these ele- ments of life. Keep your balance amid the con- flicting interests which occupy your time and thought, and you are sure to find the fullness of life which is the best thing any one can possess. [89] Chapter VI A Practical Way of Applying Religion to Health EALTH is an unappreciated blessing un- til it is lost. A healthy body is the medium through which ~ pleasure reaches the emotions and sensations. When sickness or pain invades the body and disturbs the normal functioning of physical organs the possibilities of enjoying life are limited or destroyed. There is no use of speak- ing contemptuously of our bodies. We may consider them merely the home of our lower nature, but they are apt to cast a shadow over the soul and determine the individual’s mental attitude toward life. An overloaded stomach, a torpid liver, or any organ that fails to func- tion properly, reflects its disordered condition in mental depression, fretfulness or irritability. As health is the medium through which en- joyments come to the individual and also the [90] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION channel through which his activities and as- pirations translate themselves into accomplish- ments, it is worth preservation, even if this requires both time and thought. ~~ There are a few fundamental rules which common sense supplies for dealing with physi- cal life which it is well to review. Every one ought to have a physician. Care should be taken to find one whose moral character and thorough preparation win confidence. The physician should be interviewed whenever pain is felt, as aches or pains are nature’s warning signals. Frequently the early consultation with a wise and well informed physician will safe- cuard the patient from future suffering and a breakdown. All physical ills are best treated in their incipiency. Sometimes a person’s aches and pains are unpleasant and hard to remove, but they may be of minor importance as far as general health is concerned. These disturbances may be as unpleasant as serious illness and fre- quently cause grievous anxiety. In the treat- ment of these cases mental and Christian Science, Psychotherapy, and the Christian churches have found a fruitful field for their [91] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE activities. The sufferers did suffer and they were helped, but frequently the worst phase of their suffering was in their minds and when fear and anxiety were removed the general health improved. It should be an established custom for every family and individual to interview their doctor whenever there is any marked change in their physical condition. The loss or rapid gain in weight, lack of ambition or loss of appetite, a constant feeling of depression, any disturbance in or lack of codrdination of any of the body’s functions should be referred to him. It is penny wise and pound foolish to economize on your doctor bills in the early days of a sickness only to multiply them at a later date. Having consulted a physician, do as he ad- vises. One of the strangest traits of human nature is to pay for advice and then think it smart to misinterpret, twist or distort it for the immediate enjoyment of some forbidden pleas- ure. The story is told of a man whose physi- cian told him he ought to limit his smoking to one cigaraday. Immediately this patient went to the store and bought a box of the largest [92] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION and strongest cigars in stock. He kept the let- ter of the doctor’s advice but ignored its spirit. He hurt no one but himself. If he did not in- tend to follow the advice his physician gave, it would have been wiser to save his money. He salved his conscience by thinking he fol- lowed the doctor’s orders, but he was really doing just as he pleased. The individual goes to a doctor seeking health. If he lacks confi- dence in his physician’s character or has doubts about his medical knowledge, he should change physicians, as his mental attitude acts as a handicap in developing a healthy body which no medical man can overcome. Some occupations require living conditions that are harmful to physical health. Without going into details about sanitation, hygiene, and ventilation, common sense demands every one to recognize the importance of these things. A man’s selfish interests should make him an ardent advocate of wholesome living conditions for all people. A physician once said, “I like to have mem- bers of the New York Stock Exchange as pa- tients. They are the easiest cases to treat I [93] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE know of. All you have to do is to give them the once-over to see if there is any variation from the standing rule. The chances of this varia- tion are very small. ‘The prescription is simple: stop using all.forms of alcohol, take plenty of outdoor exercise and stay away from the office for a week or two. If this prescription is faith- fully followed, at the end of ten days or two weeks the grateful patient stops in to tell you what a wonderful physician you are.” These men are living under intense nervous pressure, which is aggravated by the stimulants their tired nerves crave. Clergymen also have to face living conditions that are sometimes disturbing to health. A city parish is apt to be a seven-day grind for ten months of the year. Preaching has an exhaust- ing effect on the nervous system. Constant demands for sympathy and advice wear on the mind. It is a case of “He saved others but himself he cannot save.” For these peculiar cases and others who have to live a sedentary and nerve exhausting exist- ence, there are certain helpful suggestions worth consideration. Make it a rule to take daily [94] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION exercise. It may be “The daily-dozen” every morning and a walk to the railroad station, of- fice or wherever the destination may be. The object is to get the lungs filled with fresh air and the blood circulating. Take time to dress leisurely even if this requires getting up be- fore you have to. Eat your breakfast slowly. Eating under nervous tension is a mistake, and yet thousands of men gulp their breakfast with one eye on their watch and start the day under a nervous strain. This regimen for the morn- ing hours aims at stimulating the circulation, filling the lungs with fresh air, and starting the digestive process in a wholesome way. All these things conserve health and build up the body’s resistance to disease and sickness. Business men rise at the latest possible mo- ment, dress and eat breakfast under nervous strain. They hurry to the office, factory, or store so as to be on time. Their nerves have been jumping every minute since they left their beds. Their daily occupations are carried on at high pressure because of modern business methods. The telephone increases nervous strain by demanding snap judgments and im- [95] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE mediate answers to important questions. We have not the calm atmosphere of a former gen- eration, when business was carried on by cor- respondence, with periods of quietness between each transaction. The luncheon hour is fre- quently used for business conferences where difficult questions are discussed or disagreeable situations are faced. The food is once more taken into the body while the nerves are taut and this destroys the stomach’s ability to as- similate it. In the evening the tired nerves cause restlessness and irritation. Instead of re- laxing them so that nature can renew nervous tissue, relief is sought in emotional excitement. Jazz and dancing are indulged in or movies are patronized. As the emotions directly affect the nervous system the nerves have no rest. The nights are restless and insomnia is a common complaint. There may bea slight exaggeration in this analysis of the facts, but the main fea- tures are undeniably true. This method of life results in the loss of health, and with the loss of health comes a de- crease in man’s ability to work and a distaste for all of the day’s duties. Even the enjoy- [96] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION ment of pleasures is impaired. Then the in- dividual commences to realize that physical well-being is basal to all enjoyment. Fre- quently at this period the sufferers come in touch with Mental Healing, New Thought, Mental Science, Divine Science, Christian Science, or some other school that advocates mental therapeutics. Many are helped but others are harmed by these schools. If the suf- fering is caused by a depleted nervous system, they will probably be benefited. If the run- down condition of the nerves is aggravated by or hides an actual physical weakness mere psy- chic treatment may cause irreparable injury. It is possible for the orthodox churches to meet this need in a real way, and safeguard both the truth of medical science and also that of faith healing. If you study the methods used by the various schools of mental healing you will discover they all require a certain amount of time. If the individual is willing to give some time each day to the cultivation of his spiritual life according to the dictates of whatever church may hold his allegiance, and apply the prin- ciples of his religion to his health, he can have [97] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE all the benefits of Christian Science or New Thought, plus the experience and advice of a trained physician. He can guard against both nervous disorders and physical ailments and improve his health in every way. In order to get the physical benefits of a re- ligious faith this faith must be applied by an intelligent effort to physical conditions. That is an axiom without which there can be no help. Time must be given in order to apply faith to health. Mental therapeutics have found that the early morning hours and the closing mo- ments of the day when its cares have been put aside are the best times for stimulating the sub- conscious mind and reaching the physical health through mental suggestion. The Christian can accept this program and weave it into his daily routine. We will now outline a plan and show how it can be carried out: Before rising have a copy of the Psalms, the New Testament or the Bible by your bed and read a portion of scripture, for example the 121st Psalm. Do not read it hurriedly, but take time and think about it. [98] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION “T will lift up mine eyes unto the hills.” Pause. Lift your eyes from your neighbor’s back yard, the apartment house next door or the trolley cars in the street. Think of the quietness of the hills and mountains. “From whence cometh my help.” I need help and that is what I am looking for. I can get itin my Bible. Where is it? “My help cometh from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” ‘Thatistrue. I] ama child of my Heavenly Father and he who has had strength to create the whole world can help me. “He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.” God is my help. I do not have to fret, fuss or worry about my work. “The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil; he shall preserve thy soul.” That is a comfort- ing thought and I will carry it with me to-day. “The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth and even for [99] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE evermore.” I will carry that with me as I go out of the house, and I will think of it as I enter the office. If the 121st Psalm is read in this way and the thought is impressed upon the mind that God is a sure help and is with us to protect us from both the heat of the sun and the light of the moon, there is a quiet confidence developed which relaxes the nerves, refreshes the mind and prepares a mental attitude which banishes worry. These thoughts can be applied to any physical weakness or pain from which the in- dividual may be suffering. The effects of the scripture lesson can be greatly increased by a few moments of medi- tation and prayer. In the prayer the one who seeks divine help for the day should cast his cares and his worries on his Heavenly Father and leave them there. He must not take them up again and carry them to the office. Some- times the individual suffers from the dread of going to his place of business. It seems almost certain he will be met with a reprimand, an impossible problem, or a situation that is be- [100] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION yond his control. Fear casts a shadow over the whole day. Such fears may be caused by some physical disorder or nervous disturbance needing medical attention, but as this pro- gram is worked out to supplement and not sup- plant the medical advice the physician is giving the danger is guarded against. The scripture lesson and prayer are used to control the mind and release the sufferer from all nerve afflictions and imaginary dangers, which are often as seri- ous as physical disorders. If possible, it is well to seek a few moments at noon for mental quietness. I know a promi- nent official of a great corporation whose days are spent under terrific nervous and mental pressure who spends a few moments right after his luncheon alone in his office. He leaves his club in time to let his mind and body relax be- fore he takes up the rush of the afternoon’s work. This habit is based on sound psychology and can be used as a source of spiritual refresh- ment. At night, just before retiring, turn to the 23rd Psalm. Read it as the 121st Psalm was read in the morning, slowly and thoughtfully. [101] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” That is a thought worth dwelling on. The whole responsibility of life is not ours. After all our boasted powers we are but sheep and we have a shepherd to care for us. ‘He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.’’ Let the mind rest in the green pastures with the quiet brook running through them. Refresh your — soul with the quietness of a pastoral dream. “He restoreth my soul.” Just stop for a mo- ment and think what it means to have the soul refreshed and restored, and the mind quieted, and the body healed by God’s ministrations. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”’ No mat- ter how dark the shadows are, even if it is the shadow of death itself, they are only shadows and God 1s the light. Go through the whole Psalm in this way. Let its message sink into the soul and lay hold [102] A PRACTICAL WAY OF APPLYING RELIGION of the subconscious mind. Soak the mind and spirit with the thoughts of God’s healing and strengthening power. Take time after this reading for a quiet prayer. Make it a prayer of aspiration and communion rather than a prayer of petition. Turn out your light and lie down in the bed. Learn how to relax both your muscles, nerves and mind. Don’t try to 2o}fo sleep.) just try to) relax. \)Relax: the muscles of the hands and the feet. Having relaxed the muscles, if you have been troubled with insomnia, you may find that the nerves are tense. The muscles and nerves of the face are drawn up in the effort to go to sleep. Just relax them. Don’t hold the eyes shut, just relax the eyelids. Let the mind rest on the green pastures and the still waters, and the peace of a life that is filled with a Father’s care and a Father’s love. Without trying to go to sleep you will rest. Even if sleep is slow in coming, rest. Sleep will come and in the morning you will be thoroughly refreshed and ready to take up the new day without fear, and with a renewed mind, a rebuilt body, and a strengthened soul. [103] FAITH, HEALTH AND COMMON SENSE It is not necessary to limit one’s self to the Psalms suggested. At the close of the book there is a list of scripture passages which may be helpful. Do not read a new passage each day. There is a calmness of mind which can only be gained by the monotony of repetition. After a period of time, it is well to make a change. Experience will show when the time has come to take a new scripture lesson. Such a regimen as this 1s sure to improve the physical life and rest the nerves. It is possible its effects may go much further. There are no grounds for guaranteeing it will always work miracles. It may sometimes, but common sense insists that this spiritual discipline be always used to supplement a physician’s advice and never as a substitute for it. As human happi- ness depends on physical health, isn’t it worth while to give the time and thought necessary for trying out a plan which has helped others and which is based upon sound principles and good common sense? [104] Chapter VII Scripture Lessons Which Assist in Healing Illness T is impossible to indicate in every case how scripture lessons should be used by the person seeking to improve his health by this means.