FEATURE Biblical Perspectives on Health for the Contemporary World

Abstract: Perspectives on health from the Bible such as biblical anthropology and the laws of God, as a basis for health and disease dynamics, are receiving support from science. Biblical anthropology teaches that a human being is a whole person, with physical, mental, social, ecological and spiritual dimensions. The body is not the opposite of the soul, it is its visible expression. One dimension affects the other dimensions, because a human being is a unit. Scientific studies show many connections between mind and body, such as aerobic exercise and memory, the effect of one body system on another, and even spirituality and disease. Health and disease are the result of obedience or disobedience to God’s laws. Research in the area of behavioral epidemiology shows links between lifestyle and diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Biblical perspectives provide a useful theoretical framework for public health practice and research. Science and faith have traditionally been in disagreement, and they often appear not reconcilable with each other. Although both are ways to acquire knowledge and find truth, they are different in their assumptions and their methodology. However, they are beginning to come together in the field of health. The impact of religion on health has begun to be explored. How is it possible that a religious book such the Bible, the foundation for the Christian religion, written between 1500 BC and 100 AD, can have relevance for the twenty-first century, in a science-based, contemporary world? The objective of this paper is to show how biblical perspectives on health and disease dynamics are receiving support from the scientific field. Biblical perspectives about health corroborated by science would not only confirm Christian faith, but also could be a valuable and current source for health promotion, and could provide a theoretical framework for research, and for integrating health and faith