FAITH AND PHOLOPHIES OF DIFFERENT RELIGIONS
TOWARDS HEALTH CARE

The problem of respecting the patients’ religious based decisions is playing an increasingly important role in medical practices probably because bioethical standards accentuate the principle of the respect for autonomy (the departure from medical paternalism) and the contacts between people belonging to different religious traditions are becoming more and more frequent because of globalization. (Silesian Medical University [SMU], 2006)
For this research paper on analysis of world view of two faiths philosophies towards providing healthcare, we have chosen two faiths which are Christianity and Hinduism.

Christianity and healthcare-
Beliefs- Christian science is based on bible and teachings of Christ. There is emphasis on spiritual healing which is based on prayers.
HealthCare Chaplaincy (2012) points out Christians beliefs: * Jesus Christ is the savior of humanity. * Jesus Christ is the holy son of God. * The Christian Scripture (New Testament) is a continuation of the Hebrew Scripture (Old Testament) * Believe in presence of spiritual powers that operates on mind and body. * Faith does not rest in blind faith, rather understanding perfection of god’s spiritual creation in present. * Illness believed to be the result of disharmony between mind and matter * Believe that healing occurs when one draws closer to God and experiences moral and spiritual change.

Bible verses on health-
19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (Corinthians 6:19-20)

22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (Proverbs 17:22)
6 'Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security. (Jeremiah 33:6)
12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. (Revelation 14:12)
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. 8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. (Proverbs 3:7-8) Guiding principles-there are four major guiding principles outlined according to Christian beliefs and philosophy. These four principles complement each other. * Affirming life- Christianity believes that each individual life has a purpose and that we wish to see the highest quality of life possible in all circumstances. * Caring for the vulnerable- caring for vulnerable goes beyond the issue of protection, it includes ensuring support and care to the vulnerable, and being afforded respect in the society. * Building community- building a cohesive and humane society provide best environment for individual freedom. However some limitations are necessary to build a truly humane society. * Respect for individuals- above principles in the context of building a cohesive society and caring for the vulnerable, maximum individual freedom of choice and opportunity is automatically granted. But it is important for the society to abstain from marginalizing and victimizing individuals or groups on the basis of sex, race, religion etc.
Health and illness- the practice of Christianity Science understands that each individual has a unique spiritual belief. It does not interfere with individual’s right to make decisions about his own health care or questions regarding diagnosis, birth, death, or any other issues of health care. The practitioners will likely accept when the patient or the family asks that the drugs should be kept to a minimum or any decisions about medical procedures. The patient may refuse medical treatment and ask to be released to the care of family. There are church supported nursing facilities also for Christian patients, where they receive practical care without medications.
Birth- mostly the babies are delivered in a hospital. Some may also choose home deliveries with a certified midwife. Christian parents abide by the law in caring of children. The church supports reporting of communicable disease and vaccination but there is no position of church on termination of pregnancy.
Death- Christian patients do not believe in the philosophy of stage of grief. They may prefer to maintain hope even where it appears that there are no hopes.
Diet- there is no restrictions on diet or to abstain from alcohol or caffeine or smoking.
Spiritual healing- Christianity also believes in spiritual healing which is channeling of healing energy from god to individual. The channel is a person but the source is the god. It comes through prayer. Healing in the Bible is often associated with the ministry of specific individuals including Elijah, Jesus, and Paul.

Hinduism and healthcare-
Hinduism is among the oldest religion and the third largest religion of the world, mostly practiced in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
Beliefs-
Hindus believe in various spiritual texts, mainly the Bhagwat Gita, the Vedas, the Upnishads, and the Purans.
Beliefs of Hindus as stated in the Health care and Religious Beliefs,
Hindus believe in one Universal Supreme Being, called Parmātmān in Sanskrit language (God), which manifests in several different forms, ways and aspects commonly recognized by Hindus as Deities possessing divine powers. Hindus believe there are different paths to realize the same Universal Supreme Being. The three Prime manifestations of Parmātmān are Deities known as Brahmā, Vishnu, and Shiva, who represent the forces of Creation which is birth, Preservation which means Life and Dissolution, which means death. (H.K. Singh, 2009)

Karma- the central belief of Hinduism is the doctrine of karma, the law of cause and effect. They believe that every thought, words, action, and effect accumulates karma which means that actions from past life may affect events in current life. They also believe in reincarnation. Hence their decisions on healthcare may be affected by karma.
Major Hindu beliefs relating to health as specified by HealthCare Chaplaincy (2013)- * One must perform his duties to god, parents, teachers, and society. * Humankind’s goal is to break free of this imperfect world and reunite with God. * Removal of shoes before entering house of god or any room. * Personal hygiene is very important and bathing is required every day, but bathing after meal is harmful * Praying, meditating, scripture reading and recitation is common. * Hindus have major belief in ayurveda, which is a system of traditional Hindu medicine, 5000 years old. * Hindus are also firm believers of yoga, which is traditional technique of controlling body and mind. * Hindus worship the holy cow and hence eating beef is prohibited. * Many Hindus have a strong belief in the concept of the evil eye and may believe this to be a cause of mental illness.

Bhagwat Gita texts on healthy life-

“He who meditates on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his mind constantly engaged in remembering Me, undeviated from the path, he, O Partha [Arjuna], is sure to reach Me.”
“To Karma (action) alone hast thou a right and never at all to its fruits; let not the fruits of action be thy motive; neither let there be in thee any attachment to inaction.”
“The foods that promote longevity, virtue, strength, health, happiness, and joy; are juicy, smooth, substantial, and agreeable to the stomach.”
“Foods in the mode of goodness increase the duration of life purify one's existence and give strength, health, happiness, and satisfaction. Such nourishing foods are sweet, juicy, fattening, and palatable. Foods that are too bitter, too sour, salty, pungent, and dry and hot, are liked by people in the modes of passion. Such foods cause pain, distress, and disease. Food cooked more than three hours before being eaten, which is tasteless, stale, putrid, decomposed, and unclean, is food liked by people in the mode of ignorance.”
Health and illness- it is common among Hindus to describe illness as karma which states that one reaps what he sows. They believe firmly in destiny. But they believe in a healthy lifestyle by adopting meditation, yoga, and ayurveda.
Birth- there no official position on contraception. But the belief on abortion varies among culture. Many Hindus believe that the moment of conception marks the rebirth of individual, which makes abortion unacceptable except in emergencies.
Death- Hindus believe that the time of death is determined by destiny. Treatment is not required to be provided to a Hindu patient if it merely prolongs the suffering and the final stage of terminal illness. But euthanasia and suicide is prohibited.
Diet- Hindus are mostly vegetarian and do not eat pork and beef. Some strict Hindus do not even consume garlic and onion as it is believed to disturb spiritual practices such as meditation. Fasting on holy days is an integral part of Hinduism and is seen as the means of purifying body and the soul. However fasting is not considered obligatory. Most Hindus abstain from non- vegetarian food and liquor on the holy days.
Spiritual healing- in Hinduism healing is considered to be side effect of spiritual process called yoga and meditation. Prayers in Hinduism are considered to be an ultimate source of healing.

# Critical component relating to healing such as prayer, meditation common to all religions and beliefs-
We have seen that in mostly all of the religions there is a common component relating to healing. Faith healing is ritual practice of communal prayers that are claimed to solicit the divine intervention in initiating spiritual and literal healing. Claims that prayer of an individual can cure illness have been popular throughout history. This belief is still prevalent. It is belief of some Christians that god heals people through the power of Holy Spirit, which often involve lying on the hands.
Meditation is another method considered for healing mental sickness and pain. Meditation is a practice in which an individual trains the mind or induces a mode of consciousness, either to realize some benefit or for the mind to simply acknowledge its content without becoming identified with that content. Meditation is often used to clear the mind and ease many health concerns.
Although healing through prayers and other means is important in our life as it provide us the strength and hope to fight and cure a disease. But reliance on faith to the exclusion of other forms of treatment is harmful. It is the stated position of the AMA that "prayer as therapy should not delay access to traditional medical care.”
According to the American Cancer Society:
... Available scientific evidence does not support claims that faith healing can actually cure physical ailments... One review published in 1998 looked at 172 cases of deaths among children treated by faith healing instead of conventional methods. These researchers estimated that if conventional treatment had been given, the survival rate for most of these children would have been more than 90 percent, with the remainder of the children also having a good chance of survival. A more recent study found that more than 200 children had died of treatable illnesses in the United States over the past thirty years because their parents relied on spiritual healing rather than conventional medical treatment.
# what is important to patients of the faiths when cared for by health care providers whose spiritual beliefs differ from their own?
When a patient of faith is treated by health care providers whose spiritual beliefs are different, he may fear that he can be stereotyped by the health service provider and may not be free to communicate with him. He may insist to be treated through minimum medications as, a person of faith believes in Faith Healing. He may be a believer of destiny and may not agree for a treatment.
Hence providing religious support to patient is important for the provider, irrespective of his own beliefs and faith. Addressing the beliefs of patient is important especially in life threatening illness.
"Sensitive care means giving respect and incorporates the basic values of human freedom and religious diversity." it is essential that the nurse is able to relate to patients of different faiths and cultures. One should always be careful to avoid stereotyping, as this demeans the patient as well as the nurse. Treating the patient as an individual is important because of differences such as religion, culture, gender, education, socioeconomic status, and family tradition. Support however needs to be non-sectarian, non-dogmatic, and appropriate to the patient's view of the world.
(Johnston, 1990).

CONCLUSION-
The research paper shows how different beliefs of different religions influence health care habits and decisions of an individual. Even an individual belongs to a group or religion may have different beliefs as compared to those people of his religion. It is important for a medical practitioner to value these beliefs and address them while treating a patient. He should understand the importance of religious beliefs and spiritual healing for the patient. Not only this, Provider should also encourage patients and family members to interpret how religious/cultural values may be pertinent to a hospital stay--regarding personal needs, interaction with staff, and decisions about treatment.
Spiritual healing is also an important aspect of religious belief that influence sheath decisions of an individual. As per my understanding spiritual healing in the form of prayers is effective in regards with health. It relives us from stress and provides us with hopes in the extreme bad situations. Spirituality leads to a healthy living and also long life. But blind faith may be harmful of exercised without practicality of life.

REFRENCES-
Bhagavad-Gita Trust (2009) Srimad Bhagwat Gita. Retrieved from: http://www.bhagavad-gita.org/
Dr B. McCarthy (2010) Medical Ethics: A Christian Perspective. Retrieved from: https://www.churchofengland.org
HealthCare Chaplaincy (2013) Handbook of Patients’ Spiritual and Cultural Values for Health Care Professionals. Retrieved from: http://www.healthcarechaplaincy.org/
J. K. Griffith (2009) Religious Aspect of Nursing Care. Retrieved from: http://www.nursing.ubc.ca/PDFs
Queensland Government (2011) Healthcare Providers’ Handbook on Hindu Patients.
Spiritual Care Advisory Committee (2009) Health Care and Religious Beliefs. Retrieved from: http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/
W. R. Cunningham (2006) a Christian Perspective of Healing: Prayer. Retrieved from: http://www.pursuingthetruth.org
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania (2013) The Holy Bible.