Something on which to meditate

 

Welcome back to my blog. Thank you for taking time to read it. 

 

We have been discussing the exciting research findings from Teleios! Over the past several weeks we have shown that peer-reviewed medical literature and Teleios scientific studies support improved wellbeing with Christianity in both healthy individuals and those suffering with disease! 

 

Today let us explore meditation versus church attendance. Why do that? The world constantly tries to replace God with something they consider just as good, but consistent with their goals. Their biggest desire is to replace God with the state where everyone is individually tethered to the government for their life’s sustenance. 

 

On a more personal level, the world often encourages the practice of meditation as a help to wellbeing. We see this in advertisements, particularly from drug companies, who wish to depict people in some pastoral setting maintaining some impossible postural stance, supposedly taking the company’s new medicine, and enjoying good wellbeing! Of course, God or prayer would never be considered in such ads.

 

Further, meditation is frequently used in the medical literature as a secular method to increase wellbeing for patients and at the same time avoid suggesting or endorsing religion.¹ However, surveys show individuals who attend church, at least occasionally, and the vast majority believe God exists. Our culture generally does not live in fields doing slow motion exercises as depicted on drug advertising. Accordingly, we reviewed the medical literature to compare the effect of meditation to church attendance on wellbeing in physically healthy subjects. 

 

Our review included 37 articles and showed that several types of meditation practices, and church attendance of a variety of denominations, provided improved general wellbeing among physically healthy populations (read more details here https://teleiosresearch.com/church-attendance-meditation-wellbeing/).  

 

However, such a simple solution as replacing religion with meditation has several potential problems:

• Meditation is a religiously based practice derived from Hinduism.² Therefore, the practice of meditation does not completely avoid religion.
• The long-term effect of meditation over a person’s lifetime has not been well studied. In contrast, historically, people that attended church their whole lives have done so without known general detrimental clinical effects.  
• Meditation only is practiced by approximately 9% of individuals in the United States; whereas church attendance is a foundational institution in American culture, attended by 70% (at least once monthly to yearly).^3,4
• Christian church attendance is associated with other specific findings, not associated with meditation, which might positively contribute to general wellbeing such as: 
• Community service
• Prayer
•  Socialization
• Praise
• Confidence in a positive relationship with God based in a biblical definition of eternal life as a free gift through faith in Christ’s sacrifice.^5-8

• Further, improved wellbeing is associated with adherence to the Christian walk.  
• The articles we reviewed did not differentiate the quality of Christian practice of participants, as church attendance is only one activity. Teleios has shown those who adhere more closely to their Christian faith have improved wellbeing. Accordingly, such practices might lead to improved wellbeing over what meditation would allow. A well-designed prospective study would be needed to show this. 
• In contrast, the several medical studies that have showed religion had no positive impact on wellbeing, the practice of the patients’ religion was internal (self-focused) much like meditation is by nature. Christianity at its heart is a service and love for others.

 

Our review of the medical literature suggests meditation and church attendance may offer a benefit to wellbeing. However, the complete practice of Christianity, which may include church attendance, generally provides better wellbeing than church attendance alone.  

 

1.     https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=meditation+well-being

2.     http://www.religionfacts.com/hinduism/practices  

3.     https://nccih.nih.gov/research/statistics/NHIS/2012/mind-body/meditation

4.     http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/09/13/what-surveys-say-about-worship-attendance-and-why-some-stay-home/

5.     https://teleiosresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CV-TELEIOS-GCC-I-CTCP-2013.pdf

6.     https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12848838/

7.     https://archive.org/details/basictheology0000ryri

8.     https://teleiosresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/CV-TELEIOS-GCC-II-CMHJ-2013.pdf

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

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Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

 

So why are we at church anyway?

 

Welcome back to my blog. I'm happy that you can visit. The purpose of Teleios is to use the scientific method to show the validity of God's word as wisdom and guidance in daily life. 

 

Teleios performed a survey in six evangelical churches evaluating members’ impressions of their church leadership and the church itself (full report here Influence of church leadership on congregant wellbeing. We presented choices that were positive in relationship to the member’s own maturity (e.g., prayer, fellowship, and biblical preaching) and also those that might indicate immaturity, such as self-focused motivations.  Fortunately, the negative rating responses were fewer than the more mature, biblically based scores but did represent a significant minority of members’ choices.

 

What are the implications of members using the church for their own agenda? We believe they are extensive and potentially severe. What do these people want? Here are some examples of what we gleaned from our survey.

 

Table: Most frequently cited ratings potentially indicating 

using the church for a personal agenda

Who are these people in the church? We do not know for certain but here are my best guesses:

• Earnest, suffering believers needing help from the church - There are afflicted Christians who are honestly seeking God. Although it may take time and emotion from the church leadership and caring church members, scripture tells us to ‘bear one another’s burdens’ (Galatians 6:2) and assist suffering believers back to spiritual health (1 Thessalonians 5:11-12).
• Young believers who do not know any better and need to be taught.
• Immature believers seeking emotional attention with no intent to change - These members may cause significant damage, sucking away people's time and good grace to satisfy themselves without any intention to change their lives. They are not truly seeking God and provide little benefit the body of Christ.
• Active anti-church agenda - These members use the church as a personal power base, or to aggrandize themselves in some manner. They may cause harm at a minimum by distracting other members from seeking and serving God and at worst by creating divisions that could divide the church.
• Tares - Christ mentioned (Matthew 13:24-30) that tares would afflict the church. Tares are non-believers who come to church. They learn the jargon and how to fit socially while maintaining an ungodly agenda that may cause factions, waste people's time, and distract the church from biblical pursuits.  

The church is God's plan to implement His purposes for this time period before Christ’s return. It should function efficiently with love that is consistent with God's word. Attendees who push their own non-Biblical agendas, whether for emotional comfort (with no desire to change) or for power, even covered in a pseudo-spiritual façade, represent a potential danger to the church. 

 

How do we recognize these people, and what should we do about them? We will discuss these important questions over the next several weeks. Our prayer is that this information will help you make your own church more biblically effective while attempting to lovingly bring destructive members into proper fellowship. 

 

Thank you for joining me today. I pray for those of you who read my blog and that the blog might be an encouragement to you in your daily life.

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

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X - https://x.com/TeleiosTweets

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@teleiostiktok

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/teleiosresearch

 

Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

 

 

Can adherence to Christian principles help suffering patients?

 

Hello again, welcome back! We have been exploring the exciting topic of scripture and how adherence to the Christian principles of daily living (prayer, praise, fellowship, receiving Biblical teaching and service) enhance a person's wellbeing (Acts 2:42,47). In prior blogs we have reported our findings in the general healthy population, but can the medically ill also improve their wellbeing through Christian living?

 

Adherence to Christian principles can indeed help suffering patients in several ways. Here are a few key points:

1. Emotional and Spiritual Support: Christian principles often emphasize the importance of community, prayer, and faith, which can provide emotional and spiritual support to patients. This support can help patients feel less isolated and more hopeful.
2. Holistic Care: Incorporating Christian ethics into healthcare can promote a holistic approach to patient care, addressing not just physical symptoms but also emotional, social, and spiritual needs.
3. Compassionate Care: Christian teachings often stress compassion and empathy, which can enhance the quality of care provided by healthcare professionals. This can lead to better patient outcomes and a more comforting experience for those who are suffering.
4. Ethical Decision-Making: Christian principles can guide ethical decision-making in healthcare, ensuring that patients are treated with dignity and respect. This can be particularly important in end-of-life care and other sensitive situations.

We examined this question in a cross-sectional survey of patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension (https://teleiosresearch.com/religious-adherence-glaucoma/). We evaluated self-reported religious adherence to specific basic activities and knowledge of faith and personal comfort. This specific analysis was limited to self-professed Christians. 

 

The survey included 248 patients from one clinical practice in Charleston, SC, and showed that those who were adherent to activities intended to create religious maturity (drawing encouragement from other church members, reading Scripture, or encouraging others to have faith) and had at least a basic knowledge about their faith, demonstrated greater comfort related to their illness and treatment. Specifically, comfort was manifested as a positive attitude towards their disease, a better ability to cope with their symptoms, and a belief that God was concerned about their diagnosis and helped with their treatment.  

 

When the findings were further analyzed by assessing those subjects who were most 'adherent' compared to those who were least adherent, an even greater separation between groups was observed with respect to comfort. This finding may indicate that the more serious a person is about the practice of their religion, the greater sense of wellbeing they may derive from it.  

 

This study suggested that Christian practice may assist patients in better coping with their disease and that it may possibly increase the quality of their lives. Overall, integrating Christian principles into patient care can contribute to a more supportive and compassionate healthcare environment. 

 

Thanks for visiting. I hope you will return next week for further discussion about the practical use of the Bible in daily life. 

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/c/TeleiosVideos/

 

Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and or do your own research into the scriptures.