Religion's Place in Nursing

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I often read Billy Graham's column and thought today's was particulary pertinent to our profession. I'm just curious as to your own personal thoughts and feelings on the matter. (Please, no screaming at one another...this is not a debate.)

Dear Dr. Graham,

I'd like to be a Christian, but I have a hard time believing that Jesus rose from the dead. You see, I'm an intensive care nurse, and I know that once a person dies, that's the end. Maybe you can help me get past these doubts. -- Mrs. K.W.

Dear Mrs. K.W.:

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the most important event in all history -- and yes, incredible as it may seem, it really did happen.

In fact, it might interest you to know that one of the Gospels was written by a medical doctor (Luke). Like you, he knew that death is final and irreversible -- and yet he also gave us one of the most extensive accounts of Jesus' resurrection from the dead. Why? Because he had thoroughly investigated the evidence for Jesus' resurrection for himself and he knew only one conclusion was possible: Jesus had come back from the dead.

Why is the resurrection important? Why did God raise Jesus from the dead? One reason was to prove that Jesus was who He said He was: the divine Son of God, sent from heaven to save us from our sins. The Bible says that He "was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 1:4). The resurrection sets Jesus apart from every other person who has ever lived.

But the resurrection points to an even greater truth: Death has now been conquered! The grave is not the end, but heaven's doors are now open! Jesus is alive, and He wants to come into your life today. Why not discover this great truth for yourself by turning to Christ today?

Edited to remove the dead link that stretched things past the edge of the screen - hope it makes it easier to read :)! - Ratched

I think most of us here are discussing the issue without being intolerant of other's beliefs or personally attacking each other. Personally, i think we are doing a fairly good job! (and if we all ignore those that do attack, we can just keep on with our healthy, nice discussion) Think?

Specializes in Obstetrics, M/S, Psych.
I think most of us here are discussing the issue without being intolerant of other's beliefs or personally attacking each other. Personally, i think we are doing a fairly good job! (and if we all ignore those that do attack, we can just keep on with our healthy, nice discussion) Think?

Here, here! I think we are doing great! I was worried when I logged on and saw the religion threads were merged...I thought someone had blown it! :uhoh21: I like being able to come here and talk with allnurses about this because we really can't do it so freely in our daily lives. It really would evoke too much emotion. Here we can all stay more rational it seems.

I think most of us here are discussing the issue without being intolerant of other's beliefs or personally attacking each other. Personally, i think we are doing a fairly good job! (and if we all ignore those that do attack, we can just keep on with our healthy, nice discussion) Think?

i have to agree kimmy, that 98% of us are being most respectful. it only takes that 1 special comment that starts the slippery slope of personal affronts. i'll try, really i will. :)

leslie

I am a very strong christian, so yes i do believe that Jesus was ressurected, science cannot explain some things. God is more powerful that science, and with him all things are possible. :)

When i say i am a strong christian, i mean really strong. I go to the Church of Christ, and we speak where the bible speaks and are silent where the bible is silent.

that meas we do not celebrate jesus birthday because the bible mentions no such date or says we should celebrate is.. so x-mas is not a religious thing

same for easter.

"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and [from] the things which are written in this book." Rev:22 18-19 (oh i think thats it, i dont claim to know everything since ive only been a christian for about 4 1/2 years.)

This probably seems strange to most people... heh

Religion..cults..whatever works for ya'll. In all our history we fight and kill in wars upon "G-D" . Who the helk do we think we are to believe OUR belief is RIGHT and TRUE, but others are wrong and "just don't get it" It makes me laugh. I respect all. Whatever gets you thru life. If you believe the toaster is "G-D" and because of this strong belief and faith in your toaster you are a good person and seek peace well than G-D BLESS YA! The idea that I have to follow certain rules in order for me to go to the pearly gates of heaven make ME yawn. I live in peace. I am a good person. I don't harm people. I put in life what I expect to get out. Kinda like common sence really. And guess what? I am happy and that is the truth. And I ain't perfect. When I die, my soul will go where souls go. I don't know for FACT where and either do you. Oh and if you feel the need to pray for me because of my feelings, pass on it and pray for someone who needs it. Love ya nurses you are the best!

Religion..cults..whatever works for ya'll. In all our history we fight and kill in wars upon "G-D" . Who the helk do we think we are to believe OUR belief is RIGHT and TRUE, but others are wrong and "just don't get it" It makes me laugh. I respect all. Whatever gets you thru life. If you believe the toaster is "G-D" and because of this strong belief and faith in your toaster you are a good person and seek peace well than G-D BLESS YA! The idea that I have to follow certain rules in order for me to go to the pearly gates of heaven make ME yawn. I live in peace. I am a good person. I don't harm people. I put in life what I expect to get out. Kinda like common sence really. And guess what? I am happy and that is the truth. And I ain't perfect. When I die, my soul will go where souls go. I don't know for FACT where and either do you. Oh and if you feel the need to pray for me because of my feelings, pass on it and pray for someone who needs it. Love ya nurses you are the best!

More power to ya. Like I said before, people who think they have a monopoly on the truth are usually just not seeing the full picture. Certainly the important things are helping those who need to be helped, doing things in love, and keeping an open, patient, critical mind. It's all the literalists who do the shouting.

Peace. Chris

Specializes in LTC, CPR instructor, First aid instructor..
I am a very strong christian, so yes i do believe that Jesus was ressurected, science cannot explain some things. God is more powerful that science, and with him all things are possible. :)

When i say i am a strong christian, i mean really strong. I go to the Church of Christ, and we speak where the bible speaks and are silent where the bible is silent.

that meas we do not celebrate jesus birthday because the bible mentions no such date or says we should celebrate is.. so x-mas is not a religious thing

same for easter.

"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and [from] the things which are written in this book." Rev:22 18-19 (oh i think thats it, i dont claim to know everything since ive only been a christian for about 4 1/2 years.)

This probably seems strange to most people... heh

Time to say, "Bye bye!" Because I'm just a little old peace lover.

:crying2:I only read a few of the comments because they made me so sad. It must be very difficult in the practice of nursing to be without hope for the future. Yes there is a future, even after death. Whether you believe it or not, accept it or not, hope for it or not.

What are you talking about?? I know this has become a long thread and recently combined, but who is without hope for the future?? I'm assuming you're equating a lack of religious belief as something that makes one live in despair. Trust me, a life without religious belief is hardly a life of apathy, immorality, or hopelessness.

If I'm wrong, please correct me, but if my assumption about your post is correct, then let me give you something to consider. For many atheists / agnostics, the concept of heaven is either unbelievable or so uncertain it isn't worth wasting time thinking about.

I have no belief in immortality, except for the concept of my genes being around for a while as they have been passed on in my children.

I'm certain a heaven exists, but not in the form of the Christian faith...it is right here. Also, by not wishing for acceptance into the "afterlife country club" I know that my time here should be experienced and enjoyed as much as possible. We are the lucky ones simply for being alive - countless others don't even make it this far.

Take time to examine the mystery and beauty of this planet and you'll see the world we live in is truly a "garden of eden." Unfortunately, the Christian view is that the world we LIVE in is somehow a punishment for eating an apple from the "tree of knowledge"!!

Anyone for a slice of apple pie...

How do you cope with the loss of a loved one, patient, whether it be an adult or child?

We (atheists) grieve like anyone else. The main difference is we don't look for a god to tell us why or try to excuse something as "God's will." By not having a belief of a higher power I don't look for other reasons other than death is inevitable and life often seems unfair. But isn't that what one would expect in a world that isn't controlled by a "supreme being"?

I think Richard Dawkins said it even better:

The total amount of suffering per year in the natural world is beyond all decent contemplation. During the minute that it takes me to compose this sentence, thousands of animals are being eaten alive, others are running for their lives, whimpering with fear, others are being slowly devoured from within by rasping parasites, thousands of all kinds are dying of starvation, thirst and disease. It must be so.

If there is ever a time of plenty, this very fact will automatically lead to an increase in population until the natural state of starvation and misery is restored. Theologians worry away at the *'Problem of Evil" and a related Problem of Suffering. On the day that 1 originally wrote this paragraph, the newspapers were filled with one of those heartrending disasters, the tragic crash of a busload of children.

Not for the first time, clerics were in paroxysms over the theological question, in the words of The Sunday Telegraph, ---How can you believe in a loving, all-powerful God who allows such a tragedy?"

The paper went on to quote one priest: "The simple answer is that we do not know why there should be a God who lets these awful things happen. But the horror of the crash, to a Christian, confirms the fact that we live in a world of real values: positive and negative. If the universe was just electrons, there would be no problem of evil or suffering.

On the contrary, if the universe were just electrons and selfish genes, meaningless tragedies are exactly what we should expect, along with equally meaningless good fortune. Such a universe would be neither evil nor good in intention. It would manifest no intentions of any kind.

In a universe of blind physical forces and genetic replication, some people are going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won't find any rhyme or reason in it, or any justice. The universe that we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference. As that unhappy poet A E Housman put it:

For Nature, heartless, witless

Nature

Will neither know nor care.

DNA neither knows nor cares. DNA just is. And we dance to its music.(http://www.world-of-dawkins.com/Dawkins/Work/Articles/1995-05-10nomercy.shtml)

My hope and prayer for each of you is that you will truly seek answers (which, believe it or not I have done) not just rely on the retoric of the media, movies, books or men without hope to tell you what is truth.

And where would I find it?? In the bible?? Sorry, but I'd rather read about "men without hope" than try and force myself to believe a fairy tale...

And where would I find it?? In the bible?? Sorry, but I'd rather read about "men without hope" than try and force myself to believe a fairy tale...

A "fairy tale"? I beg to differ.......

The external evidences of the Bible, that is, evidences found outside the Bible.

Indestructibility

The first external evidence is the indestructibility of the Bible. The Bible is the most well-known book in the history of the world, and no book has been attacked more than it. Skeptics have tried to destroy the authority of the Bible for the last eighteen hundred years. It has undergone every kind of scrutiny possible from archaeology, science, philosophy, and computers. Yet, despite all these attacks, the Bible proves itself to be true again and again. Each time the skeptics have been wrong, and the Bible has proven itself true. Just the fact that the Bible has remained steadfast in its authority after two thousand years is another piece of evidence supporting its divine origin.

Archaeology

The second source of external evidence comes from archaeology. Middle Eastern archaeological investigations have proven the Bible to be true and unerringly accurate in its historical descriptions. Nelson Glueck, a renowned Jewish archaeologist, states, "No archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.''(2)

Dr. William Albright, who was not a friend of Christianity and was probably the foremost authority in Middle East archaeology in his time, said this about the Bible: "There can be no doubt that archaeology has confirmed the substantial historicity of the Old Testament."(3)

Here are a couple of examples of the historical accuracy of the Bible. A good example is found in Genesis 14. The Bible speaks of Abraham's victory over Chedorlaomer and five Mesopotamian kings. For years, the critics stated that these accounts were fictitious and many people discredited the Bible. In the 1960s, however, the Ebla tablets were discovered in northern Syria. The Ebla kingdom was a powerful kingdom in the twentieth century B.C. The Ebla tablets are records of its history. Thousands of tablets have been discovered. What is important is that many of these tablets make a reference to all five cities of the plain proving the Genesis 14 account to be accurate.(4)

Another example is the story of Jericho recorded in the book of Joshua. For years skeptics thought the story of the falling walls of Jericho was a myth. However, in the 1930s, Dr. John Garstang made a remarkable discovery. He states, "As to the main fact, then, there remains no doubt: the walls fell outwards so completely, the attackers would be able to clamber up and over the ruins of the city." This is remarkable because city walls fall inward, not outward.(5)

The March 5, 1990 issue of Time magazine featured an article called, "Score One For the Bible." In it, archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon claimed Jericho's walls had fallen suddenly. Many scholars feel this was caused by an earthquake which may also explain the damming of the Jordan. Additionally, grain was discovered, which shows the city was conquered quickly. This find adds credence to the biblical account. Further study by Brian Wood found the date of the fall of Jericho to match the Bible's date.(6)

Here are just two great examples of archaeology authenticating the historical reliability of the Bible. No book is as ancient, and at the same time, as convincingly accurate as the Bible.

Indestructibility and archaeology are two external evidences for the Bible.

Prophecy

There are many more external evidences for the Bible, but I'll just cover one more: evidence from prophecy. The Bible contains hundreds of prophecies which have come to pass. No book in history has ever come close to the Bible when it comes to fulfillment of prophecy.

The prophecies in the Bible are very specific and accurate. Nostradamus claims to have made hundreds of prophecies that have come true, but if you read his prophecies, you will find them to be vague and unclear. His symbols and language can be taken to mean a number of historical events. Unlike many such prophecies, biblical prophecy is very specific.

Here are some examples. In Ezekiel 26, which was written in 587 B.C., Ezekiel prophesies that the mighty city of Tyre would be destroyed. Tyre was made up of two parts, a mainland port city and an island city half a mile off shore. Ezekiel predicted mainland Tyre would be destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, many nations would fight against her, the debris of the city would be thrown into the ocean, the city would never be found again, and fishermen would come there to lay their nets.

In 573 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the mainland city of Tyre. Many of the refugees of the city sailed to the island and the island city of Tyre remained a powerful city. In 333 B.C., however, Alexander the Great laid siege to Tyre. Using the rubble of mainland Tyre, he built a causeway to the island city of Tyre. He then captured and completely destroyed the city.

Today, Tyre is a small fishing town where fishing boats come to rest and fisherman spread their nets. The great ancient city of Tyre to this day lies buried in ruins exactly as prophesied. If we were to calculate the odds of this event happening by chance, the figures would be astronomical. No, it was not by coincidence.(7)

Here's another example. There are over three hundred prophecies made of Jesus in the Old Testament. Prophecies such as His place of birth, how he would die, His rejection by the nation of Israel, and so on. All these prophecies were made hundreds of years before Jesus ever came to earth. Because of the accuracy of the prophecies, many skeptics have believed that they must have been written after 70 A.D.--after the birth and death of Jesus, and the destruction of Jerusalem. They have thereby tried to deny that they are even prophecies.

However, in 1947, the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. These scrolls contained the book of Isaiah and other prophetic books. When dated, they were found to be written from 120 to 100 B.C.,(8) well before Jesus was born. It would have been an incredible accomplishment for Jesus to have fulfilled all three hundred prophecies. Some say these prophecies were fulfilled by chance, but the odds for this would be exceptionally large. It would take more faith to believe in that chance happening than in the fact that Jesus is God and these prophecies are divinely inspired.(9)

No book can match the Bible when it comes to prophecy. Understand that I have only touched the tip of the iceberg. There are hundreds of additional proofs for the Bible, yet I have only mentioned a few. I hope this study has aroused your interest to further study the Word of God.

© 1991 Probe Ministries

Notes

1. Josh McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict (San Bernardino: Here's Life Publishers,1979), 17.

2. Nelson Glueck, Rivers in the Desert: A History of the Negev (New York: Farrar, Strauss, and Cudahy, 1959), 31.

3. William F. Albright, Archaeology and the Religion of Israel (Baltimore: John Hopkins, 1953), 176.

4. Merrill Unger, Unger's Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody, 1971), 330.

5. John Garstang, The Foundations of Bible History; Joshua, Judges (London: Constable, 1931), 146.

6. Michael Lemonick, "Score One for the Bible," Time, 5 March 1990, 59.

7. Ralph H. Alexander, "Ezekiel," in The Expositor's Bible Commentary, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986), 869.

8. Unger, 291-292.

9. McDowell, 167.

I need to put my five cents......:rotfl:

we are all humans what RELIGION or our BELIEVES should not be a major factor..especially being nurses ...

we should try to get along..treat each other right ...and every patient with dignity and respect ..regardless what they believe...

for I know if we do right and live right ...we all can live in peace...

But evil divides us ...

I am Christian and I do not agree with everything RELIGION preaches..

but I know FAITH IS A KEY .....to unlock the unknown....

every single human has FAITH ..no matter what they believe ...

for yesterday is gone.....TODAY IS A PRESENT.....

and tommorrow is FAITH...

So if you believe in Heaven or Hell is not the question ..because the answer is written within us and we have the choice to either IGNORE IT ...or LISTEN TO IT...

we can discuss this matter forever ..everyone will say their believe is right ..

I say no matter what ..we all will die one day and find out ..

IF we were RIGHT ...or wrong

May God have mercy on ALL of us...ingluding anyone that chooses not to believe....:uhoh21:

PEACE ..out.....

Specializes in Critical Care / Psychiatry.
Religion..cults..whatever works for ya'll. In all our history we fight and kill in wars upon "G-D" . Who the helk do we think we are to believe OUR belief is RIGHT and TRUE, but others are wrong and "just don't get it" It makes me laugh. I respect all. Whatever gets you thru life. If you believe the toaster is "G-D" and because of this strong belief and faith in your toaster you are a good person and seek peace well than G-D BLESS YA! The idea that I have to follow certain rules in order for me to go to the pearly gates of heaven make ME yawn. I live in peace. I am a good person. I don't harm people. I put in life what I expect to get out. Kinda like common sence really. And guess what? I am happy and that is the truth. And I ain't perfect. When I die, my soul will go where souls go. I don't know for FACT where and either do you. Oh and if you feel the need to pray for me because of my feelings, pass on it and pray for someone who needs it. Love ya nurses you are the best!

Silly question, I'm sure...but why do ya leave the "o" out of God?

Just curious. I've never seen that before but I've seen it here at allnurses.com quite a bit!

Shel

A "fairy tale"? I beg to differ.......

The external evidences of the Bible, that is, evidences found outside the Bible.

Funny how you use archeology as proof of something, yet dismiss the other archeological evidence that disputes your claims.

Typical creationism pseudo-science...

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