The Difference the Spirit Makes: The Body in Medicine and Christian Theology
Aaron Klink, Th.M., Chaplain, Pruitt Hospice
Starting with the Spirit: Theological and Medical Accounts of Human Embodiment
In my clinical work, conflicts between religious families and medical providers often stem implicitly, if not explicitly, from conflicts about the nature of the human body. Christian theology and modern bio-medicine offer very different foundational accounts of the body, which often lead people of faith and medical professionals to sometimes reach different decisions about the “efficacy” or futility of treatment. The Christian account begins with Genesis “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (Gen. 2:7) This breather is later equated with the Christian “Holy Spirit” the body and soul's animating force. Many Christians believe that because the Holy Spirit reflects God's unlimited power, the spirit can relate to a living body regardless of other mental of physical disabilities. Jean-Claude Larchet observes, “In fact the spirit has the power to subjugate all the other elements of the human composite, the power to conform them to itself and to spiritualize them by communicating, even to the depths of its being, the divine energies, which by nature, it is the most apt, and the first to receive.” (Theology of the Body p. 21) Hence, the body, not matter what its state is capable of being in relationship to the living God. In some sense, this relationship is a mystery and cannot be empirically quantified, veritably tested. Yet, it is an article of metaphysical faith for many Christians. This ability of the body, in any form to be in relationship to the Holy Spirit.
Yet, this account of the body, in relationship to an unmeasurable, and perhaps unseen Holy Spirit or divine presence directly contrasts with the account of the body given in medical practice which is focused on measurable In medicine, the body is a system which can be measured, quantified, and counted. Blood oxygen levels can be taken, T-cells counted, white-cell counts can be counted, heartbeats, and respiration monitored. In medicine, the body is a naturally animated system, who's course can often be predicted or prognosticated about. In this system, the end of higher brain function is the end of “personhood”.
This paper explores the implications of these differing foundational accounts of the body for work in both medical ethics and clinical practice. It will urge conversations between theological and biological understandings of human embodiment as a means of enhancing both medical ethics and respectful clinical practice.
Starting with the Spirit: Theological and Medical Accounts of Human Embodiment
In my clinical work, conflicts between religious families and medical providers often stem implicitly, if not explicitly, from conflicts about the nature of the human body. Christian theology and modern bio-medicine offer very different foundational accounts of the body, which often lead people of faith and medical professionals to sometimes reach different decisions about the “efficacy” or futility of treatment. The Christian account begins with Genesis “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (Gen. 2:7) This breather is later equated with the Christian “Holy Spirit” the body and soul's animating force. Many Christians believe that because the Holy Spirit reflects God's unlimited power, the spirit can relate to a living body regardless of other mental of physical disabilities. Jean-Claude Larchet observes, “In fact the spirit has the power to subjugate all the other elements of the human composite, the power to conform them to itself and to spiritualize them by communicating, even to the depths of its being, the divine energies, which by nature, it is the most apt, and the first to receive.” (Theology of the Body p. 21) Hence, the body, not matter what its state is capable of being in relationship to the living God. In some sense, this relationship is a mystery and cannot be empirically quantified, veritably tested. Yet, it is an article of metaphysical faith for many Christians. This ability of the body, in any form to be in relationship to the Holy Spirit.
Yet, this account of the body, in relationship to an unmeasurable, and perhaps unseen Holy Spirit or divine presence directly contrasts with the account of the body given in medical practice which is focused on measurable In medicine, the body is a system which can be measured, quantified, and counted. Blood oxygen levels can be taken, T-cells counted, white-cell counts can be counted, heartbeats, and respiration monitored. In medicine, the body is a naturally animated system, who's course can often be predicted or prognosticated about. In this system, the end of higher brain function is the end of “personhood”.
This paper explores the implications of these differing foundational accounts of the body for work in both medical ethics and clinical practice. It will urge conversations between theological and biological understandings of human embodiment as a means of enhancing both medical ethics and respectful clinical practice.