Before moving on and looking at what kind of evidence demonstrates that a particular therapy really does something, it is important to consider the supernatural. According to the Bible, some things, including healing, can happen by supernatural means.
By the supernatural, I am referring to things that happen independent of the normal physical laws of nature. Biblically, supernatural happenings are due to the involvement of the spirit world.
Considering the supernatural is important because there are some alternative therapies like “Therapeutic Touch, Reiki, reflexology, Deepa Chopra’s Aryvedic medicine, Larry Dossey’s healing words and many others”1 with non-Christian spiritual beliefs underlying them. This is also true of a number of alternative therapies that deal with life energies. Practitioners of these therapies say that “true health results from a balanced flow of this energy through the body and unblocked exchange of this energy with one’s environment.”2
The Bible teaches about involvement of spirits in the world. It teaches there are two groups of spirits. Those who are aligned with the Lord God, the one who created the heavens and the earth, and those who are aligned with Satan. Satan is a leader angel who decided he wanted to take God’s place. We are introduced to God and Satan in the beginning of the Bible. (Genesis 1-3) As you read the Scriptures, it is apparent good angels, those aligned with God, are part of God’s creation. (Numbers 22:31-35, 2Kings 19, Daniel 3:24-25, Daniel 6:22, etc) It also becomes apparent, from the scriptures, some angels fell from serving the Lord God and from being aligned with God. (2 Peter 2:4, Revelation 12:7-10) Reading through the Bible reveals that one of Satan’s, and the fallen-angel-spirit’s, goals is to turn people away from following God.
There is evidence in the Scriptures of supernatural powers involving both groups of spirits. There is supernatural healing in the Bible, especially when Jesus Christ walked on earth. We see an angel involved in supernatural healing in in John 5 at the Pool of Bethesda. Whether the fallen-angel-spirits, those aligned with Satan, are involved in healing is not clear, but they are involved in influencing people and trying to lead people away from trusting and following the Lord God. One way this could happen is for the spirits to move things in way as to make a therapy based on a false belief system seem useful, in an attempt to move people away from trusting in God,
When considering the many therapies and therapists out there, how important is it to consider the potential that the therapist or therapy involve the spirit world? Anything that Satan and the fallen-angel-spirits can do to turn a persons away from following the Lord, they will do. Should we be concerned about fallen-angel-spirits striving to make us believe in a therapy or a therapist, at the expense of trusting in the ways of the Lord God? The Biblical instruction is to trust in the Lord with all of our heart. (Proverbs 3:5) Evil would have us trust in ourselves, in people and the kingdoms of this world, rather then trust in the Lord God.
Ultimately, as we delve into the world of alternative therapies is it not important to consider any spiritual connections?
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-this blog posting is part of a series – the next in the series, Alternative Medicine – Show Stoppers
-the first posting in this series – Alternative Medicine – Important Questions
-For all postings on Alternative Medicine – Alternative Medicine Postings Page
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1. Donal O’Mathuna, PHD, and Walt Larimore, MD, Alternative Medicine: The options, the claims, the evidence, how to chose wisely, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI, 49530, 2007. p 31.
2 Donal O’Mathuna, PHD, and Walt Larimore, MD. p 30.