Religion and Health

The Global-World HIV/AIDS Alliance (GHAA) is a collaboration of representatives from civil society, faith-based organizations, institutions of higher education, and government agencies who are pooling resources specific to their respective organizations' missions to assist with enhancing education and early treatment for HIV/AIDS in marginalized and medically underserved communities worldwide. The Alliances' partnerships are divided into five geographically oriented operational groups (called clusters), which are the Africa Regional Cluster, Asia Regional Cluster, Europe Regional Cluster, Latin-Caribbean Cluster, and United States Cluster. The purpose of this collaborative effort, which relies on the expertise and services of agencies and institutions from 26 countries, is to mobilize experts from various fields to share lessons learned about effective (and ineffective) strategies for reaching those most neglected, to ultimately realize a decline in HIV/AIDS infection and de...

This bulletin reviews the actual and potential role of Faith-Based Organisations (FBOs) in encouraging culturally appropriate prevention education, in promoting quality pastoral care, and in fostering compassionate non-judgmental service provision to people living with HIV/AIDS. Although the documented evidence base for the effectiveness of FBO interventions is still small, the review of lessons learned by leading experts provides sufficient ground

This article explores the intricate relationship between religious beliefs and mental health care in Zambia, where religion plays a central role in shaping individuals' responses to mental health challenges. With 95% of the population influenced by religion, Zambia's approach to mental health reflects a blend of traditional beliefs, modern religious practices, and contemporary medical strategies. The article examines how traditional, Christian, and Islamic perspectives intersect with mental health care, highlighting the ways in which faith-based and medical systems collaborate to provide holistic treatment. It also discusses the emerging role of faith-based mental health support systems, such as church-based counseling services, religious support groups, and training for faith leaders. Additionally, the integration of religious and medical treatment approaches, particularly in clinical settings, is analyzed, emphasizing the benefits of combining spiritual and professional care. The article concludes by underscoring the cultural sensitivity and accessibility of faith-based mental health care in Zambia, and the increasing recognition of its value in promoting mental wellbeing across the country.

The Zionist churches are a trademark of Christianity which has a very long
African tradition. They fall within the assemblage known as the African
Indigenous Churches. There are two main types of Zionist churches in
Zimbabwe namely: Zion yetambo (Zion of the sacred cord) and Zion
yeshayatambo (Zion of the cordless tradition). Their phenomenal rate of
expansion is traceable to the successful and effective preferment of solutions to members’ existential problems. The Zionist churches, which are prevalent in Southern Africa have a worldview characterized by 'this worldly' orientation of salvation with emphasis on deliverance from evil spiritual forces. Thus, diseases and illnesses are perceived, not necessarily as of a physical, but of a deeply spiritual and metaphysical nature and causation. In this case, the Zionists utilize certain ethical practices in the prescription of healing ritual actions. Thus,
certain cultural taboos are prescribed for members to observe for the efficacy of some rituals. For instance, members are not allowed to drink alcohol, consume pork, wear shoes inside the church, and menstruating women are forbidden from entering the church service. This article, therefore, examines some aspects of African culture and shows how the Zionist churches utilize these elements in their healing ministry, especially during the era of COVID-19. The article employs a phenomenological-sociological approach. Published literature and interview discussions were used to glean data. The research discovered that Zionists used the ethical dimension of African Indigenous Religion (ATR). Further to this, the study also revealed that some healing charism enshrined in Zionist churches is largely based on the Judeo-Christian influence of the Holy Spirit which is very similar to the belief in the African ancestral spirits. The article concludes that the advent of COVID-19 and its containment measures such as social distancing, sanitization, vaccination, and wearing of masks were not found to be hard by the Zionists since all these restrictions and regulations fit very well within the ethical cosmology of the Zionist Churches in Africa.

Key words
African culture, COVID-19, ethics, healing rituals, taboos, Zionist churches,
Zimbabwe

The primary focus of this paper is to investigate the influence of science literacy, particularly health literacy, on vaccine-specific conspiracy beliefs, within the broader context of vaccine hesitancy. The authors tested deficit (scientific literacy shapes science attitudes) and contextual models (contextual variables exert direct influence and influence the connection between literacy and science attitudes) in a survey research study (N = 729) in Croatia. The analytical approach included structural equation modeling with vaccination conspiracy beliefs as the outcome variable and health literacy, religiosity, and political identification as predictors. The results showed that lower health literacy and higher religiosity were related to higher vaccination conspiracy beliefs, which was not the case for political identification. In addition, the moderating effect of religiosity on the relationship between health literacy and conspiracy beliefs was confirmed. In contrast, the moderating effect of political identification was not confirmed, thus partially confirming the stronger version of the contextual model. The authors comparatively discuss the results by evoking specific socio-political characteristics of Croatian society as well as the reactions of political and religious organizations to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Healthcare provided without attending to patients' religious/spiritual needs contributes to inequities. OBJECTIVE: Assess Muslim American views on the importance and accessibility of religious/spiritual resources in hospitals. DESIGN/PARTICIPANTS/MAIN MEASURES: A survey was distributed at community events and online to selfreported Muslim adults. It contained measures of religiosity, importance and availability of specific religious/ spiritual resources, and conventional sociodemographic descriptors. Analyses utilized chi-squared tests and regression models to test associations between participant characteristics and views on the importance and availability of religious/spiritual resources in hospitals. KEY RESULTS: Of the 1281 respondents, many (68%; n = 875) were women, and South Asian (39%; n = 492) or Arab (37%; n = 469). Almost all (95%; n = 1203) noted it was important to have their religious/spiritual needs met in the hospital. The most important resources were halal food (93%; n = 1188), a neutral prayer space (93%; n = 1188), and medications without pork or alcohol (92%; n = 1177), yet a minority found such resources available; halal food (17%; n = 111), prayer space (26%; n = 169), and medication without pork or alcohol (9.3%; n = 59). Almost all (92%, N = 1180) felt comfortable identifying as Muslim in the hospital, yet few (27%, N = 173) were asked. Participants with higher positive religious coping placed greater importance on religious/spiritual needs being met (OR 1.15, p < .05). Those regularly attending congregational prayer services (β 0.2, p < 0.001), with more positive religious coping (β 0.11, p < 0.001), for whom Islam informed their whole approach to life (β 0.34, p < 0.001), and those with greater perceived discrimination in medical settings (β 0.03, p < 0.022) placed greater importance on the availability of Islamic resources in hospital. Those asked about religious affiliation (OR 2.23, p < 0.01) had higher odds of believing their religious/spiritual needs were met. CONCLUSIONS: Muslim Americans have substantial unmet religious/spiritual resource needs in hospital settings. Patient-centered, equitable care may be enhanced by clinicians inquiring about, and mobilizing resources to attend to these.

The work of FBOs began to emerge as a specific area of study and discussion in global health, thirty years ago. Despite much work, repeated calls for more clarity, theoretical frameworks, data and empirical evidence, there are still major gaps in knowledge, that impede Africans, their Governments and the international community from making the best choices to improve public health in Africa, especially in this era of HIV/AIDS .In Botswana, the population is being ravaged daily, posing a serious developmental challenge .This study investigated the responses of certain faith based ministries in the Kanye village, Botswana, towards the disease. Cloud and Fire ministries was utilised as a case study. The study was prompted by the observation that the faith community seemed to build wall of silence around the disease with no sense of urgency to act, despite repeated calls by the government, for multi-sectoral interventions. The study utilised an ARHAP research framework, which recognises the role of religion in health care, to argue that churches have intangible assets that can be useful in alleviating the suffering caused by HIV/AIDS. The Walt and Gilson"s policy triangle framework was modified to replace actors with content in the middle, in order to explore how actors, process and context interact to shape the policy content of FBOs.The study adopted a qualitative and exploratory design. Data was collected through focus group discussions as well as in depth interviews with some key informants. Data analysis was corroborated by research questions that guided the study as well as the thematic areas that emerged .The literature review revealed a wealth of intangible religious assets that can be utilised to alleviate the suffering caused by HIV/AIDS, as well as how certain cultural elements and African health worlds can influence the health seeking strategies of most Africans. The study Results confirmed that Cloud and Fire ministry had not responded adequately to HIV/AIDS mainly due to stigma, and lack of a mission statement for HIV/AIDS .It is hoped that this study will contribute to a deeper understanding on how to engage effectively with FBOs, especially in scaling up care initiatives for PLWHA and their carers.

In recent decades, gender mainstreaming has become a prevalent practice in international organizations to promote social justice. However, little is known about gender integration efforts in Muslim humanitarian faith-based organizations (FBOs). Drawing on the intersection of gender and faith humanitarianism, an insider's professional experience, and a review of key academic and gray literature, I critically reflect on the gender integration process for one of the world's largest UK-based Muslim humanitarian agencies-Islamic Relief Worldwide. I explore a dual pragmatic and value-based case for gender integration, including the development of a faith-informed gender policy, and its practical application. This case study suggests that humanitarian FBOs are arguably well positioned in local communities to address gender inequalities by leveraging their shared faith values and contextual understanding while building multi-stakeholder consensus. However, they navigate significant challenges due to their geographical breadth, cross-cultural, and religious diversity, strategically selecting the gender issues they address. The allocation of adequate resources in a gender-sensitive manner, beyond a women-centred approach, to transform gender relations, remains a key barrier to advancing organizational commitments to gender justice.

HIV/AIDS is the most devastating epidemic in human history. With 40 million people now living with HIV/AIDS and an estimated 3 million people having died in 2003 alone1 the international community is working diligently to identify effective mechanisms to prevent HIV transmission and provide care support and treatment for those affected by and living with the virus. Human and financial resources are still considerably inadequate to meet the overwhelming level of existing need. It is therefore imperative that existing resources be used wisely based on the best available evidence of what works. Recently there has been significant interest on the part of both multilateral and governmental agencies to increase the role of faith-based/religious organizations (FBOs) in mobilizing HIV prevention efforts as well as in providing care and support services. The UNAIDS Global Strategy Framework on HIV/AIDS 2 in laying out the principles and elements necessary for a coordinated and effective glob...

‘Big Questions' about the human being regarding its origin, nature, malleability, culpability and uniqueness lie at the core of the religion-science dialogue. Modern science discoveries have spurred Muslim intellectuals and students to grapple with these fundamental questions anew. In this study, we measured the efficacy of a novel curriculum at the intersection of bioscience and Islam tailored for American Muslim high school students. The educational intervention comprised seven seminars, each developed and delivered by a bioscientist-theologian dyad. Outcome measures, based on the Kilpatrick’s Evaluation model were: (a) knowledge; (b) participant interest, intention, and preparedness to learn, engage with, and pursue opportunities at this intersection; and (c) opinion/belief about science-religion compatibility. Our seminars positively impacted participant knowledge and preparedness (knowledge: pre = 14.7, post = 18.6, p = <0.01, preparedness: pre = 10.8, post = 12.8, p < 0.01). There was no change in aggregate participant interest, intention and opinion/belief pre- and post-intervention (interest: pre = 51.2, post = 50.6, p = 0.35, intention: pre = 18.7, post = 18.5, p = 0.74, opinion: pre = 42.5, post = 41.1, p = 0.12). Baseline interest independently predicted knowledge gain (B: 0.68, 95%CI: 0.13, 1.23, p = 0.02), while lower baseline knowledge predicted improvement in preparedness (B: −0.07, 95%CI: −0.13, −0.01, p = 0.02). We encourage researchers and educators to continue exploring ways to build stable professional identities among students with religious orientations at the science-religion intersection.

Private health care providers are an important component of pluralistic national health systems. In Uganda, the public-private partnership for health (PPPH) has led to the government assisting the private health sector in various ways, in recognition of and support to their ...

The Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) program is a 7-country network (as of December 2018) established by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to identify the causes of death in children in communities with high rates of under-5 mortality. The program carries out both mortality and pregnancy surveillance, and mortality surveillance employs minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) to gather small samples of body fluids and tissue from the bodies of children who have died. While this method will lead to greater knowledge of the specific causes of childhood mortality, the procedure is in tension with cultural and religious norms in many of the countries where CHAMPS works—Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and South Africa. Participatory Inquiry Into Community Knowledge of Child Health and Mortality Prevention (PICK-CHAMP) is a community entry activity designed to introduce CHAMPS to communities and gather initial perspectives on alig...

Religious humanitarian governance through faith-based organizations (FBOs) in Africa has historically side lined and condemned African religions, with ongoing echoes of that side lining in religious as well as secular forms of humanitarian governance today. In this contribution, I draw on the development of humanitarian ethics in the midst of the spread of other 'world religions' (in Max Weber's terminology 1) such as Christianity and Islam across the continent, also highlighting several debates about religious humanitarian governance that arose in two conferences sponsored by the Critical Investigations into Humanitarianism in Africa (CIHA) Blog. I argue in favour of recapturing the fullness of the African religious landscape in humanitarian governance as well as within all religious traditions with roots on the continent. It is important, however, that such inclusion of African religions on the part of transnational humanitarian actors avoid both romanticization and appropriation.

The lack of an identified mechanism of action for the placebo response contributes to its perception as clinically unimportant in Western medicine and minimizes its value as a contributing factor to the effectiveness of both conventional and alternative medical treatments. The therapeutic ritual is one of the principle contributors to the placebo response. Two key elements predicting salutogenic outcomes in both the placebo response and therapeutic ritual are patient meaning making and the patient/healer relationship. A detailed examination of human biofield dynamics shows its role in storing, communicating, and regulating the flow of information associated with healing in Western and non-Western medical models. The human biofield is particularly responsive to psychospiritual inputs, which may provide a model explaining the mechanism of action for these otherwise anomalous healing responses. Transpersonal studies provide methodological tools suitable to addressing the multiple paradigms found to be effective within the placebo response and therapeutic rituals, leading to the possible development of a transpersonal medicine.

The Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) program is a 7-country network (as of December 2018) established by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to identify the causes of death in children in communities with high rates of under-5 mortality. The program carries out both mortality and pregnancy surveillance, and mortality surveillance employs minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) to gather small samples of body fluids and tissue from the bodies of children who have died. While this method will lead to greater knowledge of the specific causes of childhood mortality, the procedure is in tension with cultural and religious norms in many of the countries where CHAMPS works—Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and South Africa. Participatory Inquiry Into Community Knowledge of Child Health and Mortality Prevention (PICK-CHAMP) is a community entry activity designed to introduce CHAMPS to communities and gather initial perspectives on alig...

We examined the relationship between religion and health by highlighting the influences of religion on the response to the 2014 to 2016 Ebola outbreak and the global HIV epidemic.We recounted the influences of religion on burial practices developed as an infection control measure during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. We also explored the influence of religion on community outreach and health education. We examined faith-based responses to the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, noting that religion conflicted with public health responses to HIV (e.g., justification for HIV-related stigma) or aligned with public health as a force for improved HIV responses (e.g., providing HIV services or providing social capital and cohesion to support advocacy efforts). We further discussed the similarities and differences between the influence of religion during the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the 2014 to 2016 Ebola outbreak.We then described lessons learned from Ebola and HIV/AIDS to better inform collaboration with religious actors.

We examined the relationship between religion and health by highlighting the influences of religion on the response to the 2014 to 2016 Ebola outbreak and the global HIV epidemic. We recounted the influences of religion on burial practices developed as an infection control measure during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. We also explored the influence of religion on community outreach and health education. We examined faith-based responses to the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, noting that religion conflicted with public health responses to HIV (e.g., justification for HIV-related stigma) or aligned with public health as a force for improved HIV responses (e.g., providing HIV services or providing social capital and cohesion to support advocacy efforts). We further discussed the similarities and differences between the influence of religion during the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the 2014 to 2016 Ebola outbreak. We then described lessons learned from Ebola and HIV/AIDS to better inform collabor...

, all affiliated with JLI, for supporting the entire research process in so many ways. The UK Department for International Development, and in particular Mike Battcock and Steve O'Raw, for funding the study. All of the faith and SGBV experts who were willing to share their insights, experiences, opinions, valuable time and documentation. The various JLI SGBV hub members who provided feedback on the draft versions of the report and policy brief. Members of the Sexual and Gender-based Violence panel and session of the Religion & Sustainable Development Conference at the World Bank, Washington DC, in July 2015, for their input and feedback on the preliminary findings of the study. Members of the special session at the Sexual Violence Research Initiative's SVRI Forum 2015, who gave valuable feedback and input on the draft versions of the report and policy brief.

This issue of contact wants to promote such understanding and partnerships. It presents material from different levels of involvement in the work with Mental Health. Most of the mater- ial presented here was either produced in the context of the preparation of the 9th Assembly of the World Council of Churches in 2006. Some of it was published in the “International Review of Mission- Vol. Nos. 376/377,
January/ April- 2006”. Other material has been produces in connection with the enlarged meeting of the Advisory Group on Mental Health of the WCC, held in the Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore /India in the beginning of December 2007.

Streszczenie Wprowadzenie i cel pracy: Właściwości kawy jako popularnego napoju sporządzanego z nasion kawowca są nadal nie do końca poznane i sprecyzowane. Zwolennicy tego napoju cenią go nie tylko za powszechnie znane właściwości pobudzające, ale również doszukują się w nim wpływu na poprawę nastroju oraz formy, jednak negatywne oddziaływanie na różnego rodzaju procesy fizjologiczne, nie pozwala na spożywanie kawy bez ograniczeń. Celem prezentowanej pracy jest przedstawienie aktualnych informacji na temat oddziaływania kawy na organizm ludzki. Skrócony opis stanu wiedzy: Słowo "kawa" według danych literaturowych wywodzi się z etiopskiej prowincji Kaffa, choć według innych źródeł pochodzi z tureckiego określenia wina, czyli "qavah" lub "kahve". Pierwsze plantacje kawy pojawiły się w 575 r. n.e. na Wyżynie Abisyńskiej i Półwyspie Somalijskim. Picie kawy zostało zapoczątkowane przez Arabów między XI a XII wiekiem. Kawa aktualnie jest uznawana za jeden z najpopularniejszych napojów spożywanych codziennie przez większość Polaków. Positivelly Coffee Programme, podjęty przez ICO (International Coffee Organisation-Międzynarodowa Organizacja Kawy) wspólnie z Instytutem Informacji Naukowej o Kawie prowadzi szereg badań naukowych, z których wynika, że umiarkowane picie kawy jest w pełni bezpieczne i w żadnym wypadku nie stanowi zagrożenia dla zdrowia. Jednak według innych autorów picie kawy nie jest do końca bezpieczne, dlatego w bieżącym piśmiennictwie nie ma jednoznacznej odpowiedzi, czy kawa posiada tylko korzystne, czy wręcz niebezpieczne właściwości. Podsumowanie: W artykule przedstawiono pozytywne i negatywne aspekty picia kawy oraz nakreślono zarys historyczny zwyczaju picia tego napoju na świecie. Słowa kluczowe kawa, kofeina, kwas szczawiowy, historia kawy WProWadzenie i cel Pracy Pochodzenie kawy Postęp globalny oraz zmiany w mentalności społeczeństw aktualnie skłaniają ludzi ku intensywnemu modelowi życia. Popularny staje się trend stosowania różnego rodzaju napojów pobudzających, usuwających znużenie, polepszających koncentrację i sprawność myślenia w celu zwiększenia aktywności oraz efektywności pracy, a także w celu ogólnej poprawy formy. Jedną z tego typu powszechnie używanych substancji jest kofeina, występująca przede wszystkim w ziarnach kawy, ale także w liściach herbaty i orzeszkach kola [1]. Słowo "kawa" wywodzi się z etiopskiej prowincji Kaffa [2], choć według innych źródeł pochodzi z tureckiego określeniu wina, czyli "qavah" lub "kahve". Spożywanie alkoholu zawsze było dla muzułmanów surowo zabronione, dlatego oddawali się oni konsumpcji kawy, której działanie uważali za podobnie pobudzające jak wino, stąd też po pewnym czasie nazwa wina została przeniesiona na ten popularny czarny napar [3]. Co ciekawe, w wielu językach na określenie tego

The Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) program is a 7-country network (as of December 2018) established by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to identify the causes of death in children in communities with high rates of under-5 mortality. The program carries out both mortality and pregnancy surveillance, and mortality surveillance employs minimally invasive tissue sampling (MITS) to gather small samples of body fluids and tissue from the bodies of children who have died. While this method will lead to greater knowledge of the specific causes of childhood mortality, the procedure is in tension with cultural and religious norms in many of the countries where CHAMPS works—Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and South Africa. Participatory Inquiry Into Community Knowledge of Child Health and Mortality Prevention (PICK-CHAMP) is a community entry activity designed to introduce CHAMPS to communities and gather initial perspectives on alig...

The purpose of this study was to determine the role of religious involvement and related indicators-religious coping, intrinsic religiosity, forgiveness and gratitude-in reducing the negative impact of early traumatic stress on the mental and physical health of adult survivors. Multiple linear regressions were used to analyze self-reported data of 10,283 Seventh-day Adventist men and women across North America. The study also included an original analysis on a subsample (n=496) of the larger group, examining diabetes risk factors in conjunction with Adverse Childhood Events (ACE) data. Higher early trauma scores were associated with decreased mental health (B=−1.93 p<.0001) and physical health (B=−1.53, p<.0001). The negative effect of early trauma on mental health was reduced by intrinsic religiosity (B=.52, p=.011), positive religious coping (B=.61, p=.025), forgiveness (B=.32 p=.025), and gratitude (B=.87 p=.001). Adult survivors of early trauma experienced worse mental and physical health; however, forgiveness, gratitude, positive religious coping, and intrinsic religiosity were protective against poor mental health. The findings support a holistic perspective in the care of childhood trauma survivors.

In March, April, and May of 2020 much of the world's attention was riveted to the existential threat of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The pandemic eclipsed other critical concerns on the global agenda, taking its place atop the list of a handful of issues that are seen in the wealthy industrial world as truly global threats-cyberattacks, nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, and climate change also make this short list. COVID-19 was seen as a "serious threat" to the country (71%) and to the global economy (76%), though fewer than a third saw it as a serious threat to themselves (29%) (Newall & Jackson, 2020). In the United States, 60% of adults in an April 2020 poll saw climate change as a serious threat, up from 44% in 2010 (Kennedy, 2020). Most religious groups lagged behind: In 2015 polling that asks people to identify the top "critical issues" facing the United States, only three of ten religious groups identify climate change among the top three: Unaffiliated people, non-Christian groups, and Hispanic Catholics (PRRI, 2019). Then, in late May and June 2020, police killings of several Black Americans reopened the long history of racial discrimination in law enforcement and the broader issues of racial injustice in US society, and even the pandemic was eclipsed by days of demonstrations and national soul-searching. The United States was-is-in crisis. The question of how

Introduction:Sex education in school is considered as an effectual way to boost the understanding of students knowledge regarding sexual transmitted infections, unintended pregnancies, abortions etc. There has been a lot of defiance in introducing sex education in school curriculum. There are conflicting interests among teachers regarding sex education and hence this study was designed to understand their perception regarding sexual education and its introduction into school curriculum. sex education in school curriculum (p-0.008) Conclusion:The teachers had the perception that sex education will definitely alter the student's sexual behavior. Teachers had a positive approach towards introduction of sex education in school curriculum and its beneficial consequences on students in their future life.

Background: Religiosity and spirituality are recognized determinants of health, yet many faith-based organizations do not conduct or publicly disseminate research or evaluation data to inform practice.  The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of establishing a collaborative to support small to medium-sized, Christian, global health organizations in producing stronger evidence regarding the practice and application of integral mission health models. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done using a digital, mixed-method (open- and closed-ended questions) survey.  The survey was distributed through a convenience sample of Christian global health networks and member organizations representing over 1,000 primarily small to medium sized organizations.  Information was collected regarding organizational research and evaluation publication/presentation experience, collaborative interests, evaluation and research barriers, and priorities.   Results: Responses totaled 116 and...

This research investigates the changes in the operations of CHSs (Christian health services) in developing countries, particularly their funding bases, relationships with their respective governments, and the extent to which these have resulted in changes to the socioeconomic characteristics of their users. Three main areas of study are woven together: the history of medical mission, health service management and its response to the pressures of the last halfcentury, and the role of non-state providers in a comprehensive health care system. Evidence was assembled from interviews with officials of twelve UK based mission organisations, a survey of CHSs in thirteen countries, and case studies of CHS provision in Malawi and India based mainly on extensive interviews with selected stakeholders. The research confirmed that funds received by CHSs from mission organisations have declined and are now more often in the form of project funding. CHSs have, for the most part, continued to provide services for the poor in a variety of ways: first, by providing low cost services; second, by developing hi-tech tertiary services, the profits from which subsidise services for the poor; and third, by working more collaboratively with governments, for which they receive varying degrees of financial and other support. Deriree Mhango (CHAM), Dr Vijay Aruldas (CMAI) and Dr Fr Sebastian Ousepparampil (CHAI), who were my in-country 'gatekeepers' and gave me much advice and the introductions to the institutions from which interviews were conducted. The interpreters, who were invaluable, not just in language translation, but also in advising on local customs and knowledge of local areas. Many people contributed time and knowledge, through being interviewed, filling in questionnaires and generally offering their views and advice. I pray that what I have written, and will write in the future, will do justice to their contributions. Most of all my thanks to my wife, Jean, who worked with me for eight years in some of the remotest areas in the world, in the mountains and rainforests of Papua New Guinea, and then spent six months recording interviews in Malawi and India, followed by two-three years as a 'PhD widow', while I analysed and wrote up the results. Finally, I thank God for giving me this opportunity, guiding me through the PhD experience, and giving me the perseverance to finish.

This study appraised organisational communication and job satisfaction among academic staff in Akwa Ibom State University. The objectives of the study were ascertain the organisational communication flow pattern prevalent in Akwa Ibom State University, assess the extent to which the organisational communication policy/structure affected job satisfaction among academic staff of Aksu, find out the barriers to effective organisational communication flow and job satisfaction among academic staff of Aksu, determine from the perception of academic employees whether the organisational communication flow in their institution help to guarantee job satisfaction. The study adopted the survey research design, with questionnaire as the instrument for data collection. The population of the study comprise subjects who are academic staff of Aksu. The academic staff strength of Aksu stands at 488. The sample size for the study was determined at 10% systematically drawn from the population. The study which was anchored on the theory of transactional process and modern organaisational theory revealed that majority of respondents 25 (57%) were of the opinion that the prevalent communication flow pattern that management uses in communicating with academic staff in Aksu is vertical downward communication, furthermore, majority of respondents 24 (55%) agreed that organisational communication policy and structure greatly influence job satisfaction. This implies that policy and structure on job satisfaction. Majority of respondents 20, 10 (30) representing 45%, 23% (68%) were not satisfied with the present patterns of communication flow to enhance their job satisfaction. It was recommended that management of Aksu should encourage the use of upward communication. That is communication from the subordinates to those at the top, usually for the purpose of asking questions, providing feedback and making suggestions in order to improve morale and attitude of academic staff, management of Aksu should trust their academic staff and encourage them to participate effectively in decision making.

The primary focus of this paper is to investigate the influence of science literacy, particularly health literacy, on vaccine-specific conspiracy beliefs, within the broader context of vaccine hesitancy. The authors tested deficit (scientific literacy shapes science attitudes) and contextual models (contextual variables exert direct influence and influence the connection between literacy and science attitudes) in a survey research study (N = 729) in Croatia. The analytical approach included structural equation modeling with vaccination conspiracy beliefs as the outcome variable and health literacy, religiosity, and political identification as predictors. The results showed that lower health literacy and higher religiosity were related to higher vaccination conspiracy beliefs, which was not the case for political identification. In addition, the moderating effect of religiosity on the relationship between health literacy and conspiracy beliefs was confirmed. In contrast, the moderating effect of political identification was not confirmed, thus partially confirming the stronger version of the contextual model. The authors comparatively discuss the results by evoking specific socio-political characteristics of Croatian society as well as the reactions of political and religious organizations to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Context: The project targeted Islamic religious leaders (ISOLs) through transformative interventions such as leadership development forums, health promotion and education training activities to the Islamic religious leader, who in return informed and educated their followership including men and women of reproductive age groups in order to help improve the maternal health situation and reduce maternal mortality in Zamfara states. Methods: a total of 100 Islamic religious leaders were engaged and exposed to health promotion and education trainings and community mobilization activities through the (IIUM/HPPMM) which was implemented in some selected intervention urban and rural communities of Zamfara State to women in reproductive age groups. Results revealed that there was an increase in some key output indicators such as antenatal care (ANC) attendance and contraceptive use among these women, delivery at the health facility also increased when compared with the control communities where no such interventions were carried out by the Islamic religious leaders and the project. The intervention rural facilities experienced an uptake in contraceptive use, ANC attendance and facility deliveries while the control sites saw no increase in uptake. Findings of particular significance in the rural facilities include the sharp increase in contraceptive use in the intervention compared to the control community facility. In the overall there is increase in ANC attendance in all the intervention rural and urban facilities compared to control sites. In conclusions: The findings of this analysis suggest that the (IIUM/HPPMM) Health Promotion and Prevention of Maternal Mortality Research and Leadership Development Project which assumes a health communication role for Islamic religious leaders has indeed contributed to the uptake of FP/RH services.

Objectives-The past decade has seen changes in US HIV policy in sub-Saharan Africa in response to a new Administration and far-reaching technical, scientific and programmatic developments. These include: dramatically increased access to life-saving ART and related services; the roll-out of voluntary medical male circumcision; and growing sensitivity to genderbased violence, including child sexual abuse, and to its role in increasing vulnerability to HIV. The Families Matter! Program (FMP) is an intervention for parents and caregivers of 9-12 year-olds that promotes effective parent-child communication about sexuality and sexual risk reduction. FMP was adapted from a US evidence-based intervention in 2003-4 and is now implemented in eight African countries. In 2012-13, the FMP curriculum was updated and enhanced to respond to new US Government priorities. Methods-Enhancements to the curriculum drew on the results of Violence Against Children surveys, on a review of existing literature, on feedback from the field on the existing curriculum, and on stories written by young people across Africa for scriptwriting competitions. Results-We updated FMP with scientific content and stronger linkages to services. We also intensified our focus on structural determinants of risk. This contextualisation of sexual risk-taking within structural constraints led us to place greater emphasis on gendered vulnerability and the diverse pressures children face, and to intensify our situation-based pedagogical approach, drawing on the authentic youth-authored narratives. Conclusion-We describe these changes as an illustration of and source of insight into muchneeded programmatic adaptation in response to evolving HIV policy.

Beyond life as a biochemical system, endogenous and exogenous energy fields play an important role in the living state. The biofield, the energy field associated with life, consists of low intensity electric, magnetic, and electromagnetic fields that may be key to health and healing. Here we measured one component of the biofield, the ultraweak light emitted from the body-biophotons-and explored the influence of intention, extraordinary mind-body states, and human interaction on biophoton emission. Three pilot studies were conducted to investigate whether biophoton emission is a biomarker correlated with intention. Results showed that (1) biophoton emission from healers' hands diminished significantly by 11% posthealing; (2) biophoton emission during energy healing showed a unique pattern for each treatment session; (3) changes in biophoton emission from the forehead, heart, and abdominal regions of patients pre-post energy healing showed no discernible pattern for a small number of diverse patients; (4) subjects who engaged in bioenergetic practices emitted more biophotons from specific bodily regions, some in alignment with their intent. Biophoton emission was found to be modulated by intention, energy healing, and bioenergetic mind-body practices. Biophotons might potentially be involved in quantum or quantum-like entanglement between humans, and may play a role in energy healing, biocommunication, and altered mind-body states.

§ Treatment trajectories § Combining prayer, herbal treatment and biomedical drugs § Religion and general health-seeking behaviour § How biomedical treatment shapes religious practices § ART, the absence of cure, and spiritual therapy § Therapies in conflict § Religion and treatment adherence § Religion, ART and disclosure 5. New Agendas for Development and Research Sources FAITH MATTERS FBOs, the public administrations they interact with, and ART users. Meeting these challenges is critical not only for achieving universal access to ART but also for improving service quality and empowering users. The finding can be summarized as follows: SUMMARY 1. The majority of research projects on which this document draws have been carried out in Christian contexts. As a result, the document is characterized by an overall focus on Christian involvement in ART programmes. 1. AIDS, RELIGION AND ART IN AFRICA 2. The list of papers and studies on which this article draws can be found at the end.

Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) seeks to support the interpretation and use of religious resources in ways that affirm people's inalienable rights and their capacity to transform their own lives and communities. It is the experience of NCA that religion can give people courage to fight for these rights and provide resilience in difficult times. Therefore, NCA continuously endeavours to deepen its understanding of how and why religious communities play an important role as civil society actors in development.

Background: American Muslims tend to hold more negative attitudes towards organ donation than other American populations, and these attitudes are contributed to by gaps in biomedical and religious knowledge. As a result, there is significant need for religiously-tailored health education on organ donation within this community. Thus our study sought to test the effectiveness of a mosque-based, religiously-tailored health education program that addressed biomedical and religious knowledge gaps regarding living organ donation amongst Muslim Americans. Methods: A randomized, controlled, cross-over trial of religiously-tailored educational workshops held at four mosques in Washington D.C. and Chicagoland. Mosques are randomized into early and late intervention arms and participants are recruited at worship services and other mosque events. The primary study outcomes are changes in biomedical and religious knowledge regarding living organ donation. Secondary outcomes include change in pr...

Based on a computational analysis of a large dataset, this study explores if there is a significant longevity effect of intercessory prayer for a named individual’s well-being, if he receives a very high number of prayers per annum for an extended period. We relied on an observational cohort study, based on data from 1988 to 2018, including 857 Roman Catholic bishops, 500 Catholic priests, and 3038 male academics from six countries. We measured the covariance of the mean length of life, controlled for nationality. It was found that there is a main effect for occupation F(2, 4391) = 4.07, p = 0.017, ηp2 = 0.002, with pairwise comparisons indicating significant differences between the mean life duration of bishops (M = 30,489) and of priests (M = 29,894), but none between the academic teachers (M = 30,147) and either of the other groups. A comparison analysis between bishops from the largest and the smallest dioceses showed no significant difference t(67.31) = 1.61, p = 0.11. The firs...

We are all family. Let us join as family and end the unacceptable affliction and injustice experienced by millions affected by the virus. We did it with apartheid, we can do it again. This is my vision. I invite you, my brothers and my sisters, to help realize my dream.

The world and Africa in particular has become pluralistic such that there are many political parties, ethnic groups, cultures and religions prevaili and coexisting in such places. Many West African countries such as Ghana, Togo and Nigeria are pluralistic in nature. Citizens in the aforementioned countries find ways and means to live together peacefully despite their differences. Nonetheless, many African societies face political, ethnic, religious and social instabilities. These instabilities make relations with each other difficult. However, since religion permeates the lives of people for that matter Ghanaians and Nigerians in particular, this article argues that interfaith dialogue can serve as a remedy to social instability in Ghana and Nigeria. Using secondary data from the internet, published and unpublished works in the form of books and journal articles, this paper discusses the use of interfaith dialogue as an instrument for addressing or preventing social instability in the African society.

In spite of significant gains achieved in the fight against HIV/AIDS, it remains a huge public health challenge in South Africa. Therefore, there is a need for continuous concerted efforts involving critical agencies like faith-based organizations (FBOs) that are already prominent in health care. The chapter examines how FBOs involved in HIV/AIDS response can be repositioned and further empowered. Though FBOs remain very critical and relevant to the national response in the country given their grassroots reach and influence; there is ambivalence on the value of such roles and how they relate to the national response. The main findings include: FBOs are not fully integrated into the national response framework; in spite of laudable strides, FBOs still embody a negative influence on the response especially in terms of the use of condoms; FBOs lack capacity in such crucial areas as networking and partnership; however, they are active in rural enclaves and in the prevention and care aspects of the response. There is a need to strengthen these FBOs, align their initiatives to both the national framework and orthodox knowledge regarding the pandemic. This chapter recommends programs to build the managerial and technical capacities of these FBOs

Action plans to mobilize the church towards HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support in South Africa Christo Greyling-a hemophiliac who tested HIV positive while attending theological seminary in 1987. Since 1993 he started working as an AIDS consultant. In the process he developed, implemented and presented HIV/AIDS workshops to various target audiences throughout South Africa. His vision and passion is to assist the church to fulfill their calling on the terrain of HIV and AIDS in Southern Africa. HIV/AIDS is devastating the world, and especially Southern Africa. This article attempts to provide an understanding of the impact of the epidemic on South Africa and the relationship between HIV/AIDS and poverty. It will further explore the current involvement of the church and make some practical suggestions to assist the Church in implementing meaningful projects in its fight against this epidemic. AIDS. AIDS. AIDS. We hear it on television and read it in the newspapers. The desperate faces of people dying from AIDS cry out at us from the pages of Time and Newsweek. The United Nations have special meetings and government leaders make resolutions. We are swamped with statistics and yet more statistics. The numbers of people dying, becoming infected and children left orphaned become just

Abordamos a relação entre religião, saúde e mídia nos 80 anos da revista publicada pela Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia, Vida e Saúde, de cujos aspectos gerais traçamos um panorama geral, de 1939 a 2019.  Discutiremos o levantamento quantitativo das edições da revista e a relação da mensagem adventista de saúde com sua filosofia editorial, escolha de anunciantes, formas de distribuição, capas, slogans, seções e artigos. Observamos duas periodizações: a primeira (anos 1930 a 1960) foi uma fase americanizada, com abordagem higienista de saúde; a segunda fase (1970s-) dialoga com as demandas brasileiras. O tema predominante da publicação é a saúde física conseguida por meio do uso dos oito remédios naturais defendidos pela igreja.

Issues of diseases and healthcare are very crucial to human life and survival. Africans have always sought to find holistic and impeccable remedies to diseases and sicknesses that disturb human life and survival. Africans being incurably religious have sought to employ religious perspectives in their healing systems. Ghanaians have from time immemorial employed their indigenous or traditional worldview in their healing system or approach to diseases and sicknesses. This paper explores the African indigenous practitioners’ approach to diseases, their causes and solution. It also looks at the traditional healing systems in the face of the Western approach to diseases or healing systems. This work is a result of a discussion of scholarly works on African indigenous religious approaches to diseases and traditional healthcare vis-a-vis the orthodox healing systems. It is the ardent hope of the authors that readers appreciate African indigenous healing systems and how they can be combined...

طی چند دهه گذشته، پیوند تازه‌ای میان دو عرصه سلامت و دین در فضای الهیات کتاب مقدس شکل گرفته و آثار علمی فراوانی در این زمینه تدوین گشته است. مطالعات الهیات سلامت در سال‌های اخیر جای خود را در فضای علوم اسلامی نیز باز کرده و تلاش‌های گسترده‌ای را برای بهره‌گیری از بن‌مایه‌های قرآنی و روایی در دستیابی به سلامت جامعه به همراه داشته است. با عنایت به اهمیت شناسایی این ساحت علمی نوپدید و ارائه تبیینی درست از کارکردها و یافته‌های آن، پژوهش پیشِرو به نگارش درآمد.
در این راستا، با گذری بر سرگذشت رابطه دین و سلامت در میان آیین‌های آسمانی، زمینه‌های مطالعه و تحقیق در این حوزه علمی جدید هویدا گردید. آنگاه به‌عنوان یکی از کلیدواژگان بنیادین الهیات سلامت در بستر اسلامی آن، «شفاء» به‌مثابه یک انگاره تاریخی مورد بررسی واقع شد و دگرگونی‌های معنایی آن نزد تفسیرنگاران از سده نخست هجری تا به امروز بازخوانی گردید. در پایان، واکاوی معناشناسانه این واژه با رویکرد تاریخی، سنجه‌ای برای ارزیابی گفته‌های مفسرین درباره این مفهوم قرآنی نهاده شد.
یافته‌های این پژوهش نشانگر آن است که انگاره‌های سه‌گانه «شفاء»، «شفابخشی قرآن» و «شفابخشی عسل» در گذر زمان از الگوی توسعه معنایی پیروی نموده و دایره شمولیت آن‌ها نزد مفسران مسلمان افزایش یافته است. بخش دیگری از این پژوهش اما بر ریشه‌شناسی شفاء متمرکز بود و انتقال معنایی آن ماده از معنی تابش و درخشش تا زدودن پلیدی و سپس آرامش یافتن و در آسایش بودن و سرانجام تسکین درد و درمان بیماری را بر پایه داده‌های فرهنگ‌های سامی‌زبان به نمایش گذاشت. بنابراین، شفاء در زبان عربی قرآن کریم بر دو معنای روحی و جسمی دلالت داشته و هر دوی این‌ها استعمال حقیقی این واژه بوده است.

The introduction of respiratory machines in the 1950s may have saved the lives of many, but it also challenged the notion of death itself. This development endowed “machines” with the power to form a unique ontological creature: a live body with a “dead” brain. While technology may be blamed for complicating things in the first place, it is also called on to solve the resulting quandaries. Indeed, it is not the birth of the “brain-dead” that concerns us most, but rather its association with a web of epistemological and ethical considerations, where technology plays a central role. The brain death debate in Israel introduces highly sophisticated religious thought and authoritative medical expertise. At focus are the religious acceptance and rejection of brain death by a technologically savvy group of rabbis whose religious doctrine––along with a particular form of religious reasoning––is used to support the truth claims made from the scientific community (brain death is death) but ch...

/De1aunaye, I brahima Ndoyeb and Souleymane Mboup' for the r. MECORA group* Objectives: To describe the association between religion and factors related to sexually transmitted diseases (STD)/AIDS in a country where religious leaders were involved early in prevention. Design: A cross-sectional study conducted in a rural area in central Senegal. Methods: Questionnaire-based interviews of a random sample of 858 adults from the general population aged 15-59 years and in-depth interviews of four religious leaders and 50 people. Results: Seventy-six per cent of the respondents were Muslim, 24% Catholic, 1% Animist and 0.2% Protestant. A total of 86% of men and 87% of women reported religion to be very important to them. Important prevention-related variables were inversely associated with the importance of religion. Men who considered religion to be very important were less likely to cite AIDS as a major health problem [odds ratio (OR) 0.4, P=O.O08] and were less likely to feel at risk of getting HIV (OR 0.5, P= 0.0005). Women who considered religion to be very important were less likely to report an intention to change to protect themselves from AIDS (OR 0.2, P= O.OOOl), less likely to report having discussed AIDS with others (OR 0.4, P= 0.01) and much more likely to feel at risk of getting HIV (OR 9.3, P= 1 O-4). Individuals who considered religion to be very important were not more likely to report intending to or actually having become faithful to protect themselves from AIDS. Conclusion: These findings stress the need to intensify the involvement of religious authorities in HIV/STD prevention at the local level. o 2000 Lippincottwilliams &Wilkins

Aims The aim of this paper is to present a novel case for the formation, operation and evaluation of a community advisory aboard comprised of Muslims residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, California that utilised a community based participatory approach to address local Muslim mental health needs. The CAB was recruited in partnership with the Muslim Community Association (MCA), one of the largest Islamic centres in the San Franscisco Bay Area. In addition to describing the development of the CAB, the authors present the findings of the evaluation and synthesis of best processes based on CAB members&#39; feedback. Methods To evaluate the perceived community advisory board members&#39; perceptions of their roles and elicit feedback on how to enhance the relationship between the university team and the CAB, an evaluation was conducted by an independent team who was not part of the research process. Data was collected using anonymous individual surveys and small group open discussions...

Aims The aim of this paper is to present a novel case for the formation, operation and evaluation of a community advisory aboard comprised of Muslims residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, California that utilised a community based participatory approach to address local Muslim mental health needs. The CAB was recruited in partnership with the Muslim Community Association (MCA), one of the largest Islamic centres in the San Franscisco Bay Area. In addition to describing the development of the CAB, the authors present the findings of the evaluation and synthesis of best processes based on CAB members&#39; feedback. Methods To evaluate the perceived community advisory board members&#39; perceptions of their roles and elicit feedback on how to enhance the relationship between the university team and the CAB, an evaluation was conducted by an independent team who was not part of the research process. Data was collected using anonymous individual surveys and small group open discussions...