Under Attack

If you feel like you're under attack lately, I've got news for you. If your faith is an important part of your life, you definitely are being attacked -- on all fronts.

A report sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (yes, your tax dollars at work) has determined that "people who use religious coping actually ended up receiving significantly more intensive life-prolonging burdensome care than those who did not" (emphasis is mine). That quote comes from the study's author, Holly Prigerson, who examined the intersection of religion and medical care in patients with terminal cancer. Her conclusion, stripped of its euphemisms, is that people of faith shouldn't get expensive, life-prolonging medical care because it's not going to prevent death in the long run or end their suffering. (Check out http://www.hhs.gov/news/healthbeat/2009/05/20090528a.html)

I'm seeing some proposals for healthcare reform coming out of this study.

Another example also involves the NIH. Francis Collins, a respected scientist who is an evangelical Christian, is being considered to head up the NIH. You should see the response from scientists -- the ones who think they alone hold all the answers to the world's problems. Here's a sampling from scientists commenting on a blog featured in The Scientist:

-- "We're finally getting a funding bump and respect and it may all be for naught if a religious apologist ends up at the helm."

-- "I have very strong reservations about such a posting for such a clearly religious person. ... The posting would be for the head of the NIH and I can envision several serious conflicts that would compromise Collins' ability to lead effectively and may very well result in bad policy choices. For example, how would he deal with issues relating to contraception, teenage sex, AIDs, Embryonic Stem Cell research and so on?

"I have to conclude that anyone choosing to have a strong religious belief has chosen to disqualify themselves from holding such a post. We need people that can be absolutely objective, and by definition this is not possible for an evangelical christian."

-- "I did not invent the religion (that was done by profoundly ignorant men thousands of years ago) but I can observe what it does to the faithful and I cannot feel comfortable with those of strong faith being in such positions where their faith can potentially introduce a dangerous bias with far-reaching implications for our society."

-- "I am deeply uncomfortable with the use of religious belief to make moral decisions that affect national interest."

-- "In a secular society, people who want to hold a highly visible public office should keep their faith to themselves, and not let their faith influence their decisions at a scientific level."

So much for freedom of speech, freedom of religion or even freedom of thought.