Medicine, Religion, and Health
Where Science and Spirituality Meet
Medicine, Religion, and Health: Where Science and Spirituality Meet will be the first title published in the new Templeton Science and Religion Series, in which scientists from a wide range of fields distill their experience and knowledge into brief tours of their respective specialties. In this, the series' maiden volume, Dr. Harold G. Koenig, provides an overview of the relationship between health care and religion that manages to be comprehensive yet concise, factual yet inspirational, and technical yet easily accessible to nonspecialists and general readers.
Harold G. Koenig, MD, is board certified in general psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry, and geriatric medicine. He is on the faculty at Duke as professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and associate professor of medicine. Dr. Koenig is Director of Duke’s Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health and has published extensively in the fields of mental health, geriatrics, and religion, with over 350 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and close to 40 books in print or in preparation. He is also a registered nurse.
Introduction / 3
Chapter 1: Terms of the Debate / 9
Chapter 2: Medicine in the Twenty-first Century / 21
Chapter 3: From Mind to Body / 37
Chapter 4: Religion and Health / 54
Chapter 5: Mental Health / 68
Chapter 6: The Immune and Endocrine Systems / 82
Chapter 7: The Cardiovascular System / 96
Chapter 8: Diseases Related to Stress and Behavior / 113
Chapter 9: Longevity / 129
Chapter 10: Physical Disability / 146
Chapter 11: Clinical Applications / 156
Chapter 12: Final Thoughts / 172
Appendix: Further Resources / 175
Notes / 195
Index / 227