The effect of attitude on health and illness

photo by James B. Burton 

Why does the Bible say to “Honor thy father and thy mother”? It sounded like a great idea, particularly when we were growing up, and it sounds even better now that we are parents. It’s part of what holds society together. However, there is also a very practical reason for this attitude, stated right after the commandment: so that one may live long.

Even the Biblical ancients understood that the way one felt about other people was connected with longevity. Disease, it seems, is not entirely random, but often related to the attitude one takes towards oneself, one’s family, and the world.

This wisdom has largely been lost in our modern attitude towards disease. Most Americans see it as a practical concern to be dealt with by money and technology. You even hear it from the insurance industry.

While it is possible to go overboard relating attitude and illness, many of us know people who are physically fit, and at the same time exude emotional and spiritual vibrancy. Chicken and egg? Cultivating an attitude of honoring everyone, especially those close to us, is not a bad way of ensuring that we ourselves may live long.

Previous weeks have discussed the importance of Senator Arlen Specter's attitude in fighting his cancer in the Senate.  In coming weeks, an astounding exemplar of the relation between health and attitude: Peace Pilgrim, an American woman who chose to be a mendicant in the late 20th century, walking back and forth across North America carrying all of her possessions in a tunic. Eating only when she was offered food, Peace wrote tellingly about the life-giving energy of positive relations with everyone.