Editorial May 28, 1990 Issue

Stranger at the gate

Michael D. Rissler

There are all kinds of ideas and beliefs that we discover we shouldn't simply learn to live with. We see it as enlightenment when superstitions and false beliefs are outgrown. In recent decades, the belief that one race or culture is inherently superior to another has come under tremendous scrutiny. There's a growing sense of mutual value among people. This may be one of the most important accomplishments of the twentieth century, although we still have a long way to go.

Or, take for example the remarkable change in the last century regarding the widespread belief that sickness, poverty, and many other discords are inescapable. The idea of progress, that men and women should be able to overcome evil, has emerged as a powerful influence in people's lives.

And yet the prospect of Christian healing is often like a waif, an abandoned child. While the Bible has permeated Western civilization, and its ethical values and ideals have inspired art, philosophy, and even natural science—not to mention the humane disciplines that aim to relieve the suffering of people—the concept of spiritual healing through prayer is still something of a stranger on the fringes of the mainstream of society.

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