SENTINEL WATCH December 7, 2009 Issue

ALZHEIMER'S: TAKE UP THE CHALLENGE

ANTHONY WHITEHOUSE

THIS FALL the "2009 World Alzheimer Report" projected that by 2050 over 115 million people are expected to be suffering from dementia, or Alzheimer's disease. This daunting prospect should not be ignored. But it's useful to remember that it's based on the mistaken assumption that the progress and spread of the sickness are inevitable, and that nothing can be done to stop it.

None of us would lightly dismiss the very great challenge Alzheimer's poses to the sufferers, caregivers, and families of those caught up in its demands. Nonetheless, we can challenge the assumptions on which the report is based. In fact, from a spiritual perspective, it is vital to resist them. Behind their bald message is the belief that life is material and that decline and decay are inevitable.

Christian Scientists believe the opposite: that Life is God, eternal, self-existing, and perfect, and that the man and woman of God's creating are also perfect and complete. We are forever in the care of this divine Mind, which includes all intelligence. No one can be separated from anything good—and that includes sound mental faculties.