Term Paper on "View of God"

Term Paper 5 pages (1590 words) Sources: 2 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

God

The idea that human beings are manifestations of God is not just a new Age platitude, because it has serious implications for the healing professions. Nurses who cultivate this attitude can help their patients develop more constructive attitudes toward their illness or discomfort. Moreover, patients who embody the notion that they are manifestations of God can use their subconscious mind for healing, as Joseph Murphy suggested in his classic book the Power of Your Subconscious Mind. Patients who prefer the term "prayer" to "self-hypnosis" will also find that the idea that human beings are manifestations of God aids their sense of spiritual connection and understanding. If human beings are manifestations of God, then human beings are one with God, inseperable from the divine source of life. Phrases like "the God within" reflect a similar concept. Likewise, Martha Rogers' science of unitary human beings promotes the idea that human beings are one with the universe and with God. Rogers' science of unitary human beings and Murphy's power of the subconscious mind both infer that human beings are manifestations of God and that this knowing will aid healing.

These two theories share several features in common, although they were developed seperately. Murphy did not focus exclusively on the healing professions. He suggested that the same mental tools and attitudes could be applied to all areas of one's life: a unitary principle in itself. Rogers' science of unitary human beings was applied specifically to the nursing field and applies equally as much to the practitioner as to the patient. Both Murphy and Rogers present a humanistic vision of the universe but one that does not presume human superiority. Rather, human beings are viewed as integral parts of a vast universe of interrelated life forms. One of the core tenets of Rogers' philosophy is diversity. No two people are alike. The needs and backgrounds of individuals differ greatly, allowing for a panoply of divine manifestations. Inherent in this idea is a paradox: God is both unity and multiplicity. Similarly, human beings are simultaneously unified and diverse.

Murphy extended the theory of unity even farther, claiming that all fields of human academic endeavor are also connected: "You must not think that the principles of chemistry, physics, and mathematics differ from the principles of your subconscious mind." Keeping this in mind, the healing professions are fully integrated with and complementary to spiritual pursuits. Patients who do not believe in God can still acknowledge the power of the subconscious mind. Murphy's writing is relevant for the healing professions in a more direct way too. In the Power of Your Subconscious Mind as well as in many other books, Murphy avows the innate capacity of all human being for self healing and self-improvement. While not all human beings will miraculously recover from illness after applying Murphy's principles to their lives, they will all experience spiritual healing enabling them to experience oneness with the universe.

Rogers also understood that not all human beings react the same way to the same healing treatments. Likewise, not all human beings get sick when exposed to the same stressors. The diversity in human manifestations would seem contrary to the science of unitary human beings but it is not. In fact, Rogers' philosophy demands appreciation for multiplicity and diversity because God can and does manifest in myriad ways and forms, evident not only in flowers, trees, and snowflakes but also in human beings. Nurses can apply this unity-in-diversity concept to their patients, understanding that although no two patients are alike that they all share in common a divine origin. Patients can use this wisdom to better understand the uniqueness of their bodies and the special work they must do in order to heal.

The science of unitary human beings is commonly divided into the following core concepts: pandimensionality, irrepeatability, unpredictability, and perpetual changeability (Parse, 2002). Murphy's work echoes these ideas and can be considered complementary to the science of unitary beings. Both Murphy and Rogers proposed a vision of human beings that differed from the prevailing view of medical science, which divides the human being into constituent parts, analyzing each part as if understanding the parts aids understanding of the whole. On the contrary, human beings cannot be broken down into legs, arms, livers, spleens, hormones, and blood platelets. The view of the human being as a machine is outmoded. It fails to acknowledge the effects of family background, ethnicity, and religious belief and it fails to offer a constructive program for healing. If healing connotes wholeness, then any nursing theory must include a science of unitary human beings.

Murphy and Rogers both infer that the body, the mind, and the spirit are united in the human being. There is no border between these aspects of a human being. Each of these aspects is permeated with God because each is a manifestation of God. Healing depends on body, mind, and spirit which are not, as Parse (2002) suggests, hierarchically organized. The body, the mind, and the spirit are indivisible. Murphy's ideas work because they acknowledge this fundamental premise. The human being can use spiritual impetus to fuel mental transformation which can induce physical change. The power of the subconscious mind is the field on which healing takes place. It can represent the intersection between these three dimensions.

Rogers noted that unitary human beings are pandimensional. Their physical bodies are manifestations of God as matter; their mental states are manifestations of God on a mental plane; and their spiritual bodies are even more subtle than that. While none of these dimensions is any better or worse than any other, only the body and to a lesser extent the mind can be observed with the five senses. When illness manifests, it may not be enough to pay attention to the body. Instead, the health care practitioner should take into account the mental and spiritual factors that make up the human being. Human beings are also everlasting. Even though the body may perish, the pandimensionality that Rogers refers to suggests that on some level human beings transcend death. If human beings are manifestations of God and if God is everlasting and eternal, then human beings must also be everlasting and eternal.

Rogers also suggested that human beings are unpredictable, again referring to the seeming randomness with which illness hits. Frustrating for human beings, unpredictability is a feature of the universe. Weather patterns change dramatically and though meteorologists can make educated predictions they can never do so with 100% accuracy. Earthquakes are even more difficult to predict. Similarly, doctors cannot be relied on for 100% accuracy in their predictions. Some patients will get worse for no reasons, others better. The objective is to cease believing that all human beings will react the same way to the same treatments. Only when a health care practitioner can embrace unpredictability can we begin to appreciate the idea that human beings are manifestations of God. Viewed from another vantage point, human beings are manifestations of God in an unpredictable, chaotic universe. Regardless of one's beliefs or views about God, it is possible to acknowledge unpredictability in the universe. Similarly, human beings are ever changing. Change, growth, and healing go hand-in-hand. Healing is defined by change, as it implies a change from a state of discomfort to a state of relief. Murphy echoes this belief in the Power of Your Subconscious Mind, when he states, "There is a miraculous healing power in your subconscious that can heal the troubled mind and the broken heart," (Chapter 1).

Under Rogers' science of unitary human beings, all patients are not just treated like manifestations of God; they are also treated with respect. Patients also learn to treat themselves with respect, working with their godlike powers that lie dormant within their subconscious minds. Respecting… READ MORE

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