Traditional Medicine in Africa—Compatible With Christianity?
For millions of Africans, traditional healers are their only contact with medicine of any kind. Particularly is this true in rural areas where hospitals are few and doctors are rare. Traditional medicine, however, usually has strong roots in superstition and spiritualism. What should a Christian do under these circumstances?
“‘THIS “agbo” will in all probability kill him off and put an end to all his misery and ours.’ And so, on the assumption that the new remedy was going to result in good riddance of me, the concoction was poured down my throat.”
This was written by a medical doctor in a Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday Times article entitled “Don’t Despise the Traditional Healer.” He was describing how his parents had given up hope of his recovery from a critical illness when he was only one year old. The medicine, sent to them by a traditional healer, was credited with saving his life.
Many Africans who favor traditional medicine tell of surprising cures that have been effected in cases where hospital treatment had failed. Others condemn it as unhygienic, superstitious quackery. On the middle ground are those who call for scientific research into the local herbal remedies and for greater recognition and acceptance of traditional healers. Many would like to see a blending of traditional and modern medicine, citing the cooperation between practitioners of both groups in China and India.
Even if you do not live in Africa, you may be interested in knowing if African folk medicine is really effective and beneficial. What about the ritual element so common among Africans? Is the supernatural an essential ingredient or a harmful feature that should be rejected? What should be the Christian’s position toward such traditional African medicine?
Herbal Medicines
Vegetation, of course, is our main source of food and is essential to our existence. There are also plants that yield drugs or poisons that have destroyed countless numbers of people who have misused them. But did you know that some of these same drugs are used in modern medicines? Scientists discovered some of these drugs by investigating plants that were being used in folk medicine or in the concoctions of medicine men. They collected samples, analyzed them chemically, and tested their effects on the body and on microorganisms that cause disease. The result has been the production of some important medical drugs, such as quinine, reserpine, digitalis, and codeine.
People of ancient times discovered many herbal remedies accidentally, by trial and error, or by observing what happened to animals when they ate certain plants. Often those who made such discoveries and who became healers kept the art in their families. The knowledge of herbs thus came to be passed on from father to son or to other persons selected as apprentices. Most traditional healers still tend to be very secretive, often very reluctant to reveal from which plants they make their medicines. But more is involved in African traditional medicines than just herbal remedies.
The Strong Influence of Spiritism
Much of African traditional healing has been closely associated with the supernatural. Many believe that plants possess feelings, powers of communication, and extrasensory perception. Some healers claim to understand the language of plants and to be able to communicate with them. Others do not see the communication as coming from the plants, for they claim that unseen spirits have directed them to herbs that have healing properties.
Spiritism has thus played a prominent role in traditional medicine in Africa. Many Nigerians, for instance, believe that diseases and deaths are caused either by offended gods (or ancestral spirits) or by enemies who employ witchcraft. So sacrifices of appeasement are made, and spiritistic rituals and methods are employed.
Asuquo, a Nigerian healer, is one who strongly believed this. He says: “I learned herbal medicine from my father and used to sacrifice to the gods and to the spirits of our forefathers in preparing my concoctions. I believed that they produced the cures and that failure to sacrifice to them would bring sickness and death.”
In actuality, it often works the other way around. Such beliefs have subjected millions of people to superstitious fears and enslavement to unseen spirit forces. Many have suffered spiritistic obsession and harassment. This alone is strong reason to reject any cure that includes sacrifices or other spiritistic rituals. And spirits that would obsess and harass people or deceive them into thinking that their ancestors are still alive or that plants can communicate are obviously deceptive and evil. The Bible warns: “The things which the nations sacrifice they sacrifice to demons, and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers with the demons.”—1 Corinthians 10:20.
The demons, disobedient angels condemned by God to future destruction, are bent on diverting people from worshiping the true God, Jehovah. (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6) They pretend in some cases that they themselves are benevolent gods. (2 Corinthians 11:14) Carrying their deception further, they impersonate the dead and lead people to think that their ancestors are still alive in a spirit world. However, the Bible clearly says: “The dead . . . are conscious of nothing at all, . . . for there is no work nor devising nor knowledge nor wisdom in Sheol, the place to which you are going.”—Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10.
So it would be wrong for worshipers of the true God to accept from herbalists any cures that involve spiritistic practices. Likewise, herbalists who desire to render acceptable worship to God must discontinue every form of spiritistic practice. Truly, those who resort to spiritism forfeit Jehovah’s favor and protection and have no place in the Christian congregation. (Galatians 5:19-21; Revelation 21:8) There are many who have rejected spiritism, and they have found that some herbal cures can be quite effective without the spiritistic practices.
The Change to Christianity
Speaking of his personal experiences, Erhabor, an officially recognized physician who operates an herbal hospital, says: “Formerly I believed that sacrifices had to be included with the medicine in order to combat the spirit behind the disease. But after I studied the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses and became a Christian, I discarded these practices and now conform to Bible principles. I have found that the healing properties are in the plants themselves.”
Similarly, Asuquo says: “Things I learned about Jehovah brought new meaning to my life. My fear about ancestors was removed, and I got to know the true God. I also got to see that sacrifices were not necessary and that it is the juice of barks and leaves that heals people. Many people now come to me for treatment because I do not exploit their superstitions by asking for sacrifices. My treatment does not cost them as much as when they go to the juju healers.”
Because Okon, who also practices herbal medicine, does not use incantations or sacrifices in his practice, he is accused by other herbalists of “spoiling their practice.” “Some of my patients,” he says, “came as spies to prove that I still use sacrifices secretly. After being successfully treated for two weeks, they admitted that I do not use any form of juju. They also benefited from the Scriptural discussions I had with them. I was surprised to see four former patients at the ‘Divine Love’ Convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses in December 1980. They embraced me and said: ‘We came to you for physical healing. You also gave us spiritual healing.’”
Christians like these have had to resist those who desire that they return to spiritistic practices. They know that if they combined their healing methods with any form of spiritism, they would no longer be fit to remain in the Christian congregation. So they do not offer sacrifices or use incantations. They do not make lying claims that they can cure every kind of illness, nor do they try to give the impression of having special powers. They avoid even the appearance of spiritism.
True Healing From God
In many developing nations, the majority of the inhabitants depend on the treatment given by traditional healers, in whom most have great confidence. Besides, hospitals and medical doctors are too few to meet the demands for treatment. Hence, most people in these lands likely will continue to consult healers, many of whom use spiritistic methods. But what will you do?
“The truth,” said Jesus, “will set you free.” (John 8:32) Knowing that the Bible condemns such practices, the Christian would refuse to become disloyal to God by consulting oracles or by seeking from an herbalist a cure involving divination. (Deuteronomy 18:10-13; compare Numbers 23:21, 23.) And if ill, neither would it be wise for a Christian to assume that the problems stem from a spiritistic spell. One need not have fear of being made ill by witchcraft when remaining firmly on God’s side by rejecting anything connected with spiritism. If, because of the imperfection that all of us have, illness is experienced, then a personal decision must be made concerning types of treatment.*
The ransom sacrifice offered by Jesus is the only means of deliverance from sin and the resultant sickness and death. (John 3:16; Acts 4:12) It alone opens the way for faithful persons to gain everlasting life on a paradise earth where “no resident will say: ‘I am sick.’”—Isaiah 33:24.
Until that happy day, the almighty God assures us that he will protect those who trust him. So all Christians need to rely on Jehovah, keeping close to him in prayer and supplication. This will result in a healthier life now, and it will ensure our receiving perfect life in the promised Paradise earth.—2 Peter 3:10-14; 1 John 2:17.
[Footnotes]
2.
SHOULD CHRISTIANS USE HERBS?
When I was a little girl, we spent our summer days playing outside. I don’t remember ever putting on sunscreen, so sunburns were inevitable. We’d come in beet red and parched, and my mom would have us break off a piece of aloe vera to rub over the sunburns. We didn’t like being all gooped up with the slimy aloe vera, but it was all we knew to do to ease the sunburn. I never thought of my mom as an “herbalist” using “alternative medicine”. She was just a mom doctoring up her kids.
Fast forward 30 plus years, and here I am trying to do the same thing to my kiddos. Over the years, I never once questioned whether my mom’s use of aloe vera on us kids was the Christian thing to do or not. Subsequently, I never once questioned whether my own home remedies were “Christian” or not. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the Lord and I want to live righteous before Him. I had just never thought about the possibility that treating my children with herbs could be seen as unbiblical by some folks. In fact, herbalism has often been wrongly labeled not only unbiblical, but occultic and paganistic.
With much prayer and study, I hope to dispel these falsehoods. The question presented is this, “Is it permissible for Bible believing Christians to use herbs for health and healing?” My goal in writing this series is to help others see that God has provided herbs as a blessing to man. And not only are they a permissible form of medicine for Christians, they are often a preferred form of medicine.
WHAT IS HERBALISM?
As I get into the details, I want to make sure that I define a few terms so that we are on the same page. When I use the term herbs, I am referring to plants and their constituents including roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruit, seeds, and in the case of trees, bark. I would also include honey and bee products as well. Although they are not considered herbs by definition, honey, pollen, propolis, and beeswax are all created with the help of plants derivatives and have many healing properties.
There are many practices that are often lumped in together with herbalism, but I want to make a clear distinction here. Herbalism does not include homeopathy, iridology, acupuncture, reflexology, muscle testing, and many other alternative forms of medicine. I will not be covering these practices in this article. Honestly, I have not done a great deal of research into these practices.
To sum it up, herbalism is simply using plants as medicine.
WHERE DOES TRUE HEALING COME FROM?
All true healing comes from God the Father. He has provided healing medicines and knowledgeable people to work as His hands and feet, but our faith should ultimately rest in Him and His sovereignty. This is a concept that was made real to me as I begin to study herbalism and use herbs to treat my family. For years I took my children to every well baby check up, made sure they had every shot on time, and didn’t hesitate to give them antibiotics for every illness that came up. In my mind, I was taking an active role in my child’s health. I would even go so far as to say I took pride in my care of my children.
What I didn’t realize was how much faith I was putting in doctors and immunizations and antibiotics. Sadly, I don’t remember ever praying that the Lord would protect my child from measles or whooping cough. I took it for granted that the immunizations I allowed them to receive would be their protectors. I didn’t have the same fervency in my prayers that I acquired once I started treating my children at home. I realized the error I had made in trusting in man and not the Lord. I still have much to learn in this area. I am so thankful that the Lord is gentle and long-suffering in teaching me His ways!
HERBS IN THE BIBLE
A couple of years ago, my children and I read a book entitled Galen and the Gateway to Medicine by Jeanne Bendick. Galen was a Greek physician employed by the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, continuing in service through the Emperor Septimius Severus. Galen was born into a wealthy family, thus allowing him to study at the Temple of Aesculapius and later travel to Corinth, then to Alexandria to further his studies. What is fascinating about Galen is that his ideas and medical practices were largely unchallenged for more than a thousand years. In fact, his ideas concerning the balance of the four humors (from his study of Hippocrates) led to the popular practice of blood letting, which unfortunately led to the death of George Washington just 200 years ago.
Another interesting fact about Galen is that he lived only a few short years after the time Christ lived on the earth. There was another physician living during this time period, perhaps better known to Christians. This was the beloved physician, Luke (Colossians 4:14), author of the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. We don’t have record of Luke’s medical practices. However, we know that as a physician in the first century, the only “medicine” available to Luke would have been herbal medicines. Part of the duties of a physician at this time were compounding herbal medicines for their patients.
As I began my herbal studies, I wanted to know what the Bible had to say about this topic. One thing that was impressed upon my heart as I read the Word was that modern Christians as a whole have distanced themselves so far from God’s original design that they often don’t recognize it as part of His blessings to us. This can be seen in many areas of our lives. For instance, until the last 100 years or so, no one questioned whether or not they would breastfeed their child. If you wanted your child to live, you nursed them. The only other option was finding another nursing mother who would nurse the baby for you if you couldn’t. So you see, there was never a question in women’s minds debating which was best — breast milk or formula. They knew that the Lord had marvelously created their bodies to provide for their young.
The same can be said for their healing practices. The Bible speaks in several places of medicines.
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
Proverbs 17:22There is none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.
Jeremiah 30:13
BUT WHAT WERE THESE MEDICINES? WHAT WAS IT THAT WAS USED AS MEDICINE?
In Luke 10:34, we see the good Samaritan binding up wounds with oil and wine. The wine would have provided antiseptic properties, while the oil would have served as a healing salve. In several places we see that the people used balms, ointments, and plasters as medicines (Jeremiah 8:22, 46:11, 51:8; Isaiah 1:6, 38:21). Perhaps the most telling verses are in Ezekiel and Revelations where we see the Lord providing leaves for medicine.
And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.
Ezekiel 47:12In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Revelation 22:2
I have tried to compile a list of specific herbs listed or named in the Bible. This is a work-in-progress, as I am sure there are many I have missed.
aloes — Num 24:6, Psa 45:8, Pro 7:17, Son 4:14, Joh 19:39
anise — Mat 23:23
balm — Gen 37:25, 43:11, Jer 8:22, 46:11, 51:8, Eze 27:17
bay tree — Psa 37:35
calamus — Exo 30:23
cassia — Exo 30:24
cinnamon — Exo 30:23, Pro 7:17, Son 4:14, Rev 18:13
coriander seed — Exo 16:31, Num 11:7
cumin — Isa 28:25, 28:27, Mat 23:23
fitches (black cumin) — Isa 28:25, 28:27
frankincense — Mat 2:11
garlic — Num 11:5
hyssop — Psa 51:7
juniper — 1Ki 19:4-5, Job 30:4, Psa 120:4
mint — Mat 23:23, Luk 11:42
mustard — Mat 13:31
myrrh — Pro 7:17
rose — Luk 11:42
rue — Luk 11:42
saffron — Son 4:14
spikenard — Jn 12:3, Son 4:14
wormwood (hemlock) — Jer 23:15
QUESTION TO ASK OURSELVES
When choosing a method of health care, whether it is allopathic or naturopathic, Christians must weigh each decision in light of the Scriptures. I believe there are four important questions we can ask ourselves as we determine whether or not to use herbal medicine as a means of health care for our families.
DOES IT CONTRADICT THE WORD OF GOD, HIS COMMANDMENTS OR STATUTES?
When I am trying to discern whether or not something is permissible before God, I first look for direct commandments dealing with the subject. In the case of using herbs as medicines, I first found instances in the Bible where the Lord lets us know what is not permissible.
Practices Not Permissible
- occult practices
There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Deuteronomy 18:10-12
Because the use of herbs has been incorporated into many occultic practices, we must distinguish between the evil practices accompanying the herbs and the use of the herbs themselves. Remember, the herbs themselves possess no power in themselves to heal, they are merely substances that encourage the body to do what it was designed to do more efficiently. Just as food gives nutrients to promote growth, herbs can both provide nutrients needed or solicit actions within the body.
- practices dishonoring the sanctity of life
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
Jeremiah 1:5
Even before conception, the Lord knows us and loves us. Every life is precious to the Lord. Every. Single. One. We must strive against the culture of death in this world, to make sure that we are doing everything possible in our being to protect life, even potential life.
As a woman of childbearing age, I must take every precaution to ensure I am not harming a baby in my womb. This means not taking certain herbs, which may have abortifacient properties, when I am pregnant (and being very cautious when I *might* be pregnant). Even natural substances can be harmful to babies in the womb, so we must be very, very careful in this regard.
DOES IT WORK WITH OUR BODIES IN A WAY THAT COMPLIMENTS HOW OUR BODIES ARE CREATED? IS IT RESTORATIVE?
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
There is a difference between helping to restore our bodies and forcing our bodies to work in ways that they were not designed for. For example, let’s say I am a married lady who has not been able to conceive after several years of marriage. I have discovered that my hormones are imbalanced and have decided to take herbal supplements to help balance my hormones in the hopes of getting pregnant. I am working to help restore my body and its functions.
On the other hand, there are several herbs that can be used to avoid pregnancy. These herbs cause the body to not do what it was created to do — procreate.
ARE WE PRACTICING HERBALISM IN A WAY THAT IS ABUSIVE OR DETRIMENTAL TO OUR BODIES?
All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.
1 Corinthians 10:23
As I read this verse, I looked up the word expedient in the Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary. Expedient is to be suitable for the purpose, proper under the circumstance. And the word edify can mean to literally “build up”. When applied to the question of herbalism, we can ask ourselves “Do the herbs I am using build up my body and are they proper under the circumstances?”
DOES HERBALISM BRING GLORY TO THE CREATOR?
Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31
In all things, and in all types of medicine, we should aim to bring glory to God. Whether we are choosing a type of healthcare, a type of herb to use, or a condition to treat — we must ask ourselves “Does this bring glory to God?”
There are many things to consider when treating ourselves and our families with herbal medicine. One thing we can be thankful for is the gift God has given us! To answer the question, “Yes, I believe Christians should use herbs!”
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