FAITH HEALING is not strange to Jamaica, whether via a dip in the fabled healing stream running past a community near you, or the Benny Hinn push to the forehead that supposedly sends the target ailment instantly out of the sufferer's falling body on television.

But while the non-believer will find debatable the power of religion to accomplish what the best available medical science cannot, at the very best, there is no doubting the Church's power to assist in healing the nation through the promotion of good old-fashioned exercise.

Health officials are trying to tap into that power, as The Gleaner reported yesterday that Chief Medical Officer Dr Sheila Campbell-Forrester told an audience of the Christian faithful at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel on Thursday that "we want you to become part of the revival crusade ... to promote a change in our behaviour, how we see our values and how we should live healthily to enjoy life more abundantly".

And director of health promotion and protection in the Ministry of Health, Dr Eva Lewis-Fuller, said, "The pursuit of health, whether physical or mental, is closely intertwined with our spiritual being."

The approximate economic cost Campbell-Forrester gave for diabetes ($1.6 billion) and hypertension ($1.2 billion) is staggering and anything that can be done to reduce that, in addition to the emotional repercussions on friends and family, is worth the effort.

It would seem, then, that the Church would do well to get the faithful off their knees, literally, but more so, figuratively, and huffing and puffing while they wait on the Lord. We do trust that the movers and shakers within the various churches, of whatever denomination, see the light of, just maybe, early morning exercise.

power of numbers

However, there is more to the proposed call to action that the Church could and should send to its members in pursuit of His will here on earth as in heaven (and we cannot conceive of an eternal life with chronic lifestyle-related illnesses). For while the faithful - and indeed every sane individual - have the ability to change their lifestyle and stave off or mitigate the effect of debilitating lifestyle diseases, the Church's sheer power of numbers lends itself to social activism.

Just as the Church can be entrusted with urging members to exercise and adjust their consumption patterns, we believe that as a unit, they can also change the society for the good. And here we do not speak about rehabilitative or remedial work, such as helping the elderly and hungry, stopping some of the gaps left by inadequate government resources and far less than Samson-like will.

We are speaking about influencing the political process of this country, questioning and influencing decisions that, in turn, affect the lives of their members.

asking too much

Still, we acknowledge that we may be asking too much, too quickly, of a body which has largely chosen to be more of a panacea than provocative and proactive. And, just as the Church's members - and anyone exercising after an extended period of inactivity - are cautioned to gradually work themselves into this business of working up a sweat, the organisation itself will need time to get going.

Until then, we trust that the Church will assist in the drive towards a healthier nation and suggest a message for the various congregations that will fuse the familiar with the new intention, while introducing some levity: "By the sweat of your brow you shall eat - and be healthy also."

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