Science and faith

I disagree with criticism of faith and the insinuation that science corrects errors of faith. Moses inquired and received instruction from Jehovah to wash the bedding of the sick that are treated and to wash the hands of the caregivers. (See Leviticus 15 [http://scriptures.lds.org/lev/15/1-5,7,13].) Not until Florence Nightingale did this practice become standard for preventing infection. Also, Joseph Smith inquired and received instruction from God about healthy eating habits and so forth (see D&C 89 [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/89]) well before any federal agency gave us the four food groups or the food pyramid. This revelation continues to be proven correct.

Men used their faith and received correct instruction dealing with real causes that science would eventually confirm, not correct.

Wound, skin and discharge precautions:

The instructions recorded in Leviticus 15 are strikingly similar to modern disease-prevention techniques.

For example, anyone touching a person with a ‘running issue’ (that is, a bodily discharge), or anything upon which that person sat or lay, became ‘unclean’. In addition, should the ‘toucher’ touch someone without first having washed his hands, uncleanness would be transferred to the person he touched as well.

Just a little more than 100 years ago, these precautions were instituted in modern medical facilities to prevent diseases from spreading. ‘No touch’ surgical and dressing techniques are now used.6 Gloves are necessary for persons touching infected areas and careful hand washing is observed before and after patient care. In addition, ‘universal precautions’ require that all bodily secretions be treated as potentially infectious agents.

Waste disposal:

The Israelites were instructed to bury their waste material away from the camp (Deuteronomy 23:12–14). Intestinal diseases such as cholera, amebic dysentery and E. coli enteritis continue even today to take a heavy toll on lives where similar sanitary practices are not observed.

The Israelites were also admonished to burn used dressings. Garments that contained a growth (perhaps a fungus) were to be washed. If the fungus/growth was removed, the garment was to be rewashed before using again. If not, it was to be burned (Leviticus 13:47–58). Note that a first wash could germinate hardy spores. The new growth could then be removed by rewashing. Objects that were touched by an infected person were to be washed. If the object was pottery, however, washing was insufficient (perhaps due to its porous nature). It was to be destroyed (Leviticus 11:33, 15:12).

Today’s health practices are quite similar. Objects and dressings contaminated with bodily discharges are removed for incineration. Whenever possible, disposable needles, syringes, eating utensils, dishes and other items are used. Non-disposable items are washed, bagged and sterilized.
Isolation

The Israelites took great care before diagnosing a person as having leprosy or a similar condition. If there was any doubt as to the certainty of a diagnosis, the person was to be isolated for observation (Leviticus 13:1–14:57). Once a person was diagnosed with a contagious condition, he was to be quarantined outside of the camp ‘all the days wherein the plague shall be in him.’ He was also required to wear a covering over his mouth, and to warn others by shouting, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ (Numbers 5:2–4 and Leviticus 13:45–46).

Modern hospitals also follow special isolation procedures for persons who have, or are suspected of having, contagious infections. For example, ‘strict isolation’ requires a private room with an independent air supply. The door to this room must be kept closed. Gowns, gloves and masks must be worn by all who enter the room. In addition, a sign must be placed on the patient’s door to warn others of his condition.
Burial precautions

Direct contact with the dead (human or animal) brought defilement and required the washing of body and garments (Numbers 19:11, 19, 22 and Leviticus 11:24–28, 40). Contact with objects that had come in direct contact with the dead (such as garments, swords, pots and graves) also resulted in ‘defilement’ and required cleansing or destruction.

Furthermore, when someone died in a tent, all who came into the tent, and all that was in the tent (including every ‘open vessel’) was declared unclean (Leviticus 11 and Numbers 19:14–16).

Until the late 1800s, it was common practice for physicians and medical students to examine their living patients immediately after participating in autopsies.7

Of course, the pathogens that were present in the bodies of those in the morgue were spread to the hospital wards. When doctors began practising procedures similar to those found in the first five books of the Bible, mortality rates were drastically reduced.

Food and drinking water safety:

If the carcass of an animal was found in drinking water, use of the water was forbidden as ‘unclean’. If, however, the water source had a continual supply of fresh water, such as a spring, it would remain ‘clean’ because of the tendency of such water to renew itself (Leviticus 11:34–36). In addition, all food and water within a vessel that came in contact with a dead animal or an infected person was declared unclean (Leviticus 11:34, 15:12).

Today, we know that failure to heed any one of these precautions could result in the transmission of infectious microorganisms.

Unlawful lifestyles and disease:

The Israelites were clearly forbidden to have any sexual relationships outside of marriage (Leviticus 18:22, 20:10–16 and Exodus 20:14). The biblical plan of husband and wife constituting an exclusive married unit (Genesis 1:27, 2:23–25; Matthew 19:3–6) certainly prevented the spread of venereal diseases.

Because of man’s failure to heed this admonition, sexually transmitted diseases continue to be the world’s leading contagious diseases.