Religion vs. Science, the Vast Gulf Part Nine: Disease and Physiology

There is no shortage of creationist doctors and nurses. They appear to have made their peace with the germ theory of disease (infectious diseases are caused by germs) and with the genetic basis of inherited diseases. But, if they really really take their Bible seriously, they should not believe these things. They ought to believe that diseases (at least half of them) are caused by demons.

A couple of years ago, I read through the Gospels, looking for stories about Jesus healing the sick. I listed each of these stories in a table, and identified the stories that appeared in more than one of the four gospels. I have mislaid the table, but I recall that there were about twenty stories about Jesus healing people. In a little over half of the stories, no cause of the disease was identified. But in almost half of them, the cause was clearly identified: one or more demons. The clear conclusion from the Bible is that somewhere around half of all diseases are caused by demons. Universities and medical schools should at least have a course in demonology, and perhaps devote half of their curriculum to it.

In one case, the victim clearly had epilepsy. The gospel account tells of the boy who had spasms, fell down on the ground (sometimes into the fireplace), and foamed at the mouth. The Bible says a demon caused it. All medical scientists know that epilepsy has a genetic basis. Alternatively, the account could describe rabies, which is caused by a virus. Would not a creationist doctor, faced with such symptoms, be obligated to prescribe an exorcism?

I have just posted another Darwin video on my YouTube channel.