Blind Faith The Unholy Alliance of Religion and Medicine

Pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions for contraceptives. Surgeons who pray in the OR. Pro-life clinics and end-of-life interventions, intelligent-design activists and stem-cell-research opponents. Isthisthe state of modern medicine inAmerica? InBlind Faith,Dr. Richard P. Sloan examines the fragile balance and dangerous alliance between religion and medicinetwo practices that have grown disconcertingly close during the twenty-first century. While Sloan does not dispute the fact that religion can bring a sense of comfort in times of difficulty, he nevertheless believes, and in fact proves, that there is no compelling evidence that faith provides an actual cure for any ailment. By exposing the flawed research, Sloan gives readers the tools to understand when good medical science is subverted and, at the same time, provides a thought-provoking examination into the origins and varieties of faith, and human nature itself.

Richard P. Sloan, Ph.D., is a professor of behavioral medicine at Columbia University Medical Center