Saturday, September 09, 2006

Immunity Challenge





  • "[It] is a judgment of God, sent to punish and humble our sins; and what shall we so evade it, and think to turn it away from us?...God has predetermin'd and fixed the period of every ones life...so that if this time be come inoculation will not save the person's life."
  • "[It is] a judgment on the sins of the people...to avert it is but to provoke him more".
  • "[It is] an encroachment on the prerogatives of Jehovah", who has the right "to wound and smite".

Do these religious statements sound familiar? I thought so. It turns out that they were spoken by theologians almost 300 years ago in opposition to smallpox innoculation.

An intriguing method of preventing smallpox was being studied to see if material taken from cowpox sores or even smallpox lesions could be used prevent the deadly smallpox disease. Then, just as now, religious zealots tried to impose their own morality on disease; it was a punishment from G-d. To interfere with this punishment, would cause further anguish and death. It took a smallpox epidemic in Montreal to cause a shift in attitude:

In 1885 a smallpox epidemic broke out in Montreal, Canada. Almost everyone was vaccinated except the Catholic population there. When the authorities tried to force vaccination on their Catholic citizens, they were met with opposition that threatened to become violent. Rather than explaining to their parishioners the benefits of vaccination, the catholic clergy tolerated and in some cases even encouraged the behavior of the laity. A priest of St. James Church said in a sermon that, "if we are afflicted with smallpox, it is because we had a carnival last year, feasting with the flesh, which has offended the Lord;...it is to punish our pride that God has sent us smallpox." One religious newspaper even went further, telling the Montreal Catholics to take up arms rather than submit themselves to vaccination. Instead the catholic ecclesiastical authorities in the city called on their people to make certain devotional exercises, to hold a procession with an appeal to the Blessed Virgin and to use the rosary as specified. Needless to say the Catholic population in Montreal suffered many needless deaths from smallpox until the proper measure was finally enforced.

We see this same kind of opposition pattern today in the case of a human papilloma virus vaccine, designed to prevent cervical cancer. Vaccine opponents fear that innoculation will lead to sexual promiscuity. We hear others define AIDS as a punishment for sin. I long for the day when disease is seen by all as a bane of biology rather than measure of morality.

8 comments:

Snerd Gronk said...

"I" Doc: In 1885 a smallpox epidemic broke out in Montreal, Canada. Almost everyone was vaccinated except the Catholic population there

SG: Which suggest why the dozen or so, non-Catholics, who made up 1% of Montreal's population in 1885, now account for 40% of said population.

"I" Doc: We see this same kind of opposition pattern today in the case of a human papilloma virus vaccine, designed to prevent cervical cancer. Vaccine opponents fear that innoculation will lead to sexual promiscuity

SG: Are these guyz 'Fucking-Crazy', or what?

Snerd

eyedoc333 said...

Snerd!! Great to see you.

I can't understand their thinking either. Don't they want their followers to survive and pass on the wonders of religious zealotry?

KEvron said...

inoculation is a muslim conspiracy....

KEvron

InternetJunkie said...

i've got an idea... if the religious zealots are so opposed to vaccines, fine. they should not be forced to take them.

likewise, they should disregard all forms of modern medicine: antibiotics, high blood pressure medicine, insulin, flu shots, and most definitely regular checkups and absolutely no surgery of any kind. prayer and fasting are the only ways acceptable to the truly faithful.

perhaps they would be happy if we brought back leeches and blood letting.

eyedoc333 said...

The sad thing is that those who oppose this sort of research are often the first in line when treatments become available.

Heather Kirkwood said...

Aahhh, yes, zealots. The first time I was admitted at NIH my roommate was a Jahovah's Witness with very strong opinions about blood transfusions which she was only too eager to share with me CONSTANTLY! Way to go NIH! Stick the chick with a bleeding disorder in the room with the person opposed to blood transfusions! Oh yeah, a marriage made in heaven! All I can say, having required transfusions and platelet transfusions several times, is GOD BLESS BLOOD DONORS! Now I look back on it and chuckle - but it was pretty irritating at the time.

eyedoc333 said...

Yay for blood donors!

They never give blood in vein. ;)

Heather Kirkwood said...

oohhhhh groan....grin! he he...