Table of Contents

Preface 1. The Numinous, the Medical, and the Moral 2. Letter to a Young Intern 3. Catholic Christianity and the Meaning of Healing 4. Appearance and Morality 5. The Prodigal Profession 6. Aesculapion 7. The Man Born Blind 8. Beatitudes 9. The Blood of Christ 10. The Temple of the Holy Spirit 11. Death and the Immanence of Hope 12. The Communication of the Dead Postscript: A Residency Graduation Prayer Acknowledgments Notes

Promotional Information

A Balm for Gilead offers readers a scholarly yet personal insight into the important role of spirituality in the care of patients as well as recognizing the importance of spirit in the call to service that all health care professionals share. Dr. Sulmasy challenges us to think of spirituality as an ethical mandate, not an option. -- Christina Puchalski, MD, director, The George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health Any health professional within a Christian tradition who wants to reaffirm how his or her faith can bring meaning and inspiration to their work as a healer will find this book a welcome addition. Daniel Sulmasy is superb at addressing real situations in health care with a Christian spirit. -- Daniel E. Ford, MD, David M. Levine Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry, vice dean for Clinical Investigation, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine This is the enduring and real meaning of 'faith healing'-in categories and vocabulary that are life giving for all people of good will. We thank Daniel Sulmasy for putting back together what Jesus never separated. -- Richard Rohr, OFM, Center for Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, NM

About the Author

Daniel P. Sulmasy, OFM, MD is a Franciscan friar and the inaugural Clinton-Kilbride Professor of Medicine and Medical Ethics, professor of divinity, and associate director of the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago. He received his AB and MD degrees from Cornell University and completed his residency, chief residency, and postdoctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He received his PhD in philosophy from Georgetown University in 1995. His books include The Rebirth of the Clinic: An Introduction to Spirituality in Health Care, The Healer's Calling, and Methods in Medical Ethics. He also serves as editor-in-chief of the journal Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics.

Reviews

To read A Balm for Gilead is to want author/friar/physician Daniel Sulmasy and his disciples to be your doctor... inspires and reaffirms that faith can properly be incorporated into medical and health care practice. America Magazine An accessible introduction to the implications of Franciscan compassion not only for the care of the sick but also for commitment to social justice and changing a health care system that dehumanizes people. Gerontologist