Call to Prayer

Let us be still in the presence of God and one another.

Reflection

Care of the Patient, Dr. Francis Peabody, 1927

“The practice of medicine in its broadest sense includes the whole relationship of the physician with (their) patient. It is an art, based to an increasing extent, on the medical sciences; but comprising much that still remains outside the realm of any science. The art of medicine and the science of medication are not antagonistic but supplementary to each other. There is no more contradiction between the science of medicine and the art of medicine than between the sciences of aeronautics and the art of flying.

The treatment of the disease may be entirely impersonal, the care of a patient must be completely personal. What is spoken of as a ‘clinical picture’ is not just a photograph of a man sick in bed; it is an impressionist painting of the patient surrounded by his home, his work, his relations, his friends, his joys, sorrows, hopes and fears.”

Reflection Question

· What attracted you to the art of medicine?

· What do you love about the science of medicine?

· What does the integration of the art and science of medicine look like in your practice?

Communal Prayer

Attributed to Maimonides

Leader: Almighty God, you have created the human body with infinite wisdom. Inspire me with love for my art and for your people.

All: Do not allow thirst for profit, ambition for renown and admiration, to interfere with my profession. Preserve the strength of my body, of my soul, that they ever be ready to cheerfully help, and support rich and poor, good and bad, enemy as well as friend. In the sufferer let me see only the human being.

Leader: Almighty God, you have created the human body with infinite wisdom. Inspire me with love for my art and for your people.

All: Let me be contented in everything except in the great science of my profession. Never allow the thought to arise in me that I have attained to sufficient knowledge, but grant me the strength, the time and the ambition ever to extend my knowledge. For art is great, but the mind of humanity is ever expanding.

Leader: Almighty God, you have created the human body with infinite wisdom. Inspire me with love for my art and for your people.

All: You have chosen me in your mercy to watch over the life and death of your people. As I apply myself to my call, support me in this great task so that it may benefit humankind, for without your help not even the least thing will succeed.