Abstract
To understand how Muslim and Christian beliefs might differ in their impact on health, it is important to understand what Christians believe and practice. Just as many Christians are unaware of what Muslims believe and how they express their faith, so too many Muslims may not be aware of what Christians believe (which many Christians may also be uncertain about). Here we objectively lay out the beliefs of Protestants and Catholics, and while covering all Christian viewpoints is impossible in the limited space available, we try to present the basic beliefs that are common to most Christians. These beliefs, practices, and values are essential for understanding why and how religious involvement affects health in Christians, and may also help us to understand how Islamic beliefs, practices, and values influence health in Muslims (given the overlap in belief and practices between the traditions). An understanding of Christian beliefs, practices, and values also sets the reader up to interpret the findings on religiosity and health among Christians summarized in Chap. 6. For those who want to know what Christians believe and why they believe as they do, this chapter provides a simple and easy-to-understand summary.
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Notes
- 1.
By “conservative Protestants” we mean members of Evangelical Protestant Churches or Historically Black Protestant Churches, a group that makes up 33.2 % of all Americans.
- 2.
Scriptures cited here are from the New International Version (NIV) of the Holy Bible, unless otherwise noted.
- 3.
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition of the Bible.
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Koenig, H.G., Shohaib, S.A. (2014). Christian Beliefs, Practices, and Values. In: Health and Well-Being in Islamic Societies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05873-3_4
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