Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Give Us This Day Our Daily Pill

                        


Dr. Morse's Indian Root Pills are a patent medicine first manufactured in 1854 and promoted as a cure for dyspepsia, liver trouble, "women's ailments", pimples, and a host of other maladies. They are still sold today in Australia, as a laxative. By the 1930s, US law forced ingredients to be revealed, and there was nothing in them that could be called Indian Root - Neatorama [1], Midcoast Stories [2], Wikipedia(Indian_Root_Pills) [3], Google Books(History of the Comstock Patent Medicine Business) [4].



A patent medicine is a commercial product advertised (usually heavily) as an over-the-counter medicine, without regard to its actual effectiveness. Patent medicines were one of the first major product categories that the advertising industry promoted; patent medicine promoters pioneered many advertising and sales techniques that were later used for other products. Sellers of liniments, claimed to contain snake oil and falsely promoted as a cure-all, made the snake oil salesman a lasting symbol for a charlatan - Wikipedia(Patent_Medicine) [5].


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In the 19th century, hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that the basis for diagnosis operated under the belief that women are predisposed to mental and behavioral conditions. Symptoms include Shortness of breath, Anxiety, Insomnia, Fainting, Amnesia, Paralysis, Pain, Spasms - Wikipedia(Hysteria) [6]. During the 20th century, as psychiatry advanced in the West, anxiety and depression diagnoses began to replace hysteria.

Many of those "hysterical" women in the 19th century turned to the patent medicines of the day for relief, not unlike Dr. Morse's Indian Root Pills. Not surprising because many of those nostrums contained opium or cocaine, which were legal then. “Many proprietary or patent medicines were heavily advertised and contained high amounts of alcohol or opiate" - English History Authors [7].  Indeed, many were called "women’s friends". Victorian Web [8 ], UK Science Museum [9]

Anxiety
The diagnosis of hysteria gave way to a diagnosis of anxiety or depression in the 20th century. And it is no longer confined to women. The treatment is similar, but the drugs are different. Nowadays, anxiety and depression are treated with anti-depressants like Xanax, Valium, Zoloft, Prozac, Paxil, etc. Anti-depressant sales account for about $20 billion/year. The cynical side of me sees anti-depressant drugs as an ideal business model, they don’t CURE depression, they only treat symptoms, but are very hard to quit. Business Wire [10], Drugs.com(depression) [11], Drugs.com(anxiety) [12]. 

As profitable as anti-depressants are, there are many drugs more profitable. In fact, none of the anti-depressants make it into the 50 top selling drugs. The top of that list is Humira, which had $20 billion in sales by itself. Followed by Keytruda, Eliquis, Revlimid, and Eylea, each of which had sales over $10 billion in 2020. I had to look these up. The top 50 are prescribed for cancer (lots of cancers), arthritis, blood clots, etc. - Drug Discovery Trends [13]. 

The Jab
But the most profitable is vaccines. “The global vaccine market size accounted for $32,462 million ($32 billion) in 2019” - Allied Market Research [14]. Of course, COVID changed all that. Pfizer alone expects to sell $36 billion worth of vaccine this year (2021). Scientists at Pfizer admitted to an undercover reporter, “Basically, our organization is run on COVID money now” - Project Veritas [15].  


Moderna expects sales of $15 to $20 billion - Allied Market Research [14]. The cynical part of me has to point out that the manufacturers of vaccines are shielded from liability.

“The pharma sector has generated global sales of about $1.1 trillion in 2019” - DW.com(Pfizer) [16]. 

Bringing the Bible Into It

 

What does the Bible say about drugs? At first glance, not much. There are some positive references like these.

 Jeremiah refers to balm of Gilead Jeremiah 8:22; 46:11

  • Paul writes of the medicinal use of wine  1 Timothy 5:23
  • Church at Laodicea counseled to use eye salve Revelation 3:18
  • They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. (Luke 5:31)

 And some negative

 “And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians.” 2 Chronicles 16:12

 Pr 20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise. (Alcohol is a drug.)

 "Not much"  - that’s what I thought for over 40 years. This year I learned that there are references to drugs in the NT hidden in the translation. Consider:

 Rev 18:23 … For your merchants were the great ones of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.

Bringing Linguistics Into It 


The word translated as sorcery here is the Greek word pharmakeia. Pharmakeia is clearly the word we get pharmacy and pharmaceutical from, so why is it translated sorcery? Pharmakeia is translated here as sorcery, witchcraft, charms, false magic, enchantments, or magic spells - BibleHub [17]. Pharmakeia and related words are used five times in the NT*. There is another Greek word magia also translated as sorcery. Magia is the word we get magic, magi, magician, magistrate from, there is no ambiguity with magia, it always means sorcery. So why do scholars translated pharmakeia as sorcery?

Pharmakeia - Sorceries (Revelation 9:21; 18:23)
Pharmakeia  - Witchcraft (Galatians 5:20)
Pharmakeus - Sorceror(s) (Rev 21:8)
Pharmakos - Sorceror(s) (Rev 22:15 )

Magos - Sorcerer (Acts 13:6,8)
Mageia - Sorceries (Acts 8:11) 

Strong’s Concordance [18] shows a variety of definitions from the mundane to the evil.

Pharmakeia

1) the use or the administering of drugs
2) poisoning
3) sorcery, magical arts, often found in connection with idolatry and fostered by it
4) metaph. the deceptions and seductions of idolatry


Bringing Others Into It

Let me give some quotes to show the spectrum of opinion about pharmakeia.

Magic and religion played a large part in the medicine of prehistoric or early human society. Administration of a vegetable drug or remedy by mouth was accompanied by incantations, dancing, grimaces, and all the tricks of the magician. Therefore, the first doctors, or “medicine men,” were witch doctors or sorcerers. The use of charms and talismans, still prevalent in modern times, is of ancient origin. Britannica(History_Of_Medicine) [19] 

It is a fact that witchcraft and magic in the Greek world often involved the use of drugs–either by the witch or the one on whom the magic is worked. Evidence For Christianity [20] 

But these original 'pharmacists' were involved in the black arts and in demonology; the basic idea was that taking certain potions could bring one into contact with the spirit world, and that this was to be desired. 
To suggest that modern medical pharmacists are in any way associated with the 'black arts' is ludicrous. 
It is ridiculous to blacken them (no pun intended!) because they borrowed a word which had sinister connotations in the original Greek.  UK Apologetics [21]

Not everyone agrees it is ridiculous. Here is the opposite viewpoint.  

Pharmacy mixes up different types of poison, package it, patent it, and claims that it can treat certain types of diseases. The main problem with that system is that poison is poison. Pharmaceutical drugs are poisonous.
Did you know that the “father” of pharmacology was an occultist? He was a worshiper of Satan! Called Out Believers [22]

 In the Bible, pharmakeia carried with it the idea of sorcery, occultism, and black magic. It is in this sense that Paul used the term in Galatians 5:20 as the word “witchcraft.”
Today’s “Sorcery” IS IN FACT THE PHARMACY!!! Pharmacies are today’s forms of “Sorcery”! So are medicines, drugs, pills, medications, vaccines, healthcare, and remedy potions! Safeguard Your Soul [23]. Capitalization and punctuation is from the original quote.

These quotes represent the two extreme views concerning the meaning of pharmakeia.

Between The Extremes

A History of Aspirin [24]
Let me give some reasons why the truth may lie between these two extremes. It seems that those who shun the pharmacy won’t even let you take an aspirin, which was derived from willow bark. The anti-pharmacy websites I’ve read never mention whether surgery is acceptable, though probably not since it is medicine or healthcare. And if surgery is OK, how is that done without anesthesia? Recently, I had cataract surgery, where the surgeon anesthetized my eye before cutting it, removing the cloudy lens, and installing an artificial one. I don’t think that I could have managed without the anesthesia. Remember, God put Adam into a deep sleep before taking ribs out of his side to make Eve. And I think we all appreciate modern dentistry, which is made tolerable with the use of pharmaceuticals. How many of us would not be alive today without pharmaceutical intervention? Antibiotics? Antivirals? Anti-venom? Insulin? Bluedart.com [25] lists 254 life saving drugs at their website – I don’t know why, they are a transportation company in India. If one of the anti-medicine advocates was bitten by a snake, would they take the anti-venom?

One claim in the quotes above is that certain drugs could bring one into contact with the spirit world.  A lot of people think a spirit world exists - The Atlantic [26], whether that comes from religious sources, or from a sense that there is more than this physical existence.  For a variety of reasons, some people want to contact that spirit world to have a spiritual experience. They seek knowledge, enlightenment, inner peace, guidance, power, protection, or maybe to influence uncertain events like healing illness - CGI [27].  It becomes a Do-It-Yourself spiritual experience - DIY Salvation [28].  The God of heaven does give certain people visions (I think more people claim to have visions than actually do).  He gives visions for a purpose, and He initiates it.  Typically He chooses people who obey Him (Nebuchadnezzar is an exception).  He does not answer people who seek Him through drugs.  "No one comes to the Father except through me. - John 14:6". Who do you think you're contacting in the spirit world by using entheogenic* drugs? Some use Psychics trying to contact dead relatives, yet the Bible says "the dead know nothing - Eccl 9:5". The dead are not in heaven watching over you, and will remain dead until God resurrects them. Who do you think you're contacting in the spirit world by using Psychics?

Entheogen ("generating the divine within") is a psychoactive substance used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context. Entheogens have been used in a ritualized context, in a number of different cultures, possibly for thousands of years. Examples of substances used by some cultures as entheogens include: peyote, psilocybin and Amanita muscaria (fly agaric) mushrooms, uncured tobacco, cannabis, ayahuasca, Salvia divinorum, and iboga. Wikipedia(Shamanism) [29]

 

Psychedelic drugs were not just discovered in the 20th century, humans have a long history using them. And it is not just the ancient Greeks who sought the spirit world with drugs - Nutty History(Greeks) [30], Nutty History(Vikings) [31], Nutty History(Ancient_Egypt) [32].  Whatever you call them, shamans, witch doctors, medicine men, conjurers, mediums - they practiced their sorcery in many different cultures for millenia, and still do today in many countries - Knowledge Burrow [33], Wikiepedia(Regional_Forms_Shamanism) [34].

Actually, all the spiritualistic “arts” and “crafts” we hear so much about today are nothing more than modern manifestations of very ancient practices -  CGI [27].


Map of shamanism across the world [35]
By Chiswick Chap - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0


Deceives The Whole World 

Dismissing the use of pharmakeia as ridiculous doesn’t seem right. Let’s look at that verse again.

Rev 18:23 … For your merchants were the great ones of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your pharmakeia (sorcery).

Paracelsus
The subject of chapter 18 is the judgment of Babylon. Verse 23 talks of “merchants, great men of the earth”, so commerce, not a government. “Deceives ALL nations”. Merchants that deceive all nations. The father of pharmacology, a man known as Paracelsus (1493-1541), was a Satan worshiper, a recent article on Paracelsus referred to him as “the Alchemist Who Wed Medicine to Magic” - Science History [36]. As noted above, medicine has been wedded to magic for thousands of years. Remember, “In the Bible, pharmakeia carried with it the idea of sorcery, occultism, and black magic”, and in many cultures it still does. It seems disingenuous to say it doesn’t mean that anymore. There appears to be a strong connection between drugs, sorcery, religion, and deceit. The illegal drug trade, patent medicines like Dr. Morse’s Indian Root pills, and Shamanism have deceived many, but haven't deceived all nations, nor are they the great merchants of the earth. It can be argued that Big Pharma has great merchants that have deceived the whole world, however the connection to religion or idolatry is not visible.

 It’s not just religious scholars or a couple fringe websites that have noticed the link between pharmakeia and sorcery.

The content manager of the Bible Gateway, an online search engine for the entire Bible, has revealed users searched for the words "sorceries" and "sorcery" in the Scriptures more than any other term in 2021. CBN News [37]

Merchants of Babylon

Rev 18 is talking about the judgment of Babylon. It could be that sorceries in vs 23 come from Babylon. Merchants are mentioned several times in the chapter, “waxing rich”, “weeping because no one buys their merchandise”, etc. Verses 22 and 23 appear to address Babylon directly.

Rev 18:23 The light of a lamp will never shine in you again, and the voices of a bride and bridegroom will never call out in you again. For your merchants were the great ones of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.”

The commentaries are in good agreement that these verses are talking about Rome - Christianity Beliefs [38].



Conclusion

What can we learn from all this? One small point is the challenge of translation. We all care about what the Bible says, and what it means when it says it. But it isn’t always easy to discern. Do we use a word’s meaning when it was written? Or what the word means today? Scholars wrestle over such things, but that level of scholarship is beyond me. Look at the difficulty in working out the meaning of one word.

 Where do we draw the line between the two extreme interpretations of pharmakeia?


Here are some guidelines to help navigate the gray area in between the two extremes. I copied and edited most of these from a blog called Unpleasant Truths [39].

  • Recognize that the pharmaceutical industry is driven by greed, and the love of money has been promoting drugs that suppress symptoms but do not really cure.
  • In the pursuit of profit, all kinds of businesses perpetrate all kinds of trickeries, deceptions, lies and cheating.
  • Don’t be involved with any medication, treatment or cure that call upon the spiritual world through mediums, chants, amulets, meditation and such. We don't worship angels, and we don't pray to angels.
  • Be careful with medications that are addictive, or cause dependency, like painkillers or sleeping pills.
  • Be on guard against medications that are mind-altering or cause hallucinations.
  • You are in charge of your own health care. Biology is complex, so this is not always easy. Start with prayer – ask for wisdom, guidance, and healing. Starting with prayer is good for most situations in life.
  • Given the caveats above: use medicinal herbs, and give thanks to God; use the medications of the doctors, and give thanks to God.

References

1. https://www.neatorama.com/2021/10/30/The-Poetry-of-Patent-Medicine/
2. https://midcoaststories.com/2020/07/dr-morses-indian-root-pills/
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Morse%27s_Indian_Root_Pills
4. https://books.google.com/books?id=JcbHEK2pnnUC
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_medicine
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hysteria
7. https://englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.com/2015/01/apothecaries-and-medicine-in-victorian.html
8. https://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/science/addiction/addiction2.html
9. https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/medicine/nerves-neuroses
10. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210426005303/en/Global-Antidepressants-Market-Report-2021-COVID-19-Causes-a-Surge-in-Demand-for-Antidepressant-Drugs-as-Mental-Health-Problems-Rise---ResearchAndMarkets.com
11. https://www.drugs.com/condition/depression.html
12. https://www.drugs.com/condition/anxiety.html
13. https://www.drugdiscoverytrends.com/50-of-2020s-best-selling-pharmaceuticals/
14. https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/vaccines-market
15. https://youtu.be/On5RYFbcxWY
16. https://www.dw.com/en/coronavirus-vaccine-did-pfizer-put-profit-first/a-56622056
17. https://biblehub.com/revelation/18-23.htm
18. http://lexiconcordance.com/greek/5331.html
19. https://www.britannica.com/science/history-of-medicine
20.  https://evidenceforchristianity.org/galatians-519-has-the-word-pharmakeia-which-means-the-use-and-administration-of-drugs-why-does-the-niv-translate-it-as-witchcraftr/
21. http://www.ukapologetics.net/pharmakeia.html
22. https://www.calledoutbelievers.org/pharmakeia-and-bio-pharma
23. https://safeguardyoursoul.com/pharmakeia-and-sorcery
24. https://pharmaceutical-journal.com/article/infographics/a-history-of-aspirin
25. https://www.bluedart.com/life-saving-drugs
26. https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/have-you-been-possessed-by-spirits/361680
27. https://www.cgi.org/demon-possesion
28. http://jlfreeman-1.blogspot.com/2016/02/diy-salvation.html
29. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamanism
30. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaXszamT76k
31. https://youtu.be/eg04B02YEkg
32. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAO1nKupGsw
33. https://theknowledgeburrow.com/where-is-shamanism-practiced-today/
34. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_forms_of_shamanism
35. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84552788
36. https://www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/paracelsus-the-alchemist-who-wed-medicine-to-magic.
37. https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2021/december/sorcery-most-popular-search-for-2021-on-bible-gateway-the-answer-is-one-word-and-its-not-witchcraft
38. https://christianitybeliefs.org/revelation-timeline-decoded/revelation-17-the-harlot-roman-catholic-church/
39.  https://unpleasant-truths.blogspot.com/2011/05/unbiblical-christianity-no-doctors-and.html

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