title: [Patron saints and Christian perception of health and illness].
abstract: As a religion based on the teaching of Jesus Christ, from the outset Christianity has developed a completely different attitude toward health and illness than the Old Testament. Health and illness are now viewed through the eyes of Jesus Christ the redeemer, who accepted each and every man. The history of Christianity has had its episodes of masochistic attitude toward illness, but today it clearly underscores the need to fight it with any means available, but it also teaches to accept what can not be changed. Saints are often patrons against diseases they had to endure. However, this is not their main role. To this day many seem to miss the main point their heritage, but see them as miracle healers. This misperception of miracle needs revising as well as the simplistic interpretation of the healing powers of relics (viewed as a demiurge of sort) and of the private vows and votive offerings.
authors.affiliation: University of Zagreb, Rijeka, Croatia. speharmilan@gmail.com
authors.forename: Milan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spehar
mesh_terms: D001294:Attitude to Health; D002410:Catholicism; D002835:Christianity; D006801:Humans; D012068:Religion and Medicine; D018597:Saints