An investigation into the phenomena and practices of spiritual ...

made to integrate the white people into the church or even to integrate into the widersociety, such as through conferences held by the local borough to encourage faith groups tobe more integrated. White persons would have to take on the roles of members of the blackcommunity to be truly integrated into a wholly black church. This could happen, however,as one white person was observed who attended services regularly and was allocated amentor who was a church member and also the wife of the pastor.Promoting (delivering) health is therefore dependent on all aspects of human nature andhuman societies. The holistic notion of health is often overlooked by western societies astechnology and electronic gadgets replace face-to-face contact that is so necessary in aholistic approach. Is it any wonder that people from ethnic minority cultures findthemselves visiting spiritual healers, going to church on a regular basis and rejecting themedicine that behaviour the doctor prescribes? Is it any wonder the alternative approachesto health care have been on the increase in the past 20 years?4.12 Understanding Attitudes to Health and Folk Medicine in the URC andCOGICThe person seeking healing in a folk medical system may choose to do so because theapproach is less formal, and the healer is more willing to take a spiritual approach andaddress spiritual needs. In the case of Afro-Caribbean Christians the healer understands thecultural context, uses the same language, has the same world view and uses the sametechnical terminologies. It is reassuring when a healer prays a prayer that the recipient hasprayed many times before, especially if the healer and the recipient are unfamiliar with144