Effects of Short–Term Medical Mission Trips to Chiapas, Mexico, on the Religiosity of the Missionaries

This study evaluates the effects that short-term, foreign, Catholic medical mission trips had on the religiosity of the United States-based participants. The subjects of this study participated in Catholic medical missions to Chiapas State, Mexico, in 2014 and 2015. Twenty-two of forty-two participants responded to a survey to assess for any changes in their religiosity and associated attitudes and behaviors. The results revealed that participation in the medical mission was associated with a significant increase in non-organizational religious activity, intrinsic religiosity, concern for health disparities and the burden of illness in the developing world, the promotion of further missions, the provision of service and/or monetary aid to the poor in the missionary's local community, and an increased likelihood to discuss the Christian faith in conversations with others. There was no statistically significant association with organizational religious activity or local participation in evangelization activities. Summary This article reports on the changes seen in the religious attitudes and charitable works performed following participation in a short-term medical mission. After serving on a mission trip to Mexico, we found that United States-based missionaries had an increase in their private religious activities, felt closer to God, were more likely to help the poor in their own neighborhoods, and were more likely to discuss their Christian faith than prior to the mission trip. We discuss possible reasons for these changes. </jats:sec

The ethics of delayed senescence: a critique of proposed methods of increasing human longevity

Scientific researchers and philosophers recently have proposed the exploration of new methods to delay or potentially forestall indefinitely the aging process. At a recent meeting in Cambridge, England, theoretical strategies were proposed that, according to these researchers, could lead to human immortality. In this article the author briefly discusses the prevalent theories of biological aging and reviews the different proposed medical approaches to delay or eliminate aging. He then evaluates the anti-senescence procedures from a Catholic medical-ethical perspective