The term wholeness has often been misunderstood. Many people consider being healthy to mean the same as wholeness. However, this is not entirely true. Wholeness is a state of completeness that requires good health as one of its components. However, to attain the complete state of wholeness, several factors have to be put under consideration. The factors that make up wholeness comprise of the social, physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects (Van der Merwe, 2016). However, these other concepts are frequently ignored since many people consider the proper functioning of the body health-wise, is enough to be categorized as wholeness.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) the term health can be defined as the degree of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living organism’s body, which is often determined by one being free from injury, pain or any form of illness. On the other hand, wholeness is the level of efficiency that a person has in terms of physical, emotional, health, social and spiritual facets (Van der Merwe, 2016).
For a long time, the health sector has based its practices on providing health services without taking into consideration other factors that can affect the appropriate functioning of a person’s body. As a result, numerous researchers have come up with studies that try to change the notions of health and healing which have been for a long time presented as a segment of a large change of paradigms. Due to these changes, there have been subsequent transformations in culture (Ajima & Ubana 2018).
Van der Merwe (2016) argues that the modern scientific medicine has been grounded on theory and practice. By doing so, there are many other important aspects that have been left out. The authors, Ajima & Ubana (2018) claim that the limitations of using the mechanistic approach in health are the major causes of the many health care crisis that are being witnessed in the contemporary healthcare system. When treating a disease, it is imperative that the healthcare sector incorporate other departments such as the spiritual department, emotional department and fitness department.
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The spiritual department is imperative in ensuring that wholeness is attained because among many religions, health is understood as the ultimate design of God for humanity. This is a proof that religion is also concerned about health. Therefore, there is a possibility that neglecting spiritual aspect in the health process can slow the process. In defining the term wholeness from the biblical perspective, particularly from Genesis chapter verse 31, God created human kind and stated that “it was supremely good.” In John chapter 10 verse 10, it is written that Jesus came to the world so that the human race can live life to the fullest (Ajima & Ubana 2018). From these descriptions, it is clear that health should not be examined only on the basis of diseases but rather completeness which includes other factors.
Therefore, hospitals ought to have counsellors who will ensure that patients are not only cured of the diseases they are facing but also get cure for their emotional, social and spiritual factors. Gym instructors can also be included in the health and healing process to ensure that patients and the society in general maintain body fitness. After taking this class and learning about health and wholeness, I have realized that there are numerous things that affect the proper functioning of the body other than diseases. I feel that most people have neglected the spiritual and social aspects in their efforts to attain good health and wholeness.
References
Ajima, O. G., & Ubana, E. U. (2018). The Concept of Health and Wholeness in Traditional African Religion and Social Medicine.
Van der Merwe, R. (2016). Broken wholeness: A critical analysis of Henri JM Nouwen’s spirituality of vulnerability and its possible value for the current discourse on health and wholeness. Stellenbosch Theological Journal, 2(2), 589-606.
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