So, I've been studying microbiology this month...learning all about the little unseen life that cause infections and disease in our bodies. And am starting a class in Infection Prevention...to learn about all the reasons and ways to protect ourselves and our clients from passing on infections to each other...everything from the common cold to HIV. I have never considered myself a germ-o-phobic, nor even slightly obsessive about germs and I'm generally pretty healthy. And so it did not occur to me until last night at church how this more intimate knowledge of the presence and livelihoods of little microbes might affect my lifestyle and choices. When everyone was welcome at the end of the service to break bread and dip it in the cup, one of after the other, all I could think about were people's hands all over the bread we were expected to eat...I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it, but for the prayer requests earlier for healing from the illnesses that seem to be going 'round and 'round the community including some of those present and participating. Maybe the Holy Eucharist is somehow veiled from the germs of the hands that touch it...but, I could not bring myself to partake.
http://www.health24.com/medical/Condition_centres/777-792-811-1701,16576.asp
4 comments:
i think about it all the time too...then i get really hungry after church and eat the leftover loaf...go figure.
jamie
Are you gonna start to carry a little pump of hand sani? I do that in Ecuador and get a little obsessive.
yuck, I never thought about that in particular. HC will never be the same.
hahahaha! i think about that too... sometimes i won't touch whatever it is i'm worried about; other times i'll just say to myself, "listen self, you've been putting your hands on lord knows what for years and you're still alive and kickin' so whatever is can't really be that bad. it's good to build up your immune system!" and then i will go ahead and touch whatever it is... i like to think of myself as a tough no-nonsense broad when i'm in those moods
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