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Physicians Believe: Christmas Survey reveals Doctors Believe in God, Miracles, like most

NEW YORK, December 22, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A U.S. recent survey revealed that most doctors believe in God and in miracles, just like most Americans. The survey of 1,100 physicians conducted over the past weekend revealed that 74 percent believe miracles have occurred in the past and 73 percent believe they can occur today.

The poll also indicated that American physicians are surprisingly religious, with 72 percent indicating they believe that religion provides a reliable and necessary guide to life.

Those surveyed represented physicians from Christian (Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox Christian and other), Jewish (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform and secular) Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist religious traditions.

"The picture that emerges is one where doctors, although presumably more highly educated than their average patient, are not necessarily more secular or radically different in religious outlook than the public," said Dr. Alan Mittleman, Director of The Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies at The Jewish Theological Seminary. The Finkelstein Institute conducted the research in conjunction with HCD Research.

In addition, the findings indicated that 58 percent of doctors attend worship services at least one time per month, and that 46 percent believe that prayer is very important in their own lives.

"Often, religious conviction, especially a belief in the miraculous, declines as level of education increases," the scientists explained. "This does not appear to hold true for physicians. Perhaps because of their frequent involvement with matters of life and death, physicians show significant openness to religion."

More than half of physicians, 55 percent, believe that medical practice should be guided by religious teaching, the survey also indicated, while a majority of doctors (55 percent) also said that they have seen treatment results in their patients that they would consider miraculous.

Most physicians -- 51 percent -- said they pray for their patients as a group. Even more, 59 percent, pray for individual patients, while 67 percent said they encouraged their patients to pray.

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