Hello

[LivingNumbers6.626]

Thank you all.

Diablo. Indeed there was (is?) an angel called Michael. He was/is your nemesis, you being Diablo.

Blackout. Most Benedicitnes are Catholic, though some are Anglican. The Benedictines are the most common type of monk. It dates from the early 6th century. It was a time of turmoil and war across Europe, but Benedictine communities stood out as islands of peace and order. They flourished and attracted people from all walks of life. What marks out Benedictine spirituality is the dedication to work and prayer in balance. It's not at all preachy. Monasteries have lay people, like me, associated with them. We are called 'oblates', and we too seek that balance of prayer and work in our lives. Our commitment is to a life of regular prayer in balance with our work.

Bad Wolf - My scientific background is in biomedical research (Ph.D. in pharmacology, followed by 20 years in Pharma R&D). Over time I have moved from the lab to looking at what and how healthcare is delivered (which frequently lags behind the evidence for what is the best healthcare). I now work in academia. I am very happy to let science inform my faith.

You sound like my type of believer.

Letting science inform your faith, that's superb.

I am very interested in how you have found a way to reconcile your scientific background wth your faith? How do you make it work?

I am in no ways as educated or as developed but it took very little biology and physics to make me question everything and assert that god and religion had to offer as a philosophy wasn't necessarily best. So I'm very interested to know how you reconcile things?

For a long while, I had been an apologist for Mormonism and Christianity but eventually met a breaking point.

Second, since you worked in the pharmaceutical industry, I was wondering what you thought of Big Pharma? Is it really as corrupt and ill motivated as many assume it to be?