Doctor

A Doctor is a title given to a person upon successful completion of a post-graduate doctoral degree-granting program at an accredited university.

## Contents

* 1 Examples of Doctorates
* 2 History of Doctorate
* 3 Atheist medical doctors
* 4 See also
* 5 References

## Examples of Doctorates[edit]

* Doctor of Medicine (MD) - The most common usage, earned after 4 years of medical school.
* Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) - The most advanced degree that a university offers. It can be awarded in just about any field of study, usually earned after defending a thesis in a field where 4 or more years of research were applied.

## History of Doctorate[edit]

In the nineteenth century, first in Germany and later in other nations in Europe and in the United States, the degree of "Doctor of Philosophy" (Latin "Philosophiae Doctoris", thus Ph.D.) was established as the final result of an program of advanced study, culminating in a dissertation or formal (not always published) work. Though originally awarded only in Philosophy, the Ph.D. is now also awarded in numerous fields of the Humanities and Sciences.

In the early days of the University movement, the title "Doctor" (Latin for "Teacher") was only honorary, and typically awarded for some achievement of note in the outside world, such as when Samuel Johnson was awarded a Doctorate in Letters (L.L.D.) by Oxford for his work on his Dictionary.

Honorary Doctorates are still awarded, but are not considered the equivalent of "earned" doctorates obtained through study and original research.

People who have earned their doctorate are entitled to use the honorific "Doctor".

Many law schools have renamed their Bachelor of Laws degree to a J.D., but their graduates are not called doctors.

## Atheist medical doctors[edit]

See also: Atheist doctors and Atheism and medicine and Irreligion and recovery from illnesses

The Christian apologist Gary Habermas wrote: "Double-blind prayer experiments: where people pray for others with terminal illness. Habermas admitted that most such experiments have not worked, but the three that he knows of that have indeed worked were cases of orthodox-Christians praying for the sick."[1] See also: Studies on prayer

CBS News reported: "According to a mail-in survey of nearly 4,000 British doctors, those who were atheist or agnostic were almost twice as willing to take actions designed to hasten the end of life."[2]

MSNBC reported concerning United States doctors: "In the survey of 1,044 doctors nationwide, 76 percent said they believe in God, 59 percent said they believe in some sort of afterlife, and 55 percent said their religious beliefs influence how they practice medicine.[3]

The atheist and American medical doctor David Mann, MD wrote about telling his patient he was an atheist while the patient's doctor prayed before a surgery:

“  |  It was not a good time to bring up the fact that I was an atheist. So I just went along with it, only briefly and mildly discomforted. Religion gives strength and comfort to people in life and death situations that doctors often deal with. I rationalized that my silent participation was helping my patient and the family psychologically. Besides, how would they feel about my performing complicated heart procedures on their loved one if they thought I was an unbelieving heathen incapable of accepting God’s guiding hand?

It’s uncomfortable to be an atheist and a doctor, just as it uncomfortable in America to be an atheist in general...[4]

|  ”

|
|

See also: Distrust of atheists and Views on atheists

The Christian apologist Gary Habermas wrote: "Double-blind prayer experiments: where people pray for others with terminal illness. Habermas admitted that most such experiments have not worked, but the three that he knows of that have indeed worked were cases of orthodox-Christians praying for the sick."[5]

See also: Studies on prayer and Atheism and the supernatural

According to the American Cancer Society:

“  |  According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 69% of cancer patients say they pray for their health. A recent study published in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, suggests a link between religious or spiritual beliefs and better physical health reported among patients with cancer.[6] |  ”

|
|

See also: Atheism and cancer

## See also[edit]

* Association of American Physicians and Surgeons
* American Medical Association

## References[edit]

1. ↑ Christian Apologist: 10 Reasons for the Fall of Atheism by Gary Habermas
2. ↑ https://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20014770-10391704.html
3. ↑ Survey: Most doctors believe in God, afterlife
4. ↑ Atheist doctors must come out of the closet by David Mann, MD
5. ↑ Christian Apologist: 10 Reasons for the Fall of Atheism by Gary Habermas
6. ↑ Study: Cancer Patients with Strong Religious or Spiritual Beliefs Report Better Health, American Cancer Society