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Herbal Medicine Making: Calendula Lotion

By on April 23, 2013 5 Comments

One of my daughters has eczema that manifests itself as very dry hands. In treating eczema, it is best to work internally, however, this lotion provides great relief to the symptomatic dry skin.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup oils (I used a calendula, chamomile, and lavender infused olive oil, but you could use any oils you like. Another blend I have used and liked is not quite 1/2 cup olive oil, not quite 1/4 cup sweet almond oil, and enough jojoba oil to make up a total 3/4 cup of oil.)
  • 1/2 ounce beeswax
  • 1/3 cup calendula hydrosol
  • 1/3 cup chamomile hydrosol
  • 1/3 cup distilled water
  • 5 dropperfuls calendula tincture, optional
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable glycerin
  • 1 teaspoon vitamin E

Directions

1. Heat oils and beeswax in a double boiler on the stove until beeswax is melted. I use a pyrex measuring cup in a pot of water.

2. While waiting for beeswax to melt, mix hydrosols, water, tincture, glycerin, and vitamin E in the blender.

3. While liquids are blending, slowly pour warmed oils and beeswax into the blender.

4. Continue blending until all liquid is blended into the cream. You may need to stop and scrap down the sides before continuing to blend.

5. Place cream in clean jars or tubs.

Disclosure: I purchase most of my herbal supplies from Mountain Rose Herbs. It would bless my family greatly if you use my affiliate link below when purchasing from them.

Mountain Rose Herbs. A herbs, health and harmony c

Filed Under: Handmade, Natural Health Tagged With:

Herbal Medicine Making: Onion Poultice

By on February 2, 2013 2 Comments

Our gang has been sick the last couple of weeks, so I have been able to practice many different medicine making skills on them. My son has been coughing with lots of chest congestion. I decided to try using an onion poultice on him to loosen up the mucous in his lungs, causing his coughing to become more productive.

Making an onion poultice is very simple and you probably have the ingredients in your kitchen right now. All you need is a few onions and some type of oil to cook them in.

Let’s get started!

Slice up several onions and saute them in a bit of cooking oil. I used olive oil, but another good oil would be coconut oil. Cook the onions until they are translucent and limp. You don’t want them to get mushy or caramelized. Just somewhat clear and tender.

Next, cover the persons chest with a clean flannel or cotton cloth. We used an old white t-shirt. Let the onions cool slightly before putting them on the chest. You want them as warm as the person can handle, but you don’t want them to burn.

Cover the onions with plastic wrap, then place a blanket or towel over the person. Let the onions sit on the chest until they cool completely.

I ended up replacing the onions 3-4 times. Once we were finished with the onion poultice, I had him take a steamy shower to further loosen the mucous and help him cough it up.

Mountain Rose Herbs. A herbs, health and harmony c

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Herbal Medicine Making

By on February 1, 2013 Leave a Comment

I am working to finish up a module in my herbal course that teaches medicine making. I have been making herbal medicine for years, but now it is time to do it “by the book”. Last month I finished reading The Herbal Medicine Maker’s Handbook by James Green. This book really is a must read for anyone who is serious about learning to make herbal medicine.

Besides teaching you the basics of making all kinds of herbal medicines, Green also goes over which kinds of medicines are appropriate for which herbs based on that herbs constituents. For example, slippery elm is very mucilaginous and does not extract well in alcohol based medicines. It’s properties are better suited for an infusion (herbal tea).

He also covers both the folk method of medicine making (what I have been using) and the weight-to-volume method (a more precise method, especially for obtaining exact dosages). Honestly, the more precise methods are a little more difficult for me as I tend to be a little artistic in everything I do. Recipes, instructions, and patterns all stifle my creativity! However, I know not everyone loves my experiments as much as I do, so I sometimes need to conform.

Over the next few weeks, I wanted to walk through each of my medicine making endeavors. I am not by any means a professional, but am having so much fun learning. It is amazing to me how wonderfully the Lord has provided for His children with the plants of the field!

Some of the medicines I will be covering over the next few weeks include:

  • tinctures
  • glycerites
  • lotions
  • poultices
  • syrups
  • infusions/decoctions
  • herbal steams
  • and much more!

If you have not already subscribed to my blog, you may want to do that now so that you don’t miss all the fun!

Mountain Rose Herbs. A herbs, health and harmony c

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Herbalism from Pagan Roots?

By on December 20, 2012 1 Comment

I have been doing some research lately on the subject of Christians and herbalism. I am always amazed at the logic (or lack thereof) being used to discredit the use of herbs and suggest that Christians should have no part in their use. I came across one article on the Christian Medical Fellowship website from the UK. I want to address one specific point that was made on the website. Maybe I will get to the rest at some point, but for now I figured one topic at a time would be more than enough!

What are its {herbalism’s} roots?

History of the origins and present practices of the many varieties of herbal medicine indicate that they are rooted in and still associated with non-Christian belief systems.

After I read this article and the above quote, I just felt so unsettled. I started to pray to the Lord and ask for answers and wisdom in dealing with comments and beliefs that say herbalism comes from pagan roots.

The Lord answered my prayers in the form of an “unrelated” book. I had recently received a book in the mail for review, called The Genious of Ancient Man: Evolution’s Nightmare. I book has sat on my shelf for a few weeks now, and I just haven’t had time to read through it. This week however, I was determined to get to it.

From the title, the premise of the book is that God created man perfect, including his intellect. From the very beginning of time, mankind has possessed many creative and intellectual abilities that far surpass even the most learned in our own time.

An important concept related to this intelligence, is the fact that it was there before man was dispersed at the Tower of Babel. We know this because the same abilities are seen all over the world in all different cultures. For instance, several cultures around the world have succeeded in building towers and structures that boggle the minds of present day scholars. These cultures didn’t have Google to look up “how to build a ziggurat” and there were no YouTube videos to teach “construction methods of ancient pyramids.” This was information that was passed down to the cultures from their ancestors…their common ancestors.

It was also at the Tower of Babel that Satan showed his desire to counterfeit the things of the Lord. One of the first counterfeits was the tower itself. But there have been many, many more counterfeits over time. The book names several of the counterfeits, including man-made mountains (towers), astrology (counterfeiting God’s original purpose for the stars), human sacrifice (God made the ultimate human sacrifice with His perfect son, as a redemption for sinful man), and rainbows (very interesting discussion on Satan’s attempts to pervert the rainbow)–and several others!

It was after reading the above quotes that it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Herbalism is not ROOTED in paganism.

Herbalism is PERVERTED in paganism.

God blessed His creation with food for nutrition and plants for medicine. I suspect that the knowledge of herbalism was one of the things that was dispersed throughout the world at the Tower of Babel. That would explain why so many cultures have advanced systems of plant medicines that are so similar (Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic from India, Native American Shamans). And I believe that it was also during this time when men’s hearts were seeking to worship the created rather than the creator, that they began to use the gifts that God had given them as part of their spiritualism and idol worship.

Herbalism is yet another area of our lives that Satan has counterfeited through paganism, which has caused the Christians to miss out on a blessing meant for us!

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The Herbal Medicine Cabinet

By on November 14, 2012 2 Comments

With winter approaching and me feeling a little more settled at home, I decided to tackle a not-so-typical job this week.  It was time to clean out the herb pantry and start planning my upcoming medicine making.

The Herb Cabinet

The first thing I did was go through everything and take inventory.  I wanted to see what herbs I had on hand and which ones I needed to purchase.  Then I begin to organize everything.

On my bottom shelf, I store all my bags of loose bulk herbs.  These are herbs that I buy in larger quantities and use more frequently.  For instance, my pregnancy tea herbs, boo boo salve herbs, and my triple threat cold and flu fighter herbs are all on this shelf.  Next, I have a shelf full of canning jars.  I use these to store herbs that I use in small quantities, or ones that only have a little left.  I peeled off the labels from the bags the herbs came in and adhered them to the jars so that I could easily tell what was in them.  I also keep some of my storebought teas on this shelf.  I like to buy the Traditional Medicinals teas.  Even though I make glycerites with essentially the same ingredients the teas, it is sometimes more comforting to drink a cup of tea when you are sick so I keep both on hand.  On the top shelf, I keep my supplies.  These include different oils, glycerine, witch hazel, beeswax…all kinds of goodies.  I use these for both my medicine making and my skincare products.

As I organized the herbs in my cabinet, I made not of anything I was out of.  This time it looks like I need to order more bentonite clay.  I check the herbs to make sure that they still have a strong, fresh smell.  Any of the herbs that look faded, have faint, musty smells, or that just don’t seem fresh get tossed out.  Because I am making medicine for my family, I want to make sure that the herbs I will use are of the best quality.

{FYI: Just learned this week that smelling and tasting herbs to determine their freshness has a big scientific name…organoleptic evaluation…makes sense.  We are evaluating with our organs!}

Bottles, Bottles, and More Bottles

In my bathroom, I keep my tinctures, glycerites, and any other supplements I might have.  I went ahead and pulled all of these out to see what I might be running low on.  I organized everything by type of medicine so that I could more easily remember what might be missing.  I really should keep a master list, I just haven’t gotten that organized yet!

So my groups include:

1) essential oils – I only use these topically as they can be very taxing on the body if taken internally.  The main ones I like to keep on hand are tea tree oil (which I need to buy) and lavender eo.  I also use rosemary in my lipbalm, and several others in my soaps, but as for medicine tea tree oil and lavender are my go to’s.

2) tinctures – I haven’t used tinctures a whole lot, just because I use glycerites to treat the kids.  However, as I am learning more about medicine making, I am going to step out this winter and make some tinctures.  And since I will be strutting down the liquor aisle, I am also going to try my hand at vanilla extract!  Can’t wait!

3) supplements – These are various things I have accumulated over the course of time for various illnesses.  The only supplements I keep regularly are garlic capsules, acidophilus, and prenatals.  I recently bought some burdock root to help with the eczema on my daughter’s hands and cranberry capsules for a uti.  I try not to clutter up my cabinets with too many bottles of miscellaneous pills.

4) glycerites – These are really the staple of my medicines.  I usually either make these myself, or buy them from Trilight Herbs.  The ones I regularly buy are the White Willow, Sinus Minus, and Scout Out.  The reason I buy these is because I want to make sure they are 1) strong enough and 2) in the case of Sinus Minus and Scout Out, they have a more complicated formula than I am comfortable making at this point.  Some of the ones that I make myself are echinacea & thyme, cherry bark cough syrup, elderberry syrup, tummy relief, and the triple threat I mentioned above.  All of these have only a few simple ingredients and are easy to make.

The Final Count

After organizing and putting everything back in it’s place, I have devised a plan to build up my medicinal herb cabinet.

Need to Order:

Trilight Herbs (thankfully they are on sale right now for 15% off)

  • white willow
  • sinus minus
  • scout out

Lucky Vitamin

  • garlic capsules
  • acidophilus
  • tea tree essential oil
  • st. john’s wort oil

Mountain Rose Herbs

  • bentonite clay
  • glycerine

Need to Make:

  • cherry bark cough syrup
  • elderberry syrup
  • triple threat
  • tummy relief

And I don’t want to forget, vanilla extract. Not necessarily a medicinal herb, but I want to make it while I am making all the rest!

My friend Keri Mae at A Happy Home is sharing her favorite “must have” herbs. So please stop by and say hi to her. I am anxious to see what she working on so I can get a few ideas myself (I always get ideas when I visit her site!).

What about you? Do you have an herbal medicine cabinet? What are your must haves in your cabinet?

Linked up at The Homestead Barn Hop

Filed Under: Natural Health

How to Make Dirt Toothpowder

By on October 24, 2012 9 Comments

Sometimes I wonder how much is too much to share about myself on my blog.  This is one of those times. I will know you truly love me if you stick around after you find out I brush my teeth with dirt toothpowder (as my children affectionately call it)!

Over the years, as I have studied natural health and herbalism, I have realized–
1) how many everyday items I was using are not that healthy (even ones bought from “health” stores) and
2) how dependent our family was on these manufactured products.

In an effort to choose the healthiest options available, I have also been blessed to find that in the case of toothpaste, the healthiest option is also the cheapest.

One thing I want to add before sharing how I make our dirt toothpowder, is something I didn’t quite understand when I began my herbal/natural health studies. When I decided that yes, I could make my family’s toothpowder, I set out to find the right recipe. As if there had to be a right way and all the rest were wrong. As if getting it wrong meant that my children’s teeth would all rot and fall out.

This is the beauty of learning to make your own toothpowder (or any health care product for that matter). You are able to decide what to use, use what you have on hand, or customize what you are going to use based on your needs. God has generously provided man with herbs and natural substances that can do more than one job. In the case of salt, it can season our food, give us vital minerals, be used as a cleanser, and the list goes on.

But what if we don’t have access to the ingredient we need. Guess what, God has also provided herbs and natural substances that can be substituted for one another.

With all that said, there are many, many toothpowder recipes out there. This is just one that I have put together for our family. I been using it for about 6 months now and have been very pleased with it. My teeth have a much cleaner feel to them. I have one tooth that has lost a filling (I know, I need to have it taken care of but haven’t decided what to do about it–still researching). Before, when I was using regular store-bought toothpaste, the tooth was very sensitive and often caused me pain. Now that I am using the toothpowder, I don’t have any pain from it. My kids have also made the adjustment nicely. In fact, they often offer their input and I will sometimes make adjustments based on their inputs.

Dirt Toothpowder Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Bentonite Clay
1/4 cup Sea Salt
1/4 cup Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon Sage Leaf
1 Tablespoon Peppermint Leaf
40 drops Peppermint Essential Oil

Grind sage and peppermint leaf in a coffee grinder until powdered.

Mix all ingredients in a zip lock bag or bowl. I like mixing in a bag because I can use a rolling pin to break up any lumps.

I use emptied baby food jars to give each their own little jar of dirt toothpowder. This batch made almost three jars of powder.

When you get ready to brush your teeth, just wet your toothbrush and lightly tap toothpowder with the bristles. Brush as regular.

Filed Under: Natural Health

Schoolhouse Review: Beeyoutiful Skincare

By on October 8, 2012 Leave a Comment

A few years ago, I said goodbye to pricey facial cleansers and started making my own.  I wash my face with my handmade soap.  I then spray on a simple toner and apply a moisturizing cream I make from beneficial oils.  My skin has greatly improved, both in clearity and softness.

I usually only wear make-up if we are going somewhere special (church, appointments, activities) which ends up being once or twice a week.  I use a brand name mineral foundation, along with eye shadow, blush, and mascara.  I have been pleased with them to a degree, but had always hoped I would find something more “natural”.

Last month I found it.

The Review

I had heard of Beeyoutiful before, but I thought they only sold vitamins and herbal supplements. I didn’t realize they also sell skin care and natural make-up. I was excited to see what they had to offer.

As part of the Homeschool Review Crew, I was given the chance to review Beeyoutiful’s mineral foundation, two mineral eye/lip colors, the foundation brush, and the combo brush. The set came in a sweet organza bag along with a DVD explaining how to apply the make-up. Because I have worn mineral foundation for years, I didn’t think I needed to watch the videos. I was wrong. I needed to watch the videos. I’ll explain why in a bit.

The Products

We were given a trial size (1/5) of the foundation…generally enough to last several weeks. As I said before, I don’t wear make-up very often, so for me even the trial size last a long time. Before the review, I was given a choice of three sample packets of foundation to help me choose the correct color. Samples are available for $1.00. I would suggest buying a few of them to try before deciding on a color. It really helps to see the foundation on your skin before deciding. There are 24 shades available to choose from. Unfortunately my namesake shade was too dark for me and I had to go with Genevieve. (I love that the shades have names! Great marketing technique…so much better than light beige 102!)

I received one trial size mineral eye/lip color and one sample size of mineral eye/lip color. For the trial size I chose Sea Sand (a somewhat sandy color with a purple tint) and for the sample I chose Heather Dew. Because these colors can be used for both eyes and lips, we were instructed to pick out colors that could be used for both.

The foundation brush we received was a full, lush, stubby little brush that did an excellent job of blending in the foundation. The combo brush is an all purpose brush with different brushes on each end. One end has more rounded bristles. I used this end for my eye shadow and lip applications. The other end has shorter bristles in a row. This was great for creating an eye-liner effect with the eye shadow.

This mineral make-up is very different than others on the market. I noticed right away that the foundation is a very fine powder. After some investigation, I found that it is made of mica, iron oxides, titanium dioxide, ultramarine blue, and zinc oxide. There are no fillers added to the foundation.

I did a little more research to find out what these ingredients were and if they were good for my skin. Here is what I found out from the Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary…

mica – earth mineral that gives a shimmer to make-up
iron oxide – iron compound used as a coloring
ultramarine blue – inorganic pigment
zinc oxide – anti-irritant, earth mineral used as a thickener, lubricant, and sunscreen
titanium dioxide – earth mineral used as a thickener, lubricant, and sunscreen (There was conflicting information on titanium dioxide. One sources said that the micro particles could enter the skin and were not good. However, the Cosmetic Cop seems to explain why this would not happen…

Titanium dioxide is typically micronized and coated for use in cosmetic products. The micronizing makes this somewhat heavy-feeling ingredient easier to spread on skin, not to mention making it more cosmetically elegant. Micronized titanium dioxide is also has much greater stability and can provide better sun protection than non-micronized titanium dioxide. Micronized titanium dioxide does not penetrate skin so there is no need to be concerned about it getting into your body (well, unless you eat the stuff). Even when titanium dioxide nanoparticles are used, the coatings employed have a larger molecular size that keeps the nanoparticles of titanium dioxide from penetrating beyond the uppermost layers of skin.

All ingredients received a rating of a smiley face or a check and a smiley face. I take it these are good ratings.

The Application

before

Here is why I needed to watch the video and why you probably do to…

Instead of just dipping the brush into the powder and puffing it all over your face, there is a bit of a technique to applying the foundation. First I washed my face and applied my toner. Then I tapped out a bit of the foundation into the lid. I added in a dollop of moisturizer and mixed it all together. If the shade is not dark enough, add in a little more foundation.

mixing foundation and moisturizer

Once the foundation is mixed, swirl the foundation brush into the foundation picking up as much as possible.

foundation loaded onto brush

Buff the foundation all over the face. Notice that there are no foundation lines at my jawline. The foundation goes on ultra smooth and has a very natural finish.

Next, I used my Heather Dew sample on my eyes, with the Sea Sand as an eye liner. I dipped the rounded end of my combo brush into a bit of water, then into the minerals. It took several applications to achieve the level of color I wanted. For the eye liner, I just used the other end of the brush.

For the lips, I used the same rounded brush. But this time I ran it across my peppermint lip balm several times, then picked up the minerals. This is great because I love the feel of my lip balm, but it has some color added to it!

The final me (excuse the red nose, I have a terrible cold)…

The Price

Mineral Foundation – $25.00 for 2.58g
Eye/Lip Minerals – $10.00 for .45g
Samples – $1.00
Foundation Brush – $11.00
Combo Brush – $6.50

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To see what my fellow crewmates had to say about Beeyoutiful Skincare, click the banner here:

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Disclaimer: As part of the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received the product or service mentioned above for the purpose of a review. All opinions are my own. For more information, please read my disclosure.

Filed Under: Natural Health, Reviews Tagged With: ,

Boo Boo Salve Recipe

By on October 4, 2012 1 Comment

~Note~ I wrote most of this post last August when my mom was staying with us for the summer. I am not sure why I never got around to posting it, but as I was organizing my blog post I came across it. It brought back sweet memories of times spent with my mom. She loved Ikey so much and would keep him with her throughout the day as she went about her work.

Oh the joys of living in South Texas!  My 2 year old was out in the yard helping my mom feed the animals when he stepped in a fire ant bed.  For those of you not familiar with the little creatures, they are tiny red ants that sting like, well, FIRE.  When you disturb their nest, hundreds of them pour out looking for the culprit.  Within a few seconds, Ikey’s crocs were filled with fire ants.

He came in crying with bites all over his feet.  I washed them off and slathered on the Boo Boo Salve, then put on a thick pair of socks.  Within half an hour the whelps were gone, and no blisters had formed.

I love my Boo Boo Salve.  We use it for all kinds of “boo boos”…cuts, scraps, burns, diaper rash, eczema, even thrush.  I usually make up a large amount and refill a tin container any time we run low.  I don’t have a set recipe, but rather just general directions in making it.

Boo Boo Salve

Dried Comfrey, Plantain, St. John’s Wort, and Calendula
Olive Oil
Beeswax
Tea Tree Essential Oil
Lavender Essential Oil

I use equal parts by weight of Comfrey, Plantain, St. John’s Wort and Calendula.  I place the herbs in a jar and cover the herbs plus 1 inch over in olive oil.  I put the jar in a cool, dark place and let set for 4-6 weeks.  It does take a while to steep in the oil, but when it is done you have a dark rich oil.

Using cheesecloth, strain the herbs from the oil.  Place the oil in the top of a double boiler and heat on low.  Begin adding beeswax and letting it melt.  I continue adding beeswax until the salve hardens on the back of a spoon when cooled.  At this point, I add in a generous amount of tea tree essential oil and lavender essential oil.  I pour into a jar and allow to cool.  I use this jar to refill my small tin container that I keep handy in the bathroom.

If you are looking for quality herbs and oils, I buy from Mountain Rose Herbs. I have always been pleased with the service and they have a large selection of products.

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Should Christians Use Herbs? (part 3)

By on March 30, 2012 10 Comments

If you are just starting this series, you may want to read part 1 and part 2 first.

When choosing a method of health care, whether it is allopathic or naturopathic, Christians must weigh each decision in light of the Scriptures. I believe there are four important questions we can ask ourselves as we determine whether or not to use herbal medicine as a means of health care for our families.

Does it contradict the Word of God, His commandments or statutes?

When I am trying to discern whether or not something is permissible before God, I first look for direct commandments dealing with the subject. In the case of using herbs as medicines, I first found instances in the Bible where the Lord lets us know what is not permissible.

Practices Not Permissible

  • practices involving ingesting blood

As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication. Acts 21:25

Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh.
Deuteronomy 12:23

There is a practice that is being promoted in the “natural community” of having women ingest the placenta after giving birth. Several benefits are cited as a reason for doing so. I won’t cover this topic in depth here, but I do want to state my position on this practice.

Jeremiah tells us that “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”. As humans with a sin nature, we will always be able to come up with reasons why we should disobey the Word of God. There may be benefits to ingesting the placenta, but we are commanded to abstain from ingesting blood. We must be obedient to the Word of God.

  • occult practices

There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Deuteronomy 18:10-12

Because the use of herbs has been incorporated into many occult practice, we must distinguish between the evil practices accompanying the herbs and the use of the herbs themselves. Remember, the herbs themselves possess no power in themselves to heal, they are merely substances that encourage the body to do what it was designed to do more efficiently. Just as food gives nutrients to promote growth, herbs can both provide nutrients needed or solicit actions within the body.

  • practices dishonoring the sanctity of life

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
Jeremiah 1:5

Even before conception, the Lord knows us and loves us. Every life is precious to the Lord. Every. Single. One. We must strive against the culture of death in this world, to make sure that we are doing everything possible in our being to protect life, even potential life.

As a woman of childbearing age, I must take every precaution to ensure I am not harming a baby in my womb. This means not taking certain herbs, which may have abortifacient properties, even when I am not pregnant. Even natural substances can be harmful to babies in the womb, so we must be very, very careful in this regard.

Does it work with our bodies in a way that compliments how our bodies are created? Is it restorative?

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20

There is a difference between helping to restore our bodies and forcing our bodies to work in ways that they were not designed for. For example, let’s say I am a married lady who has not been able to conceive after several years of marriage. I have discovered that my hormones are imbalanced and have decided to take herbal supplements to help balance my hormones in the hopes of getting pregnant. I am working to help restore my body and it’s functions.

On the other hand, there are several herbs that can be used to avoid pregnancy. These herbs cause the body to not do what it was created to do — procreate.

Are we practicing herbalism in a way that is abusive or detrimental to our bodies?

All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.
1 Corinthians 10:23

As I read this verse, I looked up the word expedient in the Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary. Expedient is to be suitable for the purpose, proper under the circumstance. And the word edify can mean to literally “build up”. When applied to the question of herbalism, we can ask ourselves, “do the herbs I am using build up my body and are they proper under the circumstances?”

Several years ago I was attending the birth of a friend. After the birth, the midwife gave my friend a tincture made from cannibas sativa (common name marijuana) to ease her afterbirth pains and slow her bleeding. I had just started to learn about herbal medicine and I was shocked that the midwife would use this (it is legal to do so in CA).

I think this is a good application of this verse. It may be lawful to use certain herbs, but may not be proper. As a Christian, I must make sure that I am not being a stumbling block to others. Although cannibas sativa has many medicinal properties, it is often abused and it’s use is illegal in most states. I don’t feel comfortable using it as a medicine for myself or my family.

Does herbalism bring glory to the Creator?

Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31

In all things, and in all types of medicine, we should aim to bring glory to God. Whether we are choosing a type of healthcare, a type of herb to use, or a condition to treat — we must ask ourselves “Does this bring glory to God?”

Filed Under: Natural Health Tagged With: ,

Should Christians Use Herbs? (part 2)

By on January 19, 2012 3 Comments

In my first post on this topic, I discussed what is considered an herb and where all true healing comes. Remember, the herbs themselves possess no power in themselves to heal.  They are merely substances that encourage the body to do what it was designed to do more efficiently.

In this article, I will cover herbs in the Bible.

Herbs in the Bible

A couple of years ago, my children and I read a book entitled Galen and the Gateway to Medicine by Jeanne Bendick. Galen was a Greek physician employed by the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, continuing in service through the Emperor Septimius Severus. Galen was born into a wealthy family, thus allowing him to study at the Temple of Aesculapius and later travel to Corinth, then to Alexandria to further his studies. What is fascinating about Galen is that his ideas and medical practices were largely unchallenged for more than a thousand years. In fact, his ideas concerning the balance of the four humors (from his study of Hippocrates) led to the popular practice of blood letting, which unfortunately led to the death of George Washington just 200 years ago.

Another interesting fact about Galen is that he lived only a few short years after the time Christ lived on the earth. There was another physician living during this time period, perhaps better known to Christians. This was the beloved physician, Luke (Colossians 4:14), author of the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. We don’t have record of Luke’s medical practices. However, we know that as a physician in the first century, the only “medicine” available to Luke would have been herbal medicines. Part of the duties of a physician at this time were compounding herbal medicines for their patients.

As I began my herbal studies, I wanted to know what the Bible had to say about this topic. One thing that was impressed upon my heart as I read the Word, was that Christians as a whole, have distance themselves so far from God’s original designs that they often don’t recognize them as part of His blessings to us. This can be seen in many areas of our lives. For instance, until the last 100 years or so, no one questioned whether or not they would breastfeed their child. If you wanted your child to live, you nursed them. The only other option was finding another nursing mother who would nurse the baby for you if you couldn’t. So you see, there was never a question in these women’s minds debating which was best — breast milk or formula. They knew that the Lord has marvelously created their bodies to provide for their young.

The same can be said for their healing practices. The Bible speaks in several places of medicines.

Pro 17:22 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

Jer 30:13 There is none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.

But what were these medicines? What was it that was used as medicine?

In Luke 10:34, we see the good Samaritan binding up wounds with oil and wine. The wine would have provided antiseptic properties, while the oil would have served as a healing salve. In several places we see that the people used balms, ointments, and plasters as medicines (Jerimiah 8:22, 46:11, 51:8; Isaiah 1:6, 38:21). Perhaps the most telling verses are in Ezekiel and Revelations where we see the Lord providing leaves for medicine.

Eze 47:12 And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.

Rev 22:2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

I have tried to compile a list of specific herbs listed or named in the Bible. This is a work-in-progress, as I am sure there are many I have missed.

aloes Num 24:6, Psa 45:8, Pro 7:17, Son 4:14, Joh 19:39
anise Mat 23:23
balm Gen 37:25, 43:11, Jer 8:22, 46:11, 51:8, Eze 27:17
bay tree Psa 37:35
calamus Exo 30:23
cassia Exo 30:24
cinnamon Exo 30:23, Pro 7:17, Son 4:14, Rev 18:13
coriander seed Exo 16:31, Num 11:7
cummin Isa 28:25, 28:27, Mat 23:23
fitches (fennel) Isa 28:25, 28:27
frankincense Mat 2:11
garlic Num 11:5
hyssop Psa 51:7
juniper 1Ki 19:4-5, Job 30:4, Psa 120:4
mint Mat 23:23, Luk 11:42
mustard 13:31
myrrh Pro 7:17
rose Luk 11:42
rue Luk 11:42
saffron
spikenard Jn 12:3
wormwood (hemlock) Jer 23:15

Next in the series…What is permissible before God?

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