The American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA) Retreat at Big Bear, June, 2002
The American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA) sponsors retreats and conferences for brain tumor patients. My wife Carole (who has a grade II/III astrocytoma) and I recently attended the "We will survive" conference at Big Bear, California in June, 2002. These are some of my observations regarding some of the spiritual dynamics of the conference.
Obviously, the title "We will survive" is somewhat misleading, since none of us expect to live forever (on earth). There was the usual information on new surgical techniques, anti-seizure and anti-inflammatory medications, and treatment options. However, many of the sessions were designed to help patients cope with the effects and implications of having a brain tumor.
The last morning session was a talk on meditation. Whereas all the previous sessions had been fully attended, most of the conference attendees opted out of this session. I stayed because I wanted to hear what the speaker had to say. The message was a combination of New Age and Eastern religious practices. The 25-30% of participants remaining were very much into the message and techniques. There was no mention of God or prayer. In fact, none of the sessions talked about what should have been an obvious source of comfort, strength and even healing. However, I noticed that there were often groups of Christians praying together throughout the retreat.
In talking to the participants at the retreat, we discovered that over 70% were Christians. The interesting thing was that they had been Christians before they had developed their brain tumor. Why would God allow His people to develop these debilitating and often fatal disease? Most people had indicated that their affliction had cause them to become closer with God. Carole shared that her tumor had opened up witnessing opportunities that never existed before. God promises that all things (even brain tumors) work for good for those who love Him.
One got a sense at the retreat that the "abnormal" ones were now the norm and that it was okay to be forgetful or unsteady. People were free to joke about their problems, something that they would not do under normal circumstances. However, the sessions about family dynamics were quite upsetting. We learned that up to 70% of marriages affected by brain tumors end in divorce within two years (I could find no confirmation of those figures, but others reported 20% divorce rates within the first year). I couldn't believe it! How could spouses abandon their mates when they need them the most? Whatever happened to "in sickness and health" and "until death do us part?" It seems that marriage vows are kept when things are going well and discarded when it becomes inconvenient. No wonder families in the USA are falling apart so readily.
My overall impression of the retreat was that virtually everyone there had a spiritual need. Those who had not found the true source of comfort and peace, Jesus Christ, had substituted a cheap imitation. However, no amount of meditation can cause one to be adopted as a child of God and attain eternal life. Pray for those who have serious illnesses and their families.
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