{"id":10967,"date":"2024-04-23T12:54:24","date_gmt":"2024-04-23T17:54:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jenniferfitz\/?p=10967"},"modified":"2024-07-23T12:57:23","modified_gmt":"2024-07-23T17:57:23","slug":"how-are-ownership-and-stewardship-different","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jenniferfitz\/2024\/04\/how-are-ownership-and-stewardship-different\/","title":{"rendered":"How are Ownership and Stewardship Different?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
It\u2019s no surprise that I didn\u2019t agree with everything in Rachel Gross\u2019s article \u201cWomen in Menopause are Getting Short Shrift\u201d at\u00a0The Atlantic<\/em> <\/a>. As a woman of a certain age I was naturally curious how I might be getting shortchanged (I can give you a list of my own), and even after realizing the article was about how transgender hormone and surgical interventions provided insight into gynecology, I was open to the reality that one can gain wisdom in the most unlikely spheres.<\/p>\n
Obviously as a Catholic I hold in common with many feminists, conservatives,\u00a0 scientists, and ordinary people that one cannot and should not attempt to change one\u2019s sex.\u00a0 Also as a Catholic I firmly believe that medicine can and should be used to provide relief from distressing symptoms and harmful disorders.\u00a0 Given the extreme sacredness of the sexual act between husband and wife, of course<\/em> a good physician will want to help men and women whose health problems are hindering that faculty.<\/p>\n
I do think caution is warranted in prescribing hormone replacement to menopausal women. Though I would rather not be experiencing the drop off in muscle strength that plagues older men and women, I am concerned that toying with hormones might sabotage other aspects of geriatric health. I suspect that for most older patients, the many remarkably effective nutrition and fitness (including prescribed physical therapy) interventions are the better route, and that hormonal treatments are best reserved for situations where a clear medical disorder is present, above and beyond the ordinary annoyances of normal aging.<\/p>\n
[Update:<\/strong> For an alternate opinion, here\u2019s an interview with Dr. Mary Claire Haver, making the argument in favor of hormone replacement therapy after menopause<\/a>. She makes some strong arguments that deserve serious consideration. Now continuing with the original essay . . .]<\/span><\/p>\n
In those cases, though, I\u2019m thrilled to see that medicine is advancing past a reductionist dichotomy of \u201cmale\u201d and \u201cfemale\u201d hormones, and instead looking at balancing human<\/em> hormones in accordance with each sex\u2019s distinctive physical needs.<\/p>\n
I say all that as a preface to our topic today, which underlies the linked article: How does the Christian reality of stewardship<\/em> differ from an\u00a0ownership<\/em>-based philosophy of caring for our bodies \u2014 or anything else?<\/p>\n