In 2012 my first wife was dying of cancer, and I tried every treatment I could find. So I was looking for doctors and alternative healers.

When I told an oncologist about my desperate approach, he told me that every attempt on saving a life is valid.

I once went for a thoroughly recommended healing nun, using natural herbal medicines to treat and cure cancer.

She prescribed an iron and fiber rich vegetable-based juice, but under one condition: my wife should abandon all traditional treatments. The nun said she didn’t want her treatment results attributed to doctors’ medicines.

Thence I had no doubt: I stuck to the traditional doctors and left her behind.

Why?

That oncologist was concerned about my wife’s health, at any cost. For him, the patient’s wealth mattered. So I knew I could rely on him.

The healing nun was more worried about her own reputation. It’s called vanity, pride. She wasn’t giving a shit to my wife’s life.

Being honest, I still made use of other alternative treatments for my first wife’s welfare, and every single one counted.

The moral lesson is: religion doesn’t grant ethic, skepticism doesn’t mean indifference. Good is a subjective construction.

Also in Medium.