The Soldier's of Charity
Nearly one thousand years of history makes the original religious Order of St. John, one of the oldest charitable organizations in the world today. Our symbol, the Maltese Cross, originated with the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem, who became known as the Knights Hospitallers because of their care of the sick and poor. These knights of centuries past were united by a pledge of compassion and courage.
This Sovereign Medical Order was established to return to the world the Hospital Missions originally started by this Order. What could only be termed natural medicine, the Knights had only indigenous methods of treatment, yet were responsible for the development some of our most time honored methods of sanitation, surgery, nursing care and hygiene. At this time when the world’s poor face a crisis of primary medical care, the Knights of this Order are returning natural care as a reformation of rural medical practices. What could today be termed drugless therapies, the doctors of this Order specialize and practice time honored uses of bedside diagnosis, nursing, use of botanical and mineral medicines, as well as physical diagnosis and therapies in order to benefit the poor and needy.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE ORDER
I. To establish, equip, staff and maintain humanitarian relief and medical treatment centers and hospitals.
II. To promote and participate in all phases of education of physicians, therapists, nursing staff, paramedical and nutritional care personnel.
III. To riase funds for all these humanitarian, organizational, and medical needs.
IV. To promote peace and prosperity, by diplomacy, cooperation and consensus; and not by confrontation.
V. To promote fellowship among Knights and Dames of the Order.
Through much observation and contemplation, we have concluded that the present condition of our world is entirely due to man's ignorance pertaining to his own True Nature. We have recognize a specific set of virtues whose essence have remained unchanged throughout the ages. We believe that adhering to these principles is a most effective and expedient tool to deliver medical care which will inevitably lead to a better world than as we know it today.
What does being a Knight Hospitaller mean in today's Third Millennium?
It means dedicating oneself to easing suffering and to bringing the relief of Christian charity to the sick, anywhere in the world, not only in hospitals but also in private and rural clinics, hospices, and nursing homes in the shantytowns of destitute populations. The Order does not only dedicate itself to the sick, but to the socially isolated, the victims of persecution and the refugees of any race and religious faith. According to the Constitutional Charter, members of the Order are required to maintain exemplary Christian behaviour in their private and public life, contributing to the maintenance of the Order's traditions.
The Alma-Ata Declaration
The existing gross inequality in the health status of the people particularly between developed and developing countries as well as within countries is politically, socially and economically unacceptable and is, therefore, of common concern to all countries.
Click here to read the Declaration
At Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, in 1978, the UN International Conference on Primary Health Care declared that health care is not just another commodity. "The wealth of a nation does not determine the health of its people," as today is testament. Good health is not a gift to be rationed based on ability to pay. Quality, affordable health care for all people is a matter of basic fairness. Health care should be a fundamental right of every man, woman and child. At Alma-Ata, the meetings of officials from around the world urged governments of the world to guarantee this right by the year 2000. Today, it is an admitted failure.
Breakthroughs in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries are bringing remarkable new discoveries from the laboratory to the bedside of mostly the rich.
It is estimated that out of 100 children born, 30 will suffer from malnutrition in the first five years of life; 19 will not have access to safe drinking water and 40 will lack adequate sanitation; 17 will never go to school. 11 million children each year-30,000 a day-die before reaching their 5th birthday.
As we look ahead to the future of global health care, the nations of the world have a solemn obligation to live up to the declaration made at Alma-Ata. Millions of lives are at stake. Decent health care is a fundamental right of all people, everywhere, and this new century of the life sciences gives us all a unique opportunity to advance that long-sought goal. Until doctors of medicine realize that primary care is not achieved by medications and mere vaccines, but first choice by hygiene, dietary reform, natural remedies and education of our patients, any other attempt will only be band aids to fundamental problems.
