Doctor of the Heart

I have been reading Doctor of the Heart by Isadore Rosenfeld. Dr. Rosenfeld appears weekly on Fox New Network’s “Sunday Housecall” and answers questions on a wide variety of medical topics with clarity and humor.

When I first heard Dr. Rosenfeld, I detected what I thought was a slight Canadian accent. I was right. Although his parents emigrated from Europe, they settled in Montreal, where the widely acclaimed cardiologist grew up and studied medicine at McGill University. His career has spanned six decades in which he has treated famous celebrities as well as non-celebrities and traveled internationally. He has received numerous awards and is an attending physician and the Ida and Rossi Distinguished Professor of Clinical Medicine at the New York Presbyterian/Weil Cornell Medical Center.

In spite of Dr. Rosenfeld’s professional stature, I learned from his book that we have a few things in common. His parents were from Europe (Russia). My parents, too, were from Europe (Scotland), and so was I. He grew up poor in Canada, and so did I. As an adult, he moved to the United States, and so did I. He occasionally visited relatives in Terre Haute, Indiana. I served as a pastor there before moving to Colorado. His father died of a heart attack in Canada, and so did mine. He has written books, and so have I, although I am sure the sales numbers are far from similar.

Dr. Rosenfeld is an acclaimed doctor of the heart; I am not. However, in my writing and preaching I try to minister to the heart. Just as a strong, healthy heart is essential to good physical health, so a healthy spiritual heart is essential to a joyful life that honors God and blesses others. Of course, even the most gifted doctor of the heart cannot do what Jesus, the Great Physician, can do—give people a new heart and eternal life.

Aren’t you glad you know Jesus, the preeminent “Doctor of the Heart”?