56TH CONGRESS, LIGA MEDICORUM HOMEOPATHICA INTERNATIONALIS
CASA DE CULTURA A SINDICATELOR
SIBIU, ROMANIA
29 AUGUST - 2 SEPTEMBER 2001

[Include photo of Casa de cultura with the following caption: Casa De Cultura A Sindilatelor, Site of the 56th Congress of LMHI, Sibiu, Romania.]

The ancient city of Sibiu situated in the Transylvania Alps in the center of Romania served as the site of the 56th Congress of the Liga Medicorum Homeopathica Internationalis, 29 August through 2 September 2001. The Liga business meetings were held on Tuesday 28 August (Executive Committee) and Wednesday 29 August (International Council), followed by the Congress.

The Welcoming Festivities on 29 August included a public organ concert in the Evangelical Church and a special mass at the Metropolitan Orthodox Cathedral, the latter a copy of the great Orthodox Cathedral in Istanbul.

The Romanian Homeopathic Society’s choice of Sibiu as the site for the 56th Congress rests with the fact that C. F.Samuel Hahnemann resided there for two years in the palace of the Baron Samuel Brukenthal wherein he served as the Baron’s librarian and physician. It was while living and working in Sibiu that Hahnemann first had the idea to prove Cinchona officinalis upon himself. The LMHI Executive Committee had the privilege of holding its business session within the Brukenthal Palace Museum. The next day, the International Council Meeting was held at the Astra Museum at Dumbrava, an historic compound outside of Sibiu that contains examples of typical Romanian village architecture.

At the Opening Ceremony on Thursday morning 30 August, the participants were welcomed by, among others, Dr. Carmen Maria Sturza, Chair of the Organizing Committee; Dr. Jacques Imberechts, President of the Liga Medicorum Homeopathica Internationalis; Dr. Ton Nicolai, the President of the European Committee on Homeopathy; and Dr. Ioan Teleianu, President of the Romanian Society of Homeopathy. They were charmingly entertained by Toader Buznea of Ramnicu-Valcea who accompanied, with his accordion, his very young son who played many shapes and sizes of flutes. Dressed in authentic costume, they brought the house down with their combined pyrotechnics, playing Romanian folkloric music.

Thursday’s Congress sessions were marked by presentation from three of the especially invited speakers. First speaker, Dr. Gerhard Resch (Austria), taking the title “I Do What I Know But I Know What I Do” discussed the necessity of explaining homeopathy on the basis of the oldest philosophic theory, that of the realists, “that exists,” dating from Socrates through Aristotle to Saint Thomas. His premise was drawn from the work of homeopath Dr. Rudolph Flury (1903-1977) of Switzerland who maintained that the need to understand homeopathy on the philosophical basis was prompted by the fact that two hundred years of practical success in the healing of the sick had not succeeded in convincing the critics and that, by approaching it thusly, one avoids personal opinions and a priori prejudices of its adherents. The paper makes it clear that qualitative-oriented homeopathic medicine practices analogical thinking and the quantitative-oriented allopathic medicine practices dialectic thinking. Dr. Jutta Gnaiger-Rathmanner (Austria) presented a review of her clinical experience with Medorrhinum in children, especially males, suffering from allergies and nervousness (ADHD, etc.). Dr. Michael Barthel (Lichenstein) described the materia medica of Bulbophyllum neilgherreuse, a new polychrest.

On Friday morning, especially invited speakers again made presentations. Dr. Deitmar Payrhuber (Austria) discussed a video case with tumors, following four years of allopathic suppression, from the perspective of Hahnemann’s Organon, Hering’s Law, Flury’s constitution theory, miasmatic theory, and Scholten’s periodic chart. Dr. Friedrich Dellmour (Austria) discussed “The Similia Principle - Its Historical and Scientific Roots.” National Vice President, LMHI, Mexico Dr. Rene Torres read the submitted paper, “The Treasure of Homeopathy,” of the invited speaker, distinguished homeopathic master, Dr. Proceso Sanchez Ortega who, unfortunately, was unable to attend himself.

In addition to other presented papers from homeopathic physicians from around the world, there were a Forum for Dentistry and a Forum for Pharmacy, as well as Satellite Meetings in Dentistry; Pharmacy; Philosophy, Science and Art; and Veterinary. Elsewhere in this issue is a list of the contents of the Proceedings of the 56th Congress of the LMHI. Those interested in obtaining copies of any of the papers should write to their respective country’s National Vice President, LMHI, or Representative.

In addition to the usual coffee breaks, the host Romanian Homeopathic Society offered catered lunch to the participants, daily.

[Include photo of costumed performers with the following caption: Costumed performers at the Romanian Evening, Thursday 30 August 2001.] The social activities included nightly events. Thursday night there was a Romanian Evening held at the Palace Hotel at Dumbrava. A costumed troop played and sang Romanian music, while a troop of young men and women danced several Romanian folk dances, changing their costumes between their several performances. The participants enjoyed a buffet during the entertainment, followed by music and dancing. Friday night there was a dedication of a Hahnemann Monument, the singing of a hymn dedicated to Hahnemann and a concert to his memory. Later, the evening was capped with a Gypsy Evening at the Astra Museum at Dumbrava. The Congress Banquet and Dance were held on Saturday night at the Sibiu History Museum at which, again, there was a buffet, costumed Romanian entertainment, and music and dancing. Sunday concluded with prizes presented to the late Dr. Prakash Vakil (India) and to Dr. Irina Spandonide. The penultimate event was the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate Hahnemann at the Pharmacy Museum at the Small Square up in the historic heart of the town of Sibiu.

Dr. Carmen Maria Sturza and her colleagues are to be congratulated for the successful mounting of this 56th Congress of the Liga Medicorum Homeopathica Internationalis.