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Miracle Healing
Can people be healed through faith and prayer? In the mid-1800's, a fourteen year-old French girl named Bernadette Soubirous allegedly saw an apparition of the beautiful Virgin Mary. According to the story of Lourdes, the Virgin appeared to Bernadette several times. Apparently, when others were present, only Bernadette seemed to be able to see her and hear her voice.  One day, the Lady told the young girl to drink from a fountain that suddenly, inexplicably appeared there.  Pilgrims journey to the famous Lourdes grotto in the Pyrenees region of France to drink from the fountain and thus try to obtain healing. According to the Roman Catholic Church, the first miracle cure occurred there in 1858 and there have been more than 60 Church-documented miracle healings since. It has been claimed that Bernadette's body did not deteriorate after her death as bodies normally do. Bernadette was canonized as a saint. (The incorruptible body of St. Bernadette)     Native American shamans (sometimes also called medicine men) were consulted when illness struck tribe members and evidently knew what herbs and plants could be used to treat various disorders. Some shamans used sand paintings for healing purposes. The shaman was the tribe's spiritual adviser. One becomes a shaman either by genetic inheritance or by being chosen for the position by the god/gods or by obtaining training. In some Native American cultures, medicine societies are exclusive groups of people believed to have supernatural healing (and other) powers.  
Paracelsus, born Phillipus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim in Switzerland in 1493, was a physician and alchemist and sorcerer. Paracelsus (the moniker means "above Celsius") supposedly thought that physiologic pathology was caused by changes in the weather, toxins in foods, and defective genes. Some people of his era were supposedly convinced that he had paranormal healing talents. Legend has it that Paracelsus evoked healing in some cases when traditional wisdom could not.   In the 1700's, Franz Friedrich Anton Mesmer (1734-1815) and his medical methods apparently were the rage in some circles. He coined the term "animal magnetism". Animal magnetism was purported to be a life energy that could be transmitted from one person to another. Mesmer evidently used hypnosis, laying on of the hands, and magnets to treat patients whose disorders didn't resolve under the then current orthodox medical treatments.  The term "mesmerizing" derives from his surname. Those who believed in mesmerism thought that his methods of hypnosis and the use of magnets influenced physiologic functions. Mesmer was investigated by Benjamin Franklin. The French Queen, Marie Antoinette, was allegedly an advocate of Mesmer's therapies. Some detractors in Mesmer's time considered him to be a charlatan, a medical quack. Edgar Cayce (born in
Kentucky in 1877; died in 1945) is probably one of the better-known
psychic healers who lived in relatively recent times. According to the
legend that surrounds Cayce, he was able to place himself in a trance-like
state and then could diagnose and offer treatment suggestions to the sick
and injured. According to books written about him, Cayce had absolutely no medical education or training. Edgar Cayce was reportedly astonished by his own statements while in his trance state regarding the validity of reincarnation because he personally did not (at least he did not claim to) espouse the belief that there we are reborn again and again. For more information about Edgar Cayce, visit the website of the Association For Research and Enlightenment. 
 The Siberian "moujik" or staretz Grigory Yefimovich Novykh aka Rasputin ("Rasputin" means "dissolute") has been credited by some with paranormally alleviating the symptoms and suffering of hemophilia in the young Alexis Romanov, heir to the Russian throne. Rasputin is also credited with the downfall of the Russian Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Alexandra, and of contributing to the demise of the Russian monarchy altogether. Rasputin was said to have extraordinarily hypnotic eyes and a mesmerizing power over people. It has also been claimed that Rasputin was a rough, uneducated peasant who did not bathe regularly and was allegedly peculiarly amoral for a mystic. It has been suggested that Rasputin was able to halt young Alexis's bleeding episodes by using some form of hypnosis and suggestion. Rasputin apparently also predicted his own death (or the strong possibility of it) at the hands of Russian nobles (according to accounts, the assassins were Prince Felix Yussupov and his companions). He may also have perceived the future ousting of, and subsequent murder of, the Russian royal family. Rasputin allegedly said that if he died at the hands of boyars, the Tsar and the Empress would survive, but if he died at the hands of nobles, they and their children would be murdered, too. According to some accounts, Rasputin allegedly repeatedly warned Empress Alexandra that she must aquiesce to his choices regarding political decisions and appointments or suffer the consequences: the deaths of her family and herself.(Rasputin; Tsar Nicholas and Empress Alexandra) Some claim that Rasputin was sent to infiltrate the Tsar's palace by the Bolsheviks (Lenin, Sverdlov et al). Various accounts seem to indicate that those present who observed Tsarevich Alexei's response to Rasputin believed fully that Rasputin was somehow able to alleviate the child's suffering, and that for that reason, and the apparent inability of court physicians to help her son, Empress Alexandra depended desperately upon Rasputin for her son's health and life. Oral Roberts Aimee Semple McPherson Kathryn Kuhlmann Finnbar Nolan Djuna Davitashvili Ruth Carter Stapleton Marjoe Gortner Father Ralph D'Orio Russian healer Djuna Davitashvili was reknown throughout Russia for her paranormal healing abilities and was allegedly a medical consultant to former Soviet General Secretary, Leonid Brezhnev (1906-1982). In Ireland, Finnbar Nolan was regarded as a genuine faith-healer by many. It has been claimed that he was born the seventh son of a seventh son. Legend holds that a child so born will be extraordinarily psychic and have unusual powers. Kathryn Kuhlman purportedly produced faith healings on her television program. Oral Roberts, Jim and Tammy Faye Baker and Pat Robertson have also have faith healing specials on television. President Jimmy Carter's sister, Ruth Carter Stapleton, was reportedly a faith healer.  Roman Catholic Capuchin
monk Padre Pio is
purported to have facilitated miracle cures and to have demonstrated other
extraordinary talents such as bilocation (appearing in two places at the
same time) and the ability to prophecy. He allegedly bore the
stigmata (the wounds of Christ) for about fifty years. Padre Pio died
in 1968. In the late 1800's, Therese Neumann allegedly began exhibiting the stigmata (the wounds of Christ) on her hands and feet and tears containing blood seemed to emanate from her eyes. The stigmata appeared every Friday. Therese was thoroughly studied at the Belgian Academy of Medicine. Apparently, no obvious source for the stigmata (such as Therese injuring herself) could be found.  
St. Therese of Lisieux was born Therese Martin in France in 1873. She died at the age of 23 from tuberculosis. Before she died, Sister Therese held a bouquet of roses and blessed each petal. Then she apparently asked her caregivers to make sure that the petals were collected and saved. According to the story, Therese told her caregivers that: "One day they (the rose petals) will give comfort to other people". In 1910, a man named Ferdinand Aubry, who had been diagnosed with gangrene of the tongue, lay hovering near death. One of the sisters taking care of Aubry allegedly managed to get one of the rose petals Therese had blessed and she instructed Aubry to swallow it. Allegedly, the next day the gangrene was gone and Aubry fully recovered. Sister Therese Martin was canonized in 1925. Brazilian Jose de Freitas, also known as "Arigo", (born: 1918; died: in a car accident in 1971) allegedly performed successful surgeries with the help of a disembodied German physician named Dr. Aldophus Fritz. According to Arigo, Doctor Fritz died in the early 1900's. Arigo apparently operated without the use of sterile techniques or any form of anesthetic, yet it has been claimed that his patients did not feel pain during or after the procedures and did not acquire infections. Others claim that his patients did indeed feel pain and that Arigo was a fraud. Arigo evidently spoke German words and phrases, such as the German word "schenk" meaning "give", when he was operating under the guidance of the discarnate Dr. Fritz. Arigo allegedly treated hundreds of patients per day. See photo of Arigo with Dr. Andrija Puharich. Dr. Andrija Puharich was a parapsychologist who apparently believed that Arigo's and Uri Geller's seemingly paranormal abilities were genuine. Arigo was sued by the Brazilian Medical Association and the Catholic Church for practicing medicine without a license and for witchcraft. A Brazilian obstetrician/gynecologist named Edson de Quieroz allegedly claims that "Dr. Fritz" is now his spirit guide. The Philippines is reknown for its "miracle surgeons". One of the most well-known was Tony Apgoa. Films of Apgoa show what appears to be his hands delving into the flesh of patients (no scapel used). When a British group investigated Apgoa's psychic surgeries, they managed to take some of the tumors he claimed to have removed from patients. The tumor tissues were analyzed in a lab and allegedly identified as cow and pig tissues. Tony Apgoa apparently died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Some people believe that there is no sleight-of-hand involved and that these "psychic surgeons" are genuinely healing the ill and the injured. What do you believe? Have people been healed by faith healings? Can people be healed by psychic surgeons?  Quackwatch.org About Jose Arigo (NSAC) About Jose Arigo (University of Minnesota) Marjoe Gortner The Pentacostal Child Preacher Some Thoughts About Faith Healing (Stephen Barrett, M.D.) Untreated diabetes kills girl Complementary and Alternative Therapies For Cancer Patients (UCSD) Totempole by Ominix Images of Catholic Saints Magical Sign of Health from Descubretumagia Angel from Celus Art Hypnotism photo by The Ultimate Image Archive Native American Healer from Nocturnal Child Native American from Maybe-Sane PSP Tube from Kate's Tubes Avalon Tree PSP Tubes from Kate's Avalon Tree and Graphics Galore Shaman photo from Stock Xchng * The webmasters of this site DO NOT claim endorsement of this site or of the information contained herein by any of the authors, researchers or organizations listed within this site |