João de Deus (medium)

João Teixeira de Faria (born June 24 1942), known also as João de Deus ("John of God"), is a medium and so-called "psychic surgeon" in Brazil. He is based in Abadiânia, a small town in the state of Goiás, southwest of Brasília.

Biography

Early life

João de Deus was born João Teixeira de Faria in Cachoeira da Fumaça, Goiás (now Cachoeira de Goiás [http://biblioteca.ibge.gov.br/visualizacao/dtbs/goias/cachoeiradegoias.pdf] ). Not much is known about João's early life. There are no records save those in the memories of his associates, and they differ widely. Even João himself is a poor source of precise details.cite news | url=http://www.nexusmagazine.com/articles/miracle.man.html | title=The Amazing Cures of a Brazilian Miracle Man | publisher=Nexus magazine | date=February - March 1998 | first=Robert | last=Pellegrino-Estrich | accessdate = 2006-11-18] His most widely known biography is "The Miracle Man", written by, Robert Pellegrino-Estrich, who runs tours to Abadiânia and cannot be considered an unbiased source.cite news | url=http://www.johnofgodhealing.com | title=Assistance | publisher=www.johnofgodhealng.com | date=October 5, 2008 | first=Gary| last=Walker | accessdate = 2008-10-05]

João has no medical training and describes himself as a "simple farmer."cite news | url=http://www.beliefnet.com/story/116/story_11635_1.html | title=John of God: Investigating a Brazilian faith healer | publisher=Beliefnet.com | year=2006 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2006-11-18] João completed only two years of education and spent many years travelling from village to village in the states of Goias and Minas Gerais healing people and administering the local herbs to whomever turned up wherever he stopped.

The Casa

Eventually, João claims, he was told by his spirit guides that he must expand his work to reach more people, so he left the protected life at the army base. The late Chico Xavier, who was João's friend and one of Brazil's most celebrated healers, told him he should go to the small Goiás town of Abadiânia to fulfill his healing mission. Around 1978, when João first performed his healing work there, he just sat outdoors in a chair near the main road where people soon began to arrive seeking cures for their various illnesses and conditions. Gradually the numbers increased to thousands a day and slowly he developed his centre, Casa de Dom Inácio de Loyola. [http://www.johnofgodhealing.com/casa.htm]

Faith Healings

What is alleged

João and 30 of his "spirit doctors" claim to heal "cancers, AIDS, blindness, asthma, drug addiction, alcohol abuse, tumors, physical problems of any kind, debilitating psychological problems and/or spiritual desperation."cite news | url=http://www.johnofgodhealing.com/john_of_god.htm | title=Information on the Healing Powers of John of God | publisher=www.johnofgodhealing.com | year= 2006 | first=Gary | last=Walker | accessdate = 2006-11-18] He attracts thousands to the Casa de Dom Inacio, where many undergo what is claimed to be a "psychic operation." Many travel through an organized tour run in connection with João's group.cite news | url=http://www.johnofgodhealing.com/john_of_god_application.htm | title=Application Form Instructions | publisher=www.johnofgodhealing.com | year= 2006 | first=Gary | last=Walker | accessdate = 2006-11-18] Every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday hundreds of people line up outside to pass before the medium, who prescribes a course of treatment or offers advice and answers to questions. The courses of treatment may include a prescription of pills or, in some cases, surgery.

When called for a surgical operation by João, patients are offered the choice of visible or invisible operations. If they select an invisible operation (or are younger than 18 or older than 45) they are directed to sit in a room in the Casa and meditate. João enters the room and pronounces "In the name of Jesus Christ you are all cured. Let what needs to be done be done in the name of God." Surgeries are performed on a surrogate patient when the actual patient is unable to make the trip.

When João performs consultations and surgeries, he says that he is in a state of sleep, trance and that he doesn't remember what has happened. The volunteers, staff and patients claim that while he is "in entity" he is taken over by the spirits of deceased famous doctors, psychiatrists and philosophers. According to sources from partisan websites, celebrities, politicians, doctors and others have come for healing at the Casa de Dom Inácio.

On July 14, 2005 the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) ran a news report about João on Primetime live.cite news | url=http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Primetime/story?id=939529&page=1 | title=Is John of God a Healer or a Charlatan | publisher=ABC News | date=July 14, 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2006-11-18] Dismissed as an infomercial by skeptics, it has also been criticised by believers.cite news | url=http://www.randi.org/jr/021805a.html#1 | title=The ABC-TV Infomercial for John of God | publisher=James Randi Educational Foundation | date=February 18, 2005 | first=James | last=Randi | accessdate = 2006-11-18] The programme featured five people with various medical conditions, including chronic fatigue syndrome, Lou Gehrig's disease and an inoperable brain tumor. Each patient saw João and ABC claimed that in three of the cases there had been an improvement. Skeptics claim that any improvements are the result of natural spontaneous remission, a placebo effect, possibly caused by conventional medicine, or wishful thinking on the part of the patient. James Randi, in particular, criticises ABC for not approaching the situation in a more scientific way.

ABC's update on the five people involved lacks detail: cite news | url=http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Primetime/story?id=939529&page=4 | title=Is John of God a Healer or a Charlatan (Update) | publisher=ABC News | date=July 14, 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2006-11-18] one is not mentioned, two are making either slow progress or none at all, one is worse, and one is much better. According to other sources, Matthew Ireland is now free of his brain tumorcite news | url=http://www.menshealth.com/cda/article.do?site=MensHealth&channel=health&category=other.diseases.ailments&conitem=25b7808f3eb34110VgnVCM10000013281eac____&page=6 | title=Matthew's recovery | publisher=Men's Health (magazine)] and Annabel has much improved. cite web | url=http://steakandmustard.s5.com/ | title=Mission (Not!) Impossible]

James Randi is convinced that João is a fraud of the worst kind, making money from other people's suffering. He argues that no scientific evidence exists to back up claims of healing and that João performs sleight of hand and carnival tricks to convince people that they have been healed. He also claims that João makes money from selling herbal remedies, 'merchandise' and donations.

João tells people not to stop taking their medicine and says not everyone he serves will be cured.

Followers insist that João will take no money, but a concoction of herbs is always prescribed. Persons unable to pay can see the casa staff who will make special arrangements for them. cite web | url=http://www.johnofgod.com/casaguide.pdf | title=Why must I pay for supplements?|format=PDF] Herbs prescribed by the entity cost 10 Brazilian Reais per container. The usual prescription is 1-5 bottles. cite web | url=http://www.friendsofthecasa.org/Prices2003.htm | title=Casa Prices] .

References

External links

Main

* [http://www.friendsofthecasa.org/ Friends of the Casa]
* [http://www.unfoldingjourney.com/ John of God]
* [http://www.healingbrazil.com/ Abadiânia, home of João de Deus]
* [http://www.johnofgod.com/guide.htm João de Deus]
* [http://johnofgod.spiritualdoctors.nl John of god & the spiritual doctors]

Criticism

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*cite news | url=http://www.randi.org/jr/022505thank.html#1 | title=Thank You All (victim of John of God) | publisher=James Randi Educational Foundation | date=February 25, 2005 | first=James | last=Randi | accessdate =
*cite news | url=http://skepdic.com/johnofgod.html | title=Skeptic Dictionary: João de Deus | publisher=The Skeptic's Dictionary | date=November 5, 2006 | first= | last= | accessdate =
*cite news | url=http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/psychic%20surgery.html | title=An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and oaxes of the Occult and Supernatural: Psychic surgery | publisher=St. Martin's Press | year= 2006 | first=James | last=Randi | accessdate =
*cite news | url=http://www.beliefnet.com/story/116/story_11635_1.html | title=John of God: Investigating a Brazilian faith healer | publisher=Beliefnet.com | year=2006 | first= | last= | accessdate =
*cite news | url=http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0104-42302000000300002&script=sci_arttext | title=Revista da Associação Médica Brasileira | publisher=Rev. Assoc. Med. Bras. | date=July/Sept. 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate = (Concludes there is no medical effect.)
*cite news | url=http://www.rotten.com/library/hoaxes/psychic-surgery/ | title=Psychic surgery | publisher=Rotten.com | year= 2006 | first= | last= | accessdate =
*cite news | url=http://www.bccancer.bc.ca/PPI/UnconventionalTherapies/PsychicSurgery.htm | title=Unconventional therapies--Psychic surgery | publisher=British Columbia Cancer Agency | date= February 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate = ("strongly urges individuals who are ill not to seek treatment by psychic surgeon")

Media

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* [http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/thepress/westcoast/3973690a11.html]