A QUESTIONNAIRE STUDY OF EXPERIENTIAL REACTIONS TO BRAZILIAN HEALER

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Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 
CIA-RDP96-00792R000700340004-0
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RIFPUB
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U
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3
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November 4, 2016
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April 4, 2000
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4
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Publication Date: 
July 1, 1990
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OPEN
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Journal of the Society for Psvch cf'ItpPe! rr!-d For Release 2000/08/11: CIA-RDP96-00792R000700340004-0 [Vol. 56, No. 82Culy 19901 A Questionnaire Study ofExperiental Reactions t u Ii Y OF EXPE RI EN'I'1AL REACTIONS TO Aier upper limbs when he felt tremors. He realized that a minor earthquake was in BRAZILIAN HEALER oved toward him for support. Macedo )rogress, and the young woman >mbraced the stranger and claims that he felt a sudden `surge of energy' as well is a strong conviction that he could heal her paralysis. When the earthquake tremors subsided, the woman realized that she had used her arms for the first time in many years. Because the stranger's paralysis did not return, she by STANLEY KRIPPNER ABSTRACT Ten people who visited a mental healer durin ave Brother Macedo the credit. d' and l d lf `h h g g a stu e ea erse y tour of Brazil completed proclaimed questionnaires shortly after their healing session as well as 6 and 12 monthsPater. From the time of the experience, Macedo has devoted himself to `spiritual The questionnaires were designed to elicit some of the attitudes and experiential healing', using a curative power he purportedly generates through prayer. reactions of these individuals. A statistical analysis of the responses determined two Macedo uses the word `telergy' to describe his work. In a typical healing session, s significant correlations. The reported determination to change one's behavior for he will ask people to close their eyes and will hold his hands a short distance from the sake of one's health was positively related to perceived positive change in and transfer the `telergy'. ubjects' spiritual viewpoint. Reported changes in subjects' perceived increase in their body. He will then pray in an attempt to generate an Christ. energy and vitality' following the healing sessions were positively related to His prayers are directed to Jesus changes in subjects' mental attitudes. These correlations as well as several others Brother Macedo's reputation has grown to the extent that he has been visited had been reported in an earlier study in which the same questionnaires had been by people from various parts of Brazil, as well as individuals from several foreign used with a group of people visiting Filipino mental healers. countries. In addition, he claims that sometimes it is possible for him to heal people at a distance. Macedo holds weekly healing seminars each Thursday and measuAnomalous healing is a complex process and one whose results are difficult to encourages people to focus upon his meetings, at that time, believing that the re (Frank, 1974, chap. 3; Solvin, 1984). The literature contains instances elrects of his curative powers will transcend distance. of apparent anomalies in mental healing with ade uate ow-u Unlike the members of the previous group, the individuals on this study tour Kirkpatrick, 1981), unusual healings explainable by ordinary m foecllhanisms (e.g., e,gwere not seriously ill but joined it for other personal or professional reasons. Achter trio 1975; Hall, 1983), and instances in which seemingly (e.g., Responses from this group were elicited to the same questions as had been used berg, healings have not survived rigorous scrutiny (e.g. Randi, 1987). In an dramatic in the previous study. In this case, however, the questionnaires were mailed to to identify attempt the subjects upon their return; the previous subjects had completed the some of the experiential components of people's reactions to mental questionnaires on their flight back to North America, several days after the healers, Westerbeke and Krippner (1980) conducted a questionnaire study of 88 conclusion of their healing sessions. Most questions were phrased so that they seriously ill persons who visited one of six Filipino practitioners. These subjects could be answered on a 3-, 4-, or 5-point scale. To avoid a 'halo effect', the value were asked to complete questionnaires several days after their healing sessions as of a rating of']' varied; for half the questions it meant `a great amount', and for well as 6 and 12 months later. Of the 88 approached, I 1 completed all three the other half it signified `a small amount'. (For this reason, a number of negative questionnaires, making this a self-selected sample. Purported physical, mental, correlations were obtained, but for clarity Table 1 presents all correlations as and spiritual changes were related at statistically significant levels to the subjects' confidence in the efficacy of mental healin positive, including those obtained from the earlier sample.) ' and vitalit following practitioner, to Using T the Pearson product-moment coefficient of correlation, the 4 perceived increases in `energy Y' g g and the in healing sessions, to quantitative items from the first questionnaire were correlated with the 3 change previous ex one experiences with alleged psychic phenomena and to the willingness to g outcome items from the third questionnaire. The 3 quantitative items in the 's behavior in order to obtain relief from one's health second questionnaire were correlated with the 3 outcome items in the third ] (Westerbeke, Glover & Krippner, 1977). problems Procedure questionnaire. A total of 21 correlations were made. Fifteen individuals did not complete either or both of their follow-up questionnaires, reducing the number of A similar opportunity afforded itself in 1983 w r subjects to 10 (6 women, 4 men). of Noetic Sciences (Sausalito C lif i c a orn a) organized a study tour of B azil for 25 people Results interested in indigenous healin i g pract ces. The practitioner with whom this group was to spend the most time was Jose Macedo de Arruda, better known as Irmao (Brother) Macedo, a self-styled `spiritual healer' from Recife who was scheduled to spend four days with the group as it celebrated Carnival, an annual Brazilian folk festival, in the city of Salvador in the province of Bahia. Brother Macedo told the group that he once had been a successful executive in the armed forces and in business, However, his life changed dramatically at the age of 49. Macedo was walking by,0 V'@daF6~qR4ft f&i200W8b11 obtained in the previous investigation. One question asked, `If regaining health necessitates changing your personality or style of living, to what extent would you be willing to make a change?' Five types of response were possible ranging from `I would not be willing to change my life' to `I would make any changes at all if it meant getting well'. These responses were significantly and positively related to professed im rovement in one's spiritual viewpoint for both groups (~IAZRfilPSO 75rove? ()0) 00'p?the Filipino study group. 208 209 Approved For Release 2000/08/11: CIA-RDP96-00792R000700340004-0 "i h w O o C crD GH., 1. A) ^?' rD moo.. 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