The Faith Healers

by James Randi

James Randi, the celebrated magician, has written a damning indictment of the faith-healing practices of the leading televangelists and others who claim divine healing powers. Randi and his team of researchers attended scores of "miracle services" and often were pronounced "healed" of the nonexistent illnesses they claimed. They viewed first-hand the tragedies resulting from the wide-spread belief that faith healing can cure every conceivable disease. The ministries, they discovered, were rife with deception, chicanery, and often outright fraud.

Self-annointed ministers of God convince the gullible that they have been healed - and that they should pay for the service. The Faith Healers examines in depth the reasons for belief in faith healing and the catastrophic results for the victims of these hoaxes. Included in Randi's book are profiles of a highly profitable "psychic dentist", and the "Vatican-approved wizard."

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Religion, Skepticism, Philosophy, Psychology, Atheism

318 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1987

About the author

James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928 – October 20, 2020) was a Canadian-American stage magician and a scientific skeptic who extensively challenged paranormal and pseudoscientific claims. He was the co-founder of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), originally known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). He also founded the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). He began his career as a magician under the stage name The Amazing Randi and later chose to devote most of his time to investigating paranormal, occult, and supernatural claims, which he collectively called "woo-woo".Randi retired from practicing magic at age 60, and from the JREF at 87.

Although often referred to as a "debunker", Randi said he disliked the term's connotations and preferred to describe himself as an "investigator". He wrote about paranormal phenomena, skepticism, and the history of magic. He was a frequent guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, famously exposing fraudulent faith healer Peter Popoff, and was occasionally featured on the television program Penn & Teller: Bullshit! - wikipeadia

Reviews

[Vik · Rating 5 out of 5]

"If I were to offer up a prayer of my own, I would ask a deity to grant my species the ability to adopt a dignified, responsible, and caring exuberance toward living, rather than a quavering, dependent vigil awaiting death. To recognize that nature has neither a preference for our species nor a bias against it takes only a little courage. I believe that we have evolved to the point where we no longer need gurus to supply us with magical formulas for our lives. We must learn to ignore silly notions invented by opportunists who see us as sheep willing to be sheared." - James Randi, My favorite passage from the book.


I will review this book with few strict personal thoughts. There is no greater joy in being an atheist, rationalist and skeptic than the awareness that you have intellectual heroes (who can think unthinkable and explain unexplained) and science on your side. The "Amazing (James) Randi" is one of those whose invaluable contribution has lit the lamp of rational thinking.

Not one person around the world manged to win his (JREF)'One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge' since 1996 shows the fakery of faith healers, card readers and non sense preached by religious charlatans. All they had to do is just perform their "psychic or other supernatural powers", which they so often claim, under the simple observations by scientists to claim one million dollar. Many known frauds tried and without a surprise got insulted and exposed by Randi. I am, no doubt, aware in advance that no exposé can shake the faith of weak-minded people in faith healers or supernatural powers because the very foundation of their belief system depends on faith not reason. So there can be no cure for such illness.

In the end, I remember in his rare appearance, Hitchens complimented Randi by saying: "Any magic you(frauds and scam artists) can do, we can do better, you lose and we keep the money(of JREF challenge) and that seems to be a real talking to me."

[Pooja Dhami · Rating 5 out of 5]

The faith healing empire, shielded but the blind faith of the credulous, claims to resurrect the death and heal the dying. Dubious accounts of shrinking tumors and regaining of sight by the holy touch of a faith healer's appendage have threatened to render centuries of medical research useless. It is baffling that the vulnerable, knee deep in debt, do not ask why their stone-deaf and stone-blind friend in the sky would want a million dollars.

James Randi has spent decades of his life debunking the practices of pseudoscience. This book talks extensively about the functioning of such industries, bringing to light it's fallacious assertions.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative, and written with a wry sense of humor.

[Book Shark · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Faith Healers by James Randi

Mr. James Randi the renowned magician uncovers the fraud behind "faith-healers" and is not too shy to expose them in his classic work. This 318-page book was originally released in 1989 and is composed of the following eighteen chapters: 1. The Origins of Faith-Healing, 2. Faith-Healing in Modern Times, 3. The Church View, 4. The Financial Aspects, 5. The Mail Operations of Faith-Healers, 6. A.A. Allen and Miracle Valley, 7. Leroy Jenkins and the $100,000 Challenge, 8. W.V. Grant and the Eagle's Nest, 9. Peter Popoff and His Wonderful Machine, 10. Oral Roberts and the City of Faith, 11.A Word of Knowledge from Pat Robertson, 12.The Psychic Dentist and an Unamazing Grace, 13. Father DiOrio: Vatican-Approved Wizard, 14.The Lesser Lights, 15.Practical Limitations of Medical Science, 16. Where is the Evidence? 17. Legal Aspects, and 18. Amen!

Positives:
1. It starts out with a forward from Carl Sagan that is always positive.
2. A well-written, well-thought out book that is fascinating, and infuriating.
3. As a magician of international fame, Mr. Randi knows fakery when he sees one and this wonderful book provides ample evidence for it. A great skeptic indeed.
4. Exposes so many scoundrels it's truly jaw-dropping.
5. The origins of faith healing explained.
6. Mr. Randi tackles the most fascinating cases.
7. The most famous Christian shrines debunked.
8. The methodology of examining claims.
9. Great use of scripture to support religious beliefs that would allow frauds to take advantage of their subjects. The importance of instilling unquestioning faith.
10. The inquisition of witches.
11. Not an anti-religious book. In fact, many of the skeptics were theologians.
12. The Financial Aspects chapter will infuriate.
13. The marketing machine behind the fraud.
14. The danger of believing miracles occurred. An important message that needs to be conveyed.
15. So called "healees" exposed.
16. Mr. Randi shows his great skeptical instincts.
17. The secret behind "calling out" audience members.
18. The power of divine financial advice.
19. Claims debunked, over and over.
20. Shotgun techniques exposed.
21. Prophets exposed.
22. How cultural biases predispose people into believing in the possibility of faith-healing.
23. The inefficacy of prayers.
24. Is faith-healing real? Answered to satisfaction.
25. The truth as a dissonant reality.
26. How blind faith hurts children who do not get the medical attention that they need.
27. Fascinating from cover to cover.

Negatives:

1. Of course a book written in 1989 will be dated in some areas but too small an issue to derail this classic and surprisingly enough a lot of the main culprits are still in "business".
2. Waiting for an update to this masterpiece.

In summary, a fascinating and an important book. Faith-healing is dangerous because it allows unsuspecting subjects to rely on it without any objective evidence of its efficacy and in doing so may relinquish the use of proven scientific methods. Mr. Randi should be commended for this great work of exposing scoundrels who take advantage of others for personal benefit at the expense of their financial, and overall well being. Bravo!

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

What areas concerning people's beliefs are most easily exploitable by con-artists? Without a doubt it would have to be religious beliefs. Faith Healers tackles this subject and uses investigations carried out by James Randi of many so-called faith healers as its material. Some of the faith healers investigated are W.V. Grant, A.A. Allen, Peter Popoff, Oral Roberts and even Pat Robertson.

Randi starts with a little background into the phenomenon of supernatural beliefs in humans and its origins before the advent of science. Ironically enough, even with the scientific progress we've made many laypeople still denounce it as either an object of Satan or incapable of bringing the blessings of faith. Throughout this book Randi issues a challenge to the faith healers to produce evidence for their so-called healings and have independent doctors make statements regarding the claims etc. Surprisingly enough there is not one faith healer that is able to produce and substantiate claims of healing. In fact, it's very sad to read about people even dying after attending a religious service and believing their affliction was healed by one of these "televangelist" types. I found it also interesting to read about some of the exposures of the practices of these healers. Many of them have lists generated by a computer (with only individual names changed) and sent out to gullible people asking for money. Many times these means are how the healers support themselves. Prey on the public and beg for money that "Jesus needs".

This book serves as a lesson that no matter what are beliefs may be we should never fail to exercise restraint in the face of terrific claims and also always keep our rational abilities intact. By using reason alone a lot of us could avoid being duped and potentially deceived into believing lies which only serve to fatten TV preachers' pockets.

This book I would rate a 4 despite the eye-opening information it contains. The reason is the subject matter is somewhat long (over 300 pages) and I feel many people unless acquainted with who these healers are may lose interest after reading about similar cases. But nonetheless still a good read.

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A passionate expose of the faith healing racket. Although I didn't really care for Randi's narrative style (primarily 3-4 paragraph sections that are often non-linear), he provides an absolutely overwhelming amount of evidence for fraud among a number of faith healers. My only regret is that I read an original edition, and I would love to read an updated edition with a more contemporary introduction.

[WT Sharpe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful and informative look into the world of faith healers. Who can forget how James Randi and his team destroyed Peter Popoff's ministry when--with hours of secretly recorded audio tapes--he exposed his "word of knowledge" to be not the Voice of God, but the voice of his wife who was sending information about the people being "healed" that she had gathered earlier while mulling through the crowd to a hidden radio receiver in Popoff's ear. Well, the faithful, that's who can forget. Peter Popoff has since made a comeback, proving that you can indeed fool some of the people all of the time. At least Randi limited the damage that one man could inflict upon the innocent, and perhaps in a world where people are content to chose comfort over truth, that's the most for which anyone can hope. A hard-hitting book, highly recommended.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book and quite revealing about these faith healers. The only thing that prevents a five star rating from me is the fact that it is now pretty dated. I have grown up seeing a whole new generation of these healers and didn't know who many of the people Randi writes about are. His exposure of their tactics is generally timeless but I would love to see him do an update of this book to respond to new tactics these healers have developed or how they are twisting their old tactics to fit today's audiences.

[Ari Damoulakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books exposing the pure evil and lies of possibly most televangelists. And no one has ever been able to win the Randi challenge.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

AN AMAZING CRITIQUE AND EXPOSÉ OF SOME WELL-KNOWN FIGURES

James Randi (1928-2020) was a stage magician (as ‘The Amazing Randi'), scientific skeptic, and author who was the co-founder of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI). The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) offered a prize of US $1,000,000 to anyone able to demonstrate a supernatural ability under scientific testing criteria agreed to by both sides.

He wrote in the Introduction to this 1987 book (revised edition, 1989), “My entrance into the investigation of faith-healing began long ago. For more than four decades I have been looking into the claims made by psychics, water dowsers, astrologers, and every sort of flimflam artists imaginable… While investigating paranormal claims, I had put all religious claims on a back burner to await my possible attention at a much later date. The recent intense interest in faith-healing, largely brought about by the announced … candidacy of faith-healer Pat Robertson for the presidency… captured my interest. Upon beginning my investigation, I quickly became aware of the very sordid, sad, and frightening nature of the entire business, and realized that my knowledge of conjuring techniques could be put to good use in the quest, since faith-healers were using quite recognizable magician’s methods---both technical and psychological---to accomplish their performances. This book can cover only the first stages of what will surely be a difficult and never-ending endeavor… faith-healers will always be with us. The small but irreducible fraction of humanity that will believe anything, no matter how ridiculous, will continue to support the fakery and the fakers well into future generations.’ (Pg. 3-4)

He explains, “In order to be included here, that cure would have to have these qualities: (1) The disease must not be normally self-terminating. (2) The recovery must be complete. (3) The recovery must take place in the absence of any medical treatment that might normally be expected to affect the disease. (4) There must be adequate medical opinion that the disease was present before the application of whatever means were used to bring about the miracle. (5) There must be adequate medical opinion that the disease is not present after the application of whatever means were used to bring about the miracle.” He admits, “ I do not have the medical expertise to judge the claimed cures at Lourdes. And, because I am mainly concerned in this book with the examination of faith-healers rather than healing, I will refer readers to extensive studies already done on the Lourdes phenomena, which are listed in the bibliography.” (Pg. 25)

He suggests, “This gives rise to a perfect explanation for the subsequent failure of the process: The recipient of the healing ceremony was unable to ‘keep the faith.’ That is the most disturbing aspect of all. Today’s faith-healers impost a heavy potential burden of guilt on their victims. People are told that any failure of the healing magic is due to lack of THEIR faith. They, not Jesus or the healer, must take the blame.” (Pg. 37)

He recounts, “Let us consider the process of ‘calling out.’ Here’s how it works. I visited several evangelists who perform this stunt a part of their acts… I discovered that obtaining the information about the victims for the ‘calling out’ process is the easiest part of it all, and is accomplished simply by ASKING them! Because people are admitted to the auditorium many hours before the performances, I had my team of observers with me at the moment the doors first opened at every one of the episodes we investigated. We spread out… and waited patiently until we were approached by someone from the evangelist’s camp. We saw those workers striking up casual conversations with early arrivals, determining the needed information, noting the seating location and a brief description of the person involved, and then hurrying backstage to record the data. Most of these preachers send their wives to wander around and gather information, and all of them send their ‘front men’ for that same purpose.” (Pg. 39)

He points out that at the death of professed ‘healer’ A.A. Allen, “police were removing A.A. Allen’s body from a room strewn with pills and empty liquor bottles. The man … was dead at 59 from what was said to be a heart attack but was in reality liver failure brought on by acute alcoholism.” (Pg. 88)

He asserts after a challenge of him from faith healer Leroy Jenkins, “as is usual with most of these challengers, Jenkins got it backwards. It’s MY challenge to HIM to prove that he is genuine. I’m not saying, nor have I ever said, that he is ‘a phony.’ I’m only saying that he has not proved that he’s for real. I have nothing to prove. He has.” (Pg. 97)

He notes, “Faith healers get great mileage out of appearing to heal the blind. But remember what ‘blind’ really means. The dictionary says it means ‘unable to see,’ but the law has established a definition that enables a person who is able to see poorly to adopt the designation legally. Faith-healers are often deceptive---perhaps innocently—when using the term... 94 percent of ‘visually impaired’ persons and 75 percent of those termed ‘legally blind’ have usable though limited vision. Certainly most of these can see the number of fingers held up before them, and many can see well enough to read, though with great difficulty. Thus, when a faith-healer holds up a number of fingers in front of a person ‘healed’ of blindness, it is usually not difficult for the person to say how many fingers are being displayed. The audience is encouraged to believe that the ‘blind’ individual was not previously able to perform this simple determination.” (Pg. 104)

He reports, “what happens to the victims when the spell is broken, as it eventually must be when they get home, the euphoria passes, and they find that they are no better off, if not worse, than before? My people followed up on as many people as we could find… We found a lot of unhappy, angry, and bitter people, some of whom had traveled hundreds of miles seeking cures. They complained that [the healer] had misstated and exaggerated their ailments. Some had even been told that they had heart trouble that they hadn’t even suspected … Many had to buy new canes to replace those dramatically broken across [the healer’s] knee and tossed up onto the stage.” (Pg. 110)

Of course, Randi’s most famous ‘exposure’ was of TV evangelist Peter Popoff, who he exposed on the ‘Tonight Show’ in February 1986. He recalls, “The major item in the Popoff exposure had been the revelation of his rather advanced technique for ‘calling out’ audience members… we’d discovered that Popoff had a tiny hearing aid in his left ear, connected to a high-frequency receiver… [through which] Mrs. Popoff … [gave] the needed information to Popoff and direct[ed] him to the right people.” (Pg. 142) Eventually, Popoff claimed, “My wife occasionally gives me the name of a person who needs special prayers.” (Pg. 143)

He explains that “Kathryn Kuhlman was a colorful Pentecostal Baptist faith-healer… Dr. Robert Nolen, in his book ‘Healing,’ did long-term follow-ups on 23 of Kuhlman’s claimed healings. There were no cures among those cases… Kuhlman depended upon a limited number of stunts to accomplish her performance… she is credited with developing the ‘sit-em-in-a-wheelchair’ gimmick [where a person who had no previous ailment jumps up and out of the wheelchair, after being ‘healed’]. She was also adept at the ‘shotgun’ technique whereby she announced … that a certain number of people in the audience were being healed of a certain disease, without specifying who they were.” (Pg. 228)

He concludes, “Do any evangelist/healers actually do any healing? My answer is no. But… I am not a medical expert… and I am writing on this subject from the point of view of a reasonably observant layman… This book is an account of my earnest efforts to discover ONE example of faith-healing that can stand examination. I have found none.”(Pg. 268) He adds, “They’re still out there. They lie and they cheat, they confound and trick their victims, and they usually get away with it. No amount of evidence will dissuade the faithful, and officials turn their backs.” (Pg. 309)

Randi’s books, as well as others by members of CSICOP, will be “must reading” for those interested in skeptical perspectives on such matters.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember watching a documentary featuring James Randi back in college; he was debunking Uri Geller. When I saw this book, I had to pick it up.

Essentially, Randi is cantankerous as hell and he's not gonna take it anymore. He clearly outlines his opinions and findings throughout the book.

I have only heard of a few of the people he mentions and takes aim at, but it doesn't take away from the effect. So yes, it is a little dated; and yes- it gets a bit repetitive. But part of it is that all the techniques that each evangelist uses are repetitive; Randi is just thorough in describing them.

He really lets his Crotchety Old Man flag fly in the final chapters, but again he is thorough and clear- and he obviously cares a great deal about his topic, I'd definitely suggest this book to anyone with a healthy skepticism in regards to 'faith healers.'

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This could have been subtitled "...are liars, thieves, cheats and fakes and are out to scam you any way they can, without regret" and then the book could have been all blank pages.
But James Randi wouldn't take the easy way. He has devoted his life to reality and skepticism, and to exposing these frauds and fakers and he makes sure, in this book, that we get ALL the details.

You're probably too smart to get sucked into a scam like this (even if you do forward the "Bill Gates is going to give me $100,000!!" e-mail), but you might know someone, someone old or someone sick, who feels hopeless and helpless and gets a "caring and concerned" letter at just the wrong time and is liable to start pouring money into this nonsense. You have to be able to tell them, "no."

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Faith Healers by James Randi. (Prometheus Books 1989)(615.852). The magician James Randi has made it his mission to expose fraud in the world of religion and “faith healing” when a preacher/healer claims that a god has empowered him or her to heal the sick at large “healing services’ during which “miracles of healing” may occur (e.g., the blind may see, the lame may walk, etc.). Randi has targeted many of the more prominent healers for study and then has publicly revealed their tricks that make the supposed healing occur. Randi publicly exposed Peter Popoff, former California based faith healer, on the Tonight Show in this manner. The takeaway: they are all frauds. My rating: 7.5/10, finished 1990.

[Dianne Landry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although a little outdated because it was written in 1989, this book is a fascinating look into faith healers and their tricks. James Randi has spent a lifetime trying to get people to wake up and smell the coffee about these people, unfortunately, people just want to be duped. In fact, one of the faith healers in this book, Peter Popoff, went bankrupt due to James Randi's expose but managed to come back and is still running his scam.

I feel sorry for people whose lives are so empty that they need this sort of ridiculousness to make them feel complete.

[Bill Guinee · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Randi is not a great writer; you will not be dazzled by his prose. However, he is a very competent writer, and this book is a very thorough and careful treatment of a fascinating topic, that of charlatans in the healing industry. At times the book may seem too thorough, as he gives example after example of their chicanery, but as the evidence mounts, his thesis becomes more and more inescapable. I read the book as research for a novel I am currently writing, but I found it fascinating. I would recommend this book, but be prepared to be saddened and disturbed.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

James Randi's research into modern faith healers is extensive and often daring. His own career as an illusionist gives him particular insight into how some faith healers fool people with their stage acts. The problem is, his writing style is awkward and unappealing; it manages to be simultaneously dry and excessively personal. I found myself wishing he'd done the research, but found someone else to actually write the book.

[Karen Katt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. James Randi really makes the reader realize the ridiculousness of religious ideas. He points out that most religions play on the poor and desperate people that have a deep seeded need to believe. How they are taken advantage of, and how organized religions have become one of the biggest businesses in history.

[Kyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I give this book a lot of praise, because it opened my eyes to the kinds of horrible people that are in this world who will take advantage of the hopeful and the desperate. A must have on anyone's skeptic shelf.

[Picklefactory · Rating 4 out of 5]

The faith healers described in this book deserve the Randi treatment -- it's clear that the contempt he holds for all of them was well-earned. Does tend to get a little redundant after a few hundred pages, but the sections on investigation are fascinating.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent read. Not nearly as ascerbic as I expected, coming from Randi. Didn't have as much insight as I had hoped, but it seems the methods of faith healers aren't all that hard to figure out, honestly.

[Lex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't believe Randi managed to sneak a Geller reference into a book on faith healing. The man's obsessed! That said, interesting stuff all round and well-researched as ever.

[Peter McGinn · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an atheist, I already am aware of some of the great harm religion has caused over the centuries: from mass murder through wars, or through the Inquisition and less organized multiple killings to slightly less heinous crimes such as child abuse or simply using dogma to run and ruin people's lives. And of course, the white collar, under-enforced crime of stealing money, which is where this book comes in.

Of course I have always figured that the evangelists who regularly show up apologizing and weeping in news clips are hucksters, but still the scope of how much money they steal and how outrageous the scams are they perpetrate to steal it, was rather stunning. Their unbelievable schemes, the precious lists of wealthy donators that they sell to each other like valuable investment artwork, the lies and more lies they tell their flocks - is all incredible.And Randi put in the time to expose a lot of it. He even offered a monetary reward for proof of a single case of miraculous healing - which nobody was able to collect. And it was interesting to hear from some lower-paid assistants of these crooks, who sometimes jump from job to job performing their supportive tasks (for a lot less money).

And the scams: there was the fundraising fiction one of them came up with to airlift non-existent Russian bibles behind the Iron Curtain, and when that didn't raise enough money, they upped the ante by faking a break-in and destroying some Russian pamphlets (not bibles) and using film clips of the wreckage to raise more money in order to supposedly replace the lost bibles they never had to begin with - and they had the nerve to blame evil atheists and humanists for their own vandalism!

And with all of these crimes, worst of all, these con artists don't have to pay federal, state or local taxes, and they seem to be untouchable or even protected by the authorities, hiding behind their fake religion.

It is important to have this kind of information available, and Randi seems to have performed a rather exhaustive investigation of the harm they do and how they do it, but I can't say the book held me throughout. About two-thirds of the way through I found myself thinking, "Okay, I got it." I guess since he put in the time, he wanted all of his efforts in the book, or perhaps he wanted all the examples in there so that people got a better idea of how widespread it was (and is). Perhaps because I read the Kindle edition, the pictures seemed small and hard to see. And though the disguises and other tricks Randi's band employed to get the goods on the evangelists were no doubt necessary to infiltrate these secretive organizations, it somehow seemed to lower the tone of the narrative. I finished the book, but I would rather the shape of the book had been better organized, and that the writing itself had been so gripping and persuasive that even some of the dupes who surrender their money to these con artists could be convinced of the truth. But that might be an unfair hope, for it could very well be that writing that persuasive does not exist and could never overcome the lure of hucksters selling tickets to attend the afterlife.

[DEXTER O'SHIELDS · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Randi... amazing. This book is an expose of faith healers, so called, pre-1990s. A catalog of charlatans, flim-flamers, con-artists, hood-winkers, and mountebanks, here forward called Christian faith-healers.
Randi was an illusionist and mentalist for the better part of four decades, which prepared him for a retirement rife with disillusionment and disclosure. Applying his knowledge of the mysterious arts, he concluded most supposed miraculous or oracular abilities were no more than tricks, and the majority of applications are a novice quality, which can be found in any juvenile's magic book. Randi does not divulge any trade secrets, but persuades the reader to consider natural explanations, apart from the presentations and preachments professed by the evangelical showmen.
Randi writes much the same as he speaks, with a dramatic flair and a broader than average vocabulary. I involuntarily coupled his jovial voice with his syntax and writing style. I devoured each recounting of the spurious prestidigitizer, which are neatly ordered, giving most of the big ticket entertainers their own chapter. (Likely, the only devotion Mr. Randi would ever apply to each.) However, in the latter portion, he speaks of the "lesser lights", whoms effulgence never managed to cast a rival shadow.
The Faith Healer was a delightful read, though at times Randi conveys the deep well of empathy he had for those afflicted. A book which gives pause to laughter, melancholia, and a certain narrative provokes anxiety, but you will be thinking about this one long after it gathers dust on the shelf. Since reading, I have purchased several copies and disbursed them among friends and even an enemy or several. Im sure I could make the point, but Randi does it so much better.

[Baskoro Pratomo · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Randi presented loads of examples of how faith-healing practices failed to give proper evidence. He asked those faith healers for evidence whether the 'cured' had had the disease before the faith-healing took place and whether the disease actually disappeared. None of the faith healers fulfilled his request.

This book also tells how Randi and his companion discovered the faith healers tricks, such as cold reading, fake wheelchairs, wireless earphones, personalised mail, and many more. A good source of information for everyone who would like to know more about the faith healing practice, particularly in the USA. Despite being first published in 1987, some contents are still relevant. There are some updates as well on the faith healers since the first time this book was published.

I would have given this book 5 stars, had there not some issues that I found quite an inconvenience. I read the Kindle edition. There are too many empty spaces on a page, sometimes a page contains only a short paragraph. I'm not sure if the printed version would be better in this case. I'd say the first five sections are not too engaging. Maybe because I don't live in the US and it's rather difficult for myself to relate some stuff in there. Although the content actually not less important than the other sections.

Overall, this is a great book. Unfortunately, it is unlikely to be read by the people who need the most to know the bitter truth of faith healing in this book.

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another case of a book that primarily confirms what I already knew/believed! The only thing is that it does highlight the lies, deception, and really THEFT from the believers, the poor, and the desperate! My outstanding question is "have the government or politicians or judges gotten ANY better at recognizing and/or punishing those responsible? This book is from over 30 years ago; has ANYTHING been done?!
I have mixed feelings: on the one hand, I laugh at the ridiculousness of unjustified belief, and on the other hand, I feel so bad for those who have NO HOPE other than the flimsy hope provided by charlatans who really want no more than to bilk them out of everything!
The comparison of a faith healers show with pretty much all other entertainments would be right on except for the promises and broken beliefs caused by them (the theoretically religiously pure) faith healers!

[Dkolacinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Given that the information is from the 1980's its contents are extremely dated. I agree absolutely that the fake healers there only for the money should be tarred, feathered, and most importantly, forced to follow their own health and wellness healing techniques. What I object to is the mean-spirited attack on all believe. There is absolutely nothing wrong with prayer and faith in God, a right which is human. There is absolutely nothing wrong in believing that God can heal, and the most powerful type of believing is belief in the spiritual power of healing the soul, not the body, but the soul.. Just because there are many frauds taking money away from those who have nothing left except to believe and hooe, there is just as much the right to allow people to believe, without mean-spirited attacks on those who do believe.

[Owen]

"To recognize that nature has neither a preference for our species nor a bias against it"

If so, then it doesn't matter what these con men do. It just doesn't matter, and the universe could care less. They are just trying to make a buck and survive, and if the other people are too gullible to see that, so what? Obviously, these con men would agree; it doesn't matter. It would appear that the media, politicians, pharmaceutical companies, lawyers, stock brokers, used car salesmen, etc., don't care either, because they lie and manipulate people every day.

Pointing out the obvious; we live in a very manipulated world beyond the "healer". Yet, people get upset about the con man religious person (which is sad), but give a pass to the other manipulations that have nothing to do with religious chicanery.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recently I chanced to watch a lecture by “The Amazing” James Randi, a professional magician who, in the 1980s, began investigating paranormal racketeers — and exposing them. As someone who used people’s assumptions to amuse them, Randi took offense at those who trafficked in cheap tricks to make people believe they really possessed supernatural abilities. Hucksters weren’t limited to spoon-bending Israelis or contemptible women named Sylvia Brown, though: there were also the shellacked-haired preachers, who with unctious manners charmed and wheedled money out of millions of poor, infirm, aged, and desperate people — claiming God was talking in their ear, telling them about these people’s fears and needs, and offering healing for a little ol’ donation.

Randi refers to these men as the Faith Healers, although some distinction should be made between the merchants of false hopes on television who he takes on here, and the tradition of faith healing which is common in some Christian sects, especially Pentecostalism. The difference between them is that the latter are sincere, more often than not; I grew up in the Pentecostal church and left it in late 2005, and at least three times a week (for most of my life) I saw people who would go up to have their infirmities prayed over by other church members or their preacher, all of whom sincerely believed that laying on of hands and praying would help — if it were God’s will and they had faith. The Faith Healers of Randi’s book, however, are cynical con artists. Randi investigated as many of the major grifters he could — Peter Popoff and W.V. Grant have especially large sections — and not only does he expose the tricks these men used to pretend, but he discovers even their faith is fraudulent.

What are some of the tricks of the trade? The ambitious faith healer should avoid praying for people with physically obvious problems, like missing limbs: convincing the faithful is a mind game only possible when their maladies are inside, where feelings of euphoria can overwhelm the discomfort or pain for a while. Heart problems and cancer are excellent candidates for faith-healing. (Just don’t urge the person you’ve “healed” to run up and down the aisles. One person documented here was told to do that by the preacher and immediately collapsed.) Healing the blind is easily possible, so long as they’re only legally blind and the audience doesn’t know that: do the prayer shtick, ask them how many fingers you’re holding, and voila! You can announce to the radio-listening world that you’ve thrown away their dark glasses and white stick when they never carried them to begin with! Several preachers here use the tactic of having people who didn’t need wheel chairs to begin with sit in them during the service, and they were then commanded to rise and walk. Oooh, ahh, such miracles. The wheelchairs were owned or rented by the preacher.

But what about the faith healer’s “psychic” abilities, their being informed by the “Word of Knowledge”? How did faith healers working a room know so much about people — their names, their maladies? Well, those people told them. Not the preachers themselves,but their staff. Maybe they talked to a volunteer as they were finding their seat, who recorded the information and passed it on; maybe they filled out a prayer card that was also sent to the back. Some preachers would memorize the information through mnemonic tools; others, like Popoff, were lazy and just had their wives feed them the information through an in-ear transmitter. Others were cold readers, or just held mass meetings and did the shotgun approach. (“Someone is being healed of stomach cancer RIGHT NOW! There’s a Helen in the balcony with a thyroid condition — God is touching that RIGHT NOW!” etc).

Randi has previously impressed me as a lecturer — interesting, amusing, and warm — but his investigation here impresses on its own. Randi and his staff attended numerous services, tracked down people who had gone or who were healed and talked with them; they interviewed past and present members of the preachers’ staffs; they donned false uniforms and infiltrated the buildings where healing crusades were being held, so they could see what was going on backstage; and they even took home trash bags to sort through them. All this bears fruit — the discovery of radio transmissions, the finding of crib sheets used by the preachers to find their “high value targets”, and the revelation of some interviewees that the “preachers” often have a stage persona wholly different from their real one, and Grants’ Christianity seemed to be limited to his performances.

The most incredible thing about the Faith Healers is that no matter how many people go away dissatisfied from their services, how many people go bankrupt feeding these parasitical pretenders with “love offerings”, how often they are exposed as frauds, how obviously profit-driven they are…..people still keep coming back. One of Randi’s interviewees suggests that people want to be fooled. They know it’s a fake,but they want to believe. Randi also reflects on the limits of medical knowledge, and how ominous diseases like cancer that seem beyond a cure are at least countered with hope from the profit-seeking prophets– if only for a little while. For his humane approach to understanding the victims, and his dogged attack on their predators, Randi’s work deserves high praise indeed.
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[Francis Chipukunya]

This book is very good and inspirational.it has helped me in my spiritual edification and journey as a literature evanglist based in liwonde in Balaka district in Muslims dominated areas of Malawi

This book is a great and a must read book.the book that is difficult to turn down once starts reading

I recommend that people must buy this good book and buy other copies for thier friends

I have been given this copy by the author for my honost review

[M. Funk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a thorough, albeit a bit dry, examination of the faith healing racket (primarily in the US). James Randi discusses the history and development of faith healing, famous healers and their ploys, and gives many great details about how and why faith healers manage to pull off their seeming miracles. Written by a savvy ex-magician with an obvious passion for exposing fraud and protecting people from financial and spiritual exploitation.