Michael Cremo - Human Devolution - A Vedic Alternative To Darwin's Theory

In the experiments in which the bacterial samples were infused with low concentrations (1 microgram per milliliter) of tetracycline, samples treated by Worrall showed 121 percent more growth than the control samples. In experiments with concentrations of 10 micrograms/ml of tetracycline, samples treated by Worrall showed 28 percent more growth than the control samples. In experiments with concentrations of 10 micrograms/ml of chloramphenicol, samples treated by Worrall showed 70 percent more growth than the control samples. In experiments with concentrations of 100 micrograms/ml of chloramphenicol, samples treated by Worrall showed 22 percent and 24 percent more growth than the control samples (Rubik 1996, p. 105).

Another set of experiments involved studies of motility of bacteria. The bacteria were placed on slides in a solution of phenol sufficient to immobilize but not kill them. The slides of bacteria were then observed under a microscope. Rubik (1996, p. 108) stated, “Application of . . . phenol completely paralyzes the bacteria within 1 to 2 minutes. Worrall’s treatment inhibited this effect . . . such that on the average up to 7% of the bacteria continued to swim after 12 minutes exposure to phenol compared to the control groups which were completely paralyzed in all cases.”

Distance Healing on Humans

Today, many people around the world are using alternative medical treatments in addition to, or instead of, modern Western medical treatment. Many alternative medical treatments involve spiritual and paranormal influences, such as prayer. A study published in the Journal of the american medical association (Eisenberg et al. 1998) found that 35 percent of all Americans had used prayer to help solve health problems. Another national study, published in time magazine (Wallis 1996), found that 82 percent of all Americans believe that prayer has healing power. A study published in the annals of internal medicine (Astin et al. 2000) found that “a growing body of evidence suggests an association between religious involvement and spirituality and positive health outcomes.”

In support of this assertion the authors of the study cited reports from a variety of scientific and medical journals.

In their study, Astin and his coworkers did a thorough review of published medical reports on “distant healing.” Their definition of distant healing includes “strategies that purport to heal through some exchange or channeling of supraphysical energy” as well as prayer (Astin et al. 2000, p. 903). Searching through the professional literature, Astin’s group found 100 clinical trials of distant healing. They then analyzed these according to a stringent set of criteria. This resulted in many being excluded from consideration. They stated (2000, p. 904), “The principle reasons for excluding trials from our review were lack of randomization, no adequate placebo condition, use of nonhuman experimental subjects or nonclinical populations, and not being published in peer-reviewed journals.” After this strict selection procedure, 23 clinical trials remained. Astin’s group noted that even these had some minor methodological shortcomings that could be improved with better experimental design and controls. Nevertheless, they found that 13 of the 23 studies (57 percent) showed a positive treatment outcome. They concluded (2000, p. 910): “Despite the methodologic limitations that we have noted, given that approximately

57% (13 of 23) of the randomized, placebo controlled trials of distant healing that we reviewed showed a positive treatment effect, we concur. . . that the evidence thus far warrants further study.” Regarding studies on nonhuman subjects, such as bacteria, Astin’s group, citing a review by Benor (1990), said (2000, p. 904): “The findings of controlled trials of distant healing in nonhuman biological systems are provocative enough to merit further research.”

Local Healing by Faith Healers

Let us now consider some specific cases of healing by spiritualists. Kathryn Kuhlman, a Christian faith healer who worked from the 1940s to the 1970s, was responsible for some interesting cures that appear to be well documented, such as the case of George Orr. In 1925, Orr was working at the Laurence Foundry Company in Grove City, Pennsylvania. A drop of molten iron splashed into his eye, injuring it severely. Dr. C. E. Imbrie determined that the cornea of the eye was covered by scar tissue, causing almost complete loss of vision. In 1927, the Pennsylvania State Department of Labor and Industry said the injury was equivalent to the loss of an eye, and granted Orr complete compensation. On May 4, 1947, Orr and some family friends attended one of Kuhlman’s meetings, in Franklin, Pennsylvania. Orr prayed for a healing. He felt a tingling in his eye, which began to shed tears. Later, on the drive back home, he realized he could see. The scar on his eye had disappeared. Dr. Imbrie later examined Orr and was astonished by the cure (Rogo 1982, pp. 275–277). The Orr case is significant because the healing was not just the result of an activation of the body’s own powers of regeneration. Rogo (1982, p. 277) stated: “Because scar tissue on the eye does not simply vanish or dissolve, George Orr’s cure must be considered a legitimate miracle . . . It was not of a sort that might occur naturally, Orr was under no medical treatment at the time, and the healing was instantaneous, complete, and permanent.”

In 1948, Karen George was born in Conway, Pennsylvania, with a clubfoot. Rogo (1982, p. 277) said, “The bottom of her left foot faced upward and a walnut-sized ball of flesh was embedded in its surface. The toes were pushed together as well, and the kneecap was twisted over to the side of the leg.” A doctor put a brace on Karen’s leg when she was three months old, the first of many braces. None of them worked.

Karen’s mother recalled, “When we saw no improvement from the first brace, we changed doctors. Karen was four months old then. We took her to another orthopedist who was recommended to us. He immediately put her in a cast that encased the whole leg and left it on for a month. She cried almost constantly. When they took the cast off, the leg flopped back exactly as it had been before. The doctor let her go about a month and then tried another cast. More crying almost day and night. And when he took off that cast, the leg promptly went back into its twisted position” (Spraggett 1970, pp. 77–78).

The orthopedist told the Georges that when their daughter was two and a half years old, she could have surgery. But the Georges did not want to wait that long. And they did not have faith in the operations. Mrs. George said, “We met other parents with children who had the same problem in the doctor’s waiting room and they told us of repeated operations, and sometimes after years of treatment the child was still deformed. We knew, too, from talking to other parents and seeing their children that Karen’s was a very serious case” (Spraggett 1970, p. 79).

Having heard of Kathryn Kuhlman, the Georges brought their daughter to one of her meetings. Kuhlman and her congregation prayed for Karen’s healing. Within two days, the lump on Karen’s foot was gone. Spraggett (1970, p. 80) said, “Karen George received no further medical treatment for her foot. Her mother took her to Kathryn Kuhlman’s miracle services regularly. Over a period of a month the child’s foot imperceptibly improved until one day Mrs. George examined it and it was perfectly normal.” When Karen was twenty years old, Spraggett (1970, p. 80) visited her and personally observed her perfectly normal foot.Sometimes miraculous healings occur in connection not only with living humans, but with humans long departed, as in the case of healings by departed saints. John Fagan, a dock worker in Glasgow, Scotland, underwent such a cure (Rogo 1982, pp. 266–271). On April 26, 1967, the middle-aged Fagan found himself vomiting blood. He entered the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, and underwent medical testing, which showed he had stomach cancer. The doctors, without telling him he had cancer, recommended surgery. Rogo (1982, p. 267) stated, “The resulting surgery revealed that the cancer had eaten through the stomach and into the transverse colon. The stomach was greatly ulcerated, and the cancer had apparently spread far by the time of the operation. The cancerous tissue could not be completely removed, and the doctors duly advised Mrs. Fagan that her husband had only from six months to a year to live. Again, Fagan was not told of this prognosis.” Fagan was released from the hospital, and as predicted, his condition grew worse. He went back into the hospital on December 21, 1967. Doctors informed Mrs. Fagan that inoperable secondary tumors had developed. There was nothing they could do for Mr. Fagan other than give him medications to reduce the pain he was suffering. Mrs. Fagan cared for her husband at home. He remained in bed, getting weaker as he approached death. A Catholic priest, Father John Fitzgibbon, of the Church of Blessed John Ogilvie, started visiting the Fagans, who were Catholic. Expecting the worst, Father Fitzgibbon gave Fagan the last rites. As a last hope, he gave Mrs. Fagan a medal of Blessed John Ogilvie, a Scottish Catholic martyr killed by Glasgow Protestants in 1614, and suggested she pray to him. Mrs. Fagan followed the priest’s advice. Friends of the Fagan’s would also come and pray to Blessed John Ogilvie. Rogo (1982, p. 268) states, “By March, Fagan was so weak that he could neither get up from bed, eat, or even talk. He could only vomit repeatedly, since by now his stomach was literally dissolving itself. . . . The Fagans’ doctor, Archibald MacDonald, arrived . . . [March 6] . . . and was so shaken by his patient’s condition that he could do nothing but advise Mrs. Fagan that he would return after the weekend to sign the death certificate. He gave her husband a pain killer and left. Fagan then fell into a deep sleep.” The next day, Fagan’s condition changed completely. His pain and vomiting stopped, and he felt hungry. Dr. MacDonald was astounded by the recovery, which was soon complete.