Deadly Blessings: Faith Healing on Trial [Hardcover]

Richard J. Brenneman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1990

A young couple watched their infant son die of meningitis even as their Christian Science "practitioner" promised that prayer was all the child needed. The parents were prosecuted, leading to a six-year legal battle. A West Coast psychotherapist's practice involved a bewildering array of drugs, New Age metaphysics, and mind control. One of her patients died after a bizarre "hot tub" treatment. The psychotherapist was taken to court. A Filipino "psychic surgeon" claimed that he could remove tumours without breaking the skin. The husband of one patient complained to his local prosecutor. "Brother Joe" was put on trial.This is a penetrating examination of three controversial court cases. With exceptional insight, Richard J Brenneman delves into the minds of those who believe that faith or magic alone can cure physical and emotional ills. The book is a combination courtroom thriller, human drama, and first-rate piece of investigative reporting. Brenneman adds a unique, compassionate perspective because he's been there. He is a former Christian Scientist, he lived in a commune, and (at one time) he believed in psychic surgery.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Three California court cases, all involving what Brenneman ( Fuller's Earth ) calls "alternative healing," are the focus of this probe. The author, a Sacramento-based reporter and former Christian Scientist, first considers a Christian Science couple whose 17-month-old son died of bacterial meningitis when they put faith in God and refused medical care. They were cleared of involuntary manslaughter charges. The second case involves Jose Burgarin, "Brother Joe," a Filipino psychic surgeon in Sacramento who went to jail after a sting operation exposed quackery. Lastly, Brenneman delves into the strange saga of Betty Eisner, a psychologist whose practice combined the use of LSD, communal acting-out of hostility and, according to former members of her therapeutic community, group sex. Her license was revoked after a patient died during a hot mineral bath session. Even though Brenneman's cases seem well-chosen examples of irresponsibiity, the material does not support his blanket condemnation of nonconventional healing.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Brenneman, a former Christian Scientist and a veteran journalist, makes good use of both experiences in this investigative report of three cases of faith healing: a trial of a Christian Science couple whose son died of meningitis despite prayer; a psychotherapist's experience with group therapy and the use of a hot tub, which also ended in death; and an account of the Philippine version of "psychic surgery." Specialists will find this book's detailed notes useful, and general readers interested in religious subjects might request it. To his credit, Brenneman does not take advantage of the obvious sensational appeal of these cases, although the book is intriguing. If it is well publicized, libraries may have patron demand from the casual reader.
- John Broderick, Stonehill Coll., North Easton, Mass.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 390 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books (July 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879755806
• ISBN-13: 978-0879755805
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,334,554 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars best part is the footnotes on eisner, February 1, 2012

By 

eisner's victim - See all my reviews

This review is from: Deadly Blessings: Faith Healing on Trial (Hardcover)

As one of Bettty Eisner's victims, I read this part of the book with curiosity. After thirty years, I still suffer from PTSD, stemming from her insane "treatment." The footnotes which chronicle her trips in front of the California Board of Psychologists were most interesting. She never took any responsibility for her actions. My belief is that she was insane and got that way from ingesting drugs and alcohol in copious amounts. Her judgment was totally impaired and she had no interest in contacting any other psychologist to make sure she was still "on track." The author interviewed people who were not really that relevant to the decline of her ability to tell reality from her own fantasy. Of course, people who were most hurt by her were not available. (One was dead.) Nobody was willing to talk about her insanity with regard to money. She had a captive girl in her 20's, who had inherted millions, who totally threw Eisner into a frenzy. Imagine controlling someone like that. There were several others who were also under her "authority", as she called it, who were very wealthy. This was part of the reason she thought she was above the law, the rules set by her colleagues, and common decency. She also was a homophobe,something she lied about in her book, and this was not discussed. Suffice it to say, she was never reinstated as a licensed Psychologist, and only really given credence by an LSD group to whom she donated a hunk of money. The author was nuch too forgiving of her cruelty. Her real story was so debauched, it will never be told. Nobody wants to spend that much energy on this evil old woman.