John of God vs. 'Assumed Imperative'

 

This month myself and many other readers upon visiting The Drudge Report learned that there recently has been a plethora of sexual abuse accusations against renowned Brazilian healer John of God (João de Deus).  During the last ten days at the Drudge website, a succession of links to news reports about various allegations of impropriety have been presented.  The sexual abuse accusations follow a pattern similar to occurrences associated with what has come to be known as the 'Me Too' movement.  Hopefully, when João is permitted to respond to finding himself in this sad predicament, people around the world will have an opportunity to become better educated about the phenomena of channeling, a revived spiritual dispensation for the Aquarian Age.  
 
Unless João becomes an unfortunate victim to some biased 'lynch mob' mentality, all of the questions will be answered in due time.  He is a public figure in Brazil.  Devoted to his healing vocation and his center in Abadiânia, he is commonly known to be a humanitarian who has never lived an opulent lifestyle.

John of God website photo: "Mobility aids discarded after healing sessions."


Shown below are two December 14 links from a page of The Drudge Report that I printed out.
 

 

Emma Bragdon, Ph.D. reported about the healer in her book Spiritual Alliances: Discovering the Roots of Health at the Casa de Dom Inácio (2002) — 
 

João de Deus has been studied by teams of legitimate scientists from Russia, Germany, the USA, Japan and France.  Pathology tests reveal that the tumors, substances and tissues the Entity removes from the sick are indeed human tissues from the individuals operated upon.  The most extensive study on João's work lasted two years, was published in Portuguese through a Brazilian university, and made available to the public in 1997.  João encourages research into his healing abilities in the hope that medical science can make use of his successes in the treatment of humankind.
 

The scientists who studied João are convinced of his capabilities, but bewildered as to how to handle the information.

 

This video is one of five videos recommended for viewing by people who aren't knowledgeable about authentic 'channeling.'

 

As chronicled in a 2014 telecast of "60 Minutes Australia", John of God was previously subject to the incursion of a TV news reporter motivated by the assumed imperative that John of God was "the worst of humans . . . who [merely] claims to work miracles and heal the sick . . ."  In a previous article I defined 'assumed imperative' as a form of 'corporate thinking' where a group of individuals ignorantly or duplicitously contribute to making a decision or judgment without accepting personal responsibility for the actions of their principality (company/government/agency/organization).
 
As I've commented before — when considering the perspective fostered by a news outlet, the reader should keep in mind that it is an individual reporter, editor or executive who selects which opinions are to be publicized.  It is easy to deduce that corporate executives would be concerned about how the uneducated public, advertisers or government officials would respond to the unfamiliar data about João. 

Something being overlooked in many of the recent news articles are the facts about the impressive healing center of João's that has been documented in many books and noncommercial YouTube documentary videos.  João works as a channel in association with what are usually called 'Control' or 'Spirit Guides' to facilitate healings when improvement for a patient is possible.  João himself has always attributed to 'God' the healing that occur and has never claimed that everyone who comes to the Casa has the potential to be healed.
 
One of the difficulties with the accusations against João concerns the phenomena of trance 'channeling' — historical records such as those about the Oracle at Delphi show this to be a natural aspect of human life on Earth since the dawn of earthly civilizations.  Some of the women now suspicious that they could have been abused may not understand João's mentality and circumstances as a trance channeler.  João himself is not conscious while 'in entity' and therefore will have no memory of channeling intervals. 
 
Considering the predicament of readers learning about the abuse accusations, the articles generally have completely overlooked 76-year-old João's record of conscientiously helping so many people during recent decades.  It is also evident that young people in particular may not comprehend how a man of his age does not have the libido sometimes associated with perpetrators of sexual abuse.

 

For decades João Teixeira da Faria known as 'John of God' has been successfully treating patients at his internationally known healing center in the presence of patients and staff members, including numerous volunteers.  The following introductory paragraph about the trance medium is found in the book John of God: The Brazilian Healer Who's Touched the Lives of Millions (2007) by Heather Cumming and Karen Leffler:
 

He leaves his body in complete trust to the care of disembodied spirits called Entities, all of whom were remarkable people during their own physical lives.  This form of embodiment is known as incorporation.  These transcendent spirits are able to use Medium João's body to produce cures by performing visible and invisible spiritual surgeries.  Medium João can incorporate approximately thirty-seven Entities, but only one Entity can be incorporated at a time.  This specific Entity may change, however, depending upon the needs of an individual patient.  In addition to the Entity incorporated at any given time, there is a highly evolved group of thousands of spirits who actually work on a person while the incorporated Entity oversees the healing.  This group is referred to as his phalange.  One spirit might specialize in diabetes or heart problems, another in emotional afflictions.  These Entities serve humanity in the hopes of alleviating pain and suffering on the earthly plane.  This service is part of their evolutionary process.  John of God has fulfilled his mission as a medium for over forty-eight years (since approximately 1958) and has participated in the healing of over eight million people.

  

The Friends of the Casa de Dom Inácio website gives some data about the healing center:

Brazil’s Casa de Dom Inácio is the healing center of world-renowned João Teixeira da Faria, who is unquestionably one of the most powerful spiritual healers living today.  João de Deus (John of God), as he is affectionately known, has devoted his life to mediumship.  Through him, spirit entities minister to the multitudes who come in search of a cure.

Australia’s Robert Pellegrino-Estrich brought João to the attention of English-speaking people with the publication of his book The Miracle Man in 1997.  Since then, thousands have visited the Casa from Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Canada, South Africa and Europe.

The Casa is a mecca for healing on many levels.  João incorporates over 30 entities who were physicians, theologians, therapists, and notable figures in their lifetimes.  João sits in-entity (unconscious, taken over, or "overshadowed," by an entity from the spiritual plane) scans you, sees what you need, and uses various healing methods to help with your healing.  He receives all who queue to see him.  No matter how long the lines, no one is turned away, even if consultations must continue well into the night.  As many as 3000 per day have come.  At this writing, due to the depressed Brazilian economy, 150-300 is typical.  There is no charge for attending the Casa sessions and consulting the entities.  However, following a course of treatment at the Casa usually involves auxiliary items which cost money.

Healing is a personal and transformative process which generally unfolds over a period of time.  Your healing may be physical, emotional, mental, spiritual – or all of these.  Some people experience almost immediate healing; others recover over time, and some may require subsequent visits.

Spend as much time as you can in the current rooms in meditation and prayer.  Contemplate your healing and highest good.  Support your healing process by maintaining a positive attitude and following the simple dietary and operation-aftercare rules.

Some of the visitors have made substantial sacrifices to manage the long journey to Abadiânia.  Open your heart to them and to the divine gifts which abound in this sacred place of love and healing.

 

Among books providing information about John of God are John of God: Journey to the Spirit World (2012) by Kelsie McKinney, The Book of Miracles: The Healing Work of Joao de Deus (2000) by Josie RavenWing, and Gail Thackray's Spiritual Journeys: Visiting John of God (2012) by Gail Thackray.
  
Here is the 'news tip' I sent to The Drudge Report website after reading the articles from the links provided on December 14:

A profile article about past media coverage re: John of God is available at https://metaphysicalarticles.blogspot.com/2013/11/john-of-god-and-media.html - a knowledgeable reader is an unbiased reader.  

During the following days, new links were posted at The Drudge Report in relation to developments in the proceedings involving John of God.  Along with a few brief Reuters and Bloomberg news agency releases was a "Page Six" article link about the healer losing his "celeb following."  A December 19 Daily Mail headline is: "Supernatural' events terrify police while interrogating celebrity medium John of God over sexual abuse claims as computer 'takes on life of its own' and electrical appliances short circuit".  Also on the 19th, an AP headline gave the statement "Brazil faith healer tried to withdraw millions before arrest" with the news release consisting of six sentences:

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Court documents show that a Brazilian spiritual healer tried to withdraw nearly $9 million before surrendering to police on charges of rape.

The documents seen by The Associated Press are part of a judge's ruling rejecting bail for Joao Teixeira de Faria, who is known as Joao de Deus, or John of God.

Fagner Pinho of the prosecutor's office also said Wednesday that investigators found firearms and large quantities of cash in a house used by de Faria as a spiritual retreat.

Hundreds of people have come forward with allegations of rape and threats of violence by de Faria.  Many say they were underage at the time of the abuse.

De Faria turned himself into police on Sunday.

  

There has been no chance as of yet for João to respond to these allegations that are not explained in precise detail.

In addition to the links presented at The Drudge Report, I found an article in The New York Times that at least gave João's situation a more considerate approach considering 'rushing to conclusions': "Celebrity Healer in Brazil Is Accused of Sexually Abusing Followers".  The following is an excerpt:
 

The scandal began when several women provided similar accounts of unwanted sexual advances in interviews with a Brazilian television show that aired last weekend.

On Monday morning, dozens of other women came forward with more reports of uninvited sexual advances to news organizations and to the district attorney’s office in the state of Goiás, which set up a task force that includes five prosecutors and two psychologists.

In a day and a half, the task force received 78 complaints, said Patrícia Otoni, one of the prosecutors.  “We have a serious challenge ahead,” she said.  “We want to show the victims that they can trust us, that even someone who is famous and internationally admired can be investigated.  But we also need to analyze each complaint before rushing to conclusions.”

Mr. Faria denies the accusations, according to a spokesman, Mario Rosa, who said the mounting accusations had taken on a “lynch mob” quality.

“It’s like this person is being turned into a villain for the world to see,” Mr. Rosa said.

The article about one patient telling her abuse story offers a description of the incident of 'abuse' said to have taken place six years ago (as translated to English).  The accusation is made that the healer caught her hand and put it on his private part:  " . . .  behind.  It was hanging out of pants, limp."  Then: "I pulled my hand back.  João de Deus said that that's how it was it [the realignment (of energy)] was, that part was important."  The woman said that he tried again to put her hand on his private part.  "I  reacted.  'What's that?  This is not right.'  I turned around.  He went back to his office and sat on a couch . . ."  

 

A Washington Post article includes the statement: "More than 300 women from around the world have contacted prosecutors to accuse him of abuse, largely after Globo TV aired the stories of numerous women in Brazil’s first major #MeToo scandal, the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported.  But prosecutors told Estadão newspaper that investigators have focused on 15 cases.  Faria has denied all of the allegations."

The most outlandish news of all is presented at the conclusion of a UK The Telegraph article of  December 16, as follows:
 

Brazilian prosecutors had included his name on Interpol’s wanted list, though his lawyers were confident the medium would turn himself in.

The case came to light last Saturday when 13 women went on national television to make sexual violence accusations against the faith healer.

The Prosecution Service of the state of Goiás confirmed it has since received 355 reports of abuses committed by Mr. Teixeira from women across Brazil and abroad.

Mr. Teixeira has insisted that he is not guilty of any alleged abuse.

Among the accusers is Mr. Teixeira’s daughter, Dalva Teixeira, 49, who called her father a “monster” and alleged she was beaten and raped by the medium until she was 14 years old.

Followers of Joao Teixeira de Faria take part in a demonstration in Abadiania, Brazil.  The sign reads: "We are with you, medium Joao."  Credit: REUTERS/Adriano Machado

“He used to say that God didn’t exist, that he was God,” she told the Brazilian press.

Ms. Teixeira claimed the abuse stopped when she became pregnant by one of her father’s employees, and that the faith healer beat her and caused her to have a miscarriage.

“None of those women is lying,” said Ms. Teixeira, about those who have stepped forward and accused her father of abuse.  “I know because I went through it, I suffered.“

Many of the reports of abuse are similar, involving unaccompanied women being invited to have private spiritual treatment sessions with Mr. Teixeira, in which he allegedly forced the victims to masturbate him or perform fellatio.

Mr. Teixeira is a celebrity in Brazil and around the world for his renowned ability to perform spiritual “cures.”

In 2012, Oprah Winfrey visited Mr. Teixeira’s retreat to film an episode of her interview series Oprah’s Next Chapter, the video of which has now been taken down from the presenter's YouTube page.

Mr. Texeira “doesn’t have the physical health and emotional structure to live as a fugitive from justice,” one of his lawyers told the Brazilian press.

  

Another brief AP news story appeared on December 20 with the headline "Police Charge Brazilian Spiritual Healer".  The release mentioned: "Police say the investigations are complicated by the fact that many of the cases took place years ago.  Current law gives victims six months to report cases of abuse."

  

A Brazilian newspaper on December 21 quoted police chief Valdemir Pereira as having stated (as translated): "It's a sexual fraud.  The victim went there searching for a cure.  He took advantage of the situation, misled her and sexually abused her." 
 
What is currently happening to João is a reminder that in the court of public opinion, journalists—and law enforcement officers, for that matter—can become both jury and judge through selecting the scope of what news is relevant for promulgation. 

 

The books published about João provide answers to some of the questions about him.  Sandy Johnson wrote in The Brazilian Healer with the Kitchen Knife: and Other Stories of Mystics, Shamans and Miracle-Makers (2003) about experiencing an "invisible surgery" and learning about the early days of his mediumship —

 

. . . for the next eight years, Joao traveled from town to town, healing the sick in exchange for food and shelter.  Word of his healings spread and eventually reached the authorities.  Everywhere Joao went police found him, arrested him, threw him into prison, and beat him.  Finally, Joao took a job with the military in Brasilia as a civilian tailor where, under the army's protection, he could continue healing.  Nine years later, Joao had saved enough money to buy a small farm.  The farm turned out to be rich in minerals and gems, and in 1978 Joao was able to establish the center in Abadiania.

 
Here is a list of previous articles published at this blog about John of God:
  

"Spirituality & Health: Healing Spirits of Brazil"

"An Introduction to Healer John of God"

"John of God and the Media"

"John of God: Journey to the Spirit World"

"Taking a Closer Look at 'Unexplained Phenomena'"

Other articles have profiled the contemporary cases of another Brazilian trance healer Rubens de Faria, Jr. (1, 2, 3, 4) and that of UK trance channeler spiritual healer Ray Brown.
 

In retrospect, the inclusion of the comment from channeled communicator 'Fletcher' through Arthur Ford as quoted in the November 18 blog article is something to consider in light of the role of the media in relation to all that has recently occurred in the life of John of God:
 

You must remember that every person that comes with revelation that threatens the selfish interests of people entrenched in anything on earth is going to be persecuted.   But we know here that when a person burns another at the stake, or crucifies him or hangs him, it is because unconsciously the spirit within him is telling him that the person he is crucifying is right.  But he cannot afford to admit that because he has accepted the persecutor—the hangman—the crucifier—as maintaining traditional beliefs.

And so whenever you find anyone persecuting another person you know that the one who is persecuting is doing it in order to keep himself from admitting the truth.  And he is killing the one who threatens his security, because the inquisitor is always unsure.  He is guilty and his insecurity drives him to a frenzy — that is why you have such hatred, such strife on earth today.  People in vast numbers are clinging to things which they no longer believe.  But they have not been willing to listen.  Therefore, in their ignorance, they destroy the secure person who threatens their security.

  a photo from Gail Thackray's Spiritual Journeys: Visiting John of God: "Radiating energy after seeing John of God"