June 1, 2011

Dear Members and Friends,

In our denominations we do not talk much about miracles and mysteries. Somehow that seems so un-Unitarian. Ours is the intellectual approach to the problems of the human condition. To speak of miracles indicates a lack of seriousness, and superstition. We are not impressed about miracles at sacred shrines, such as Lourdes, where miracles are proclaimed to the world.

In 1929 in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Malden, Massachusetts, it was suddenly discovered that the water at the grave of Rev. Father Patrick J. Power had healing powers. The sick came from all over the world hoping for cures. My father’s schoolchildren met the busses to sell holy water, drawn from their kitchen taps, little greedy capitalists trying to make a fortune from the gullible. The Boston Globe told daily of miraculous cures as happy people threw away crutches, eye glasses, and canes. They also threw money in large amounts. The cures seemed genuine as the Globe investigated the most dramatic cures. For a few months, Malden was the center of the world. Then came the news that the whole thing was a hoax sponsored by St. Joseph parish to raise the funds needed to complete their church which had stopped with the building of the basement. Now what of the miracle cures? Some were real as the medical investigators found!

This raises the problem of faith healing. How do such cures happen? Recent research at the University of California indicates that these healings depend on a belief. This raises a fundamental philosophical question about miracles. Or is this about the belief system of the individual? Researchers speak of the “Poppy fields” of the brain. There is a pharmacy in every brain which responds to the chemical changes in the body. It does not matter what the belief system is. The brain responds with healing chemistry.

Is this autosuggestion? Or does the brain have its own endogenous pharmacy? Where is this new knowledge leading us? I can see the day when all medical students will have required classes in theology!

Our beloved Beth Lefever received her diploma and MA in Divinity this afternoon at an impressive ceremony at First Unitarian In Chicago. Ordination will follow soon in Elkhart. Well done Beth, and blessings on your ministry!

Love,