Mar 15, 2005
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- The woman held hostage by Atlanta courthouse shooting suspect Brian Nichols gained his trust by talking with him for hours and spoke of her 5-year-old daughter in a bid to win his sympathy, she told reporters Sunday.
Nichols, 33, followed Smith into her apartment in Duluth, a suburb about 20 miles northeast of Buckhead, tied her up and threatened her life, Smith said.
"He said, 'Do you know who I am?' I said, 'No,' because he had a hat on," Smith said. "Then he took his hat off and he said, 'Now do you know who I am?' And I said, 'Yeah, I know who you are. Please don't hurt me, just please don't hurt me. I have a 5-year-old little girl.'"
Nichols bound her with masking tape, a curtain and electrical cord, Smith said.
"I kind of thought he was going to strangle me," she said. "He said, 'I'm not going to hurt you if you just do what I say. I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to hurt anybody else.'"
Smith said Nichols eventually unbound her hands and feet. She spoke with him about her desire to visit her daughter at 10 a.m. at another location.
"I asked him if I could go see her and he told me, 'No,'" she said, choking back tears. "I told him if he hurt me, my little girl wouldn't have a mommy or a daddy."
"I could kind of feel that he started to know who I was," Smith said. "He said, 'Maybe.'"
Smith's husband was stabbed four years ago and died in her arms, she told reporters. She had lived in the apartment for only two days.
Smith said she asked Nichols if she could read. She retrieved a Bible and a copy of "The Purpose-Driven Life." She said he asked her to repeat a paragraph "about what you thought your purpose in life was -- what talents were you given." (Interview with book's author)
Smith said she asked Nichols why he chose her.
"He said he thought I was an angel sent from God, and that I was his sister and he was my brother in Christ," she said. "And that he was lost, and that God led him to me to tell him that he had hurt a lot of people."
"I basically just talked to him and tried to gain his trust.
"I talked to him about my family -- things that had happened in my life. I asked him why he did what he did. And his reason was because he was a soldier."
Smith said: "He asked me what I thought he should do, and I said, 'I think you should turn yourself in. If you don't turn yourself in lots more people are going to get hurt.'"
Smith said Nichols was "overwhelmed" when she made him breakfast and that the two of them watched television coverage of the manhunt.
"I cannot believe that's me on there," Smith said Nichols told her.
"He told me, 'Look at me. Look at my eyes. I'm already dead,'" Smith said.
Smith said she told him that it was a "miracle" he had survived.
"You need to go to prison and share the word of God with all the prisoners there," Smith said she told Nichols.
Smith said Nichols allowed her to leave to visit her daughter about 9:30 a.m. and he gave her money, saying he was going to stay at her apartment for "a few days."
Nichols had stored his weapons under a bed by the time Smith left, she said.
She dialed 911 about 9:50 a.m., law enforcement sources said.
After a SWAT team surrounded the building at the Bridgewater Apartments, Nichols surrendered. He was taken into custody about 11:24 a.m.
A $60,000 reward had been posted for Nichols' capture. Authorities said Saturday they did not yet know if Smith would be eligible for that money
CNN.com - 'I felt really, really scared' - Mar 15, 2005
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Everything on this Earth has a purpose
Wednesday, March 16, 2005 Posted: 3:48 PM EST (2048 GMT)
(CNN) -- Ashley Smith said she read to murder suspect Brian Nichols from a book called "The Purpose Driven Life" while held hostage Saturday in her apartment northeast of Atlanta, Georgia.
The book's author, the Rev. Rick Warren, appeared on CNN's "Larry King Live" on November 22. Here are excerpts from Warren's appearance:
LARRY KING: What led to writing [the book]?
WARREN: I just think, as I speak with people, there's a fundamental need. It's like -- this is the basic question of life. Why am I here? Why am I here?
Actually it comes out in three questions. Existence -- why am I alive? It comes out in purpose -- what is my purpose? And it comes out in significance -- does my life matter?
I think everybody at some point kind of lays their head down on the pillow and goes, what's this all about?
KING: Did it take off right away?
WARREN: Yes, it did. It actually -- we actually pre-sold half a million copies before it hit the market.
KING: Was it originally considered the Christian book sales?
WARREN: Yes, that's a big surprise. ... You know, I'm a pastor. And so I thought I was writing for church members, Christians, things like that.
This book has enormous crossover, and everybody's reading it.
Lessons but not self-help
KING: Does that mean that a Jew, a Muslim, an agnostic, an atheist could benefit from this book?
WARREN: If that's the question, sure. Anybody can benefit from it. In fact, the other day I heard about a story of a lady who was at a Little League game. She was Jewish and the lady sitting next to her was a Muslim. The Jewish lady was reading "Purpose Driven Life," and the other lady next to her said, "What are you reading?" She said, "I'm reading 'Purpose Driven Life,' " She said, "I'd like to read it, too." She said, "Well, take mine, I'll get another copy." And I thought, "OK, here's a Christian pastor writing a book that a Jewish lady is passing on to a Muslim lady."
KING: It is not, you have said, a how-to book this, right. What is it?
WARREN: Well, it's not self-help. Self-help ...
KING: It's lessons though.
WARREN: It is lessons. It's helpful. The bottom line, if I were to hold up an invention and I were to say, what's the purpose of this? You'd never seen it before. You wouldn't know what its purpose is. The only way you'd know the purpose is to either ask the inventor, who made it, the creator, or you read an owner's manual. And I think the same thing's true with us.
I think everybody wants to know their purpose in life. If you read most self-help books, they fundamentally will say things like, "Make up your purpose. Figure out your purpose. Look for your purpose." And the big one is, "Look within." It's kind of like -- "Trust the force, Luke." You know, "Look within." When I looked within, I didn't like what I saw. You know, I just got confused. The truth is, I didn't create me, so I can't tell me what my purpose is.
KING: How do you know who created you?
WARREN: Well, I believe God created me.
KING: You believe that. How do you know it?
WARREN: Well, you know, I have to say that I first accepted it on faith. And then I went through a doubting period where I really doubted, do I really believe in God? And then now, first my own personal relationship, the experiences I've had, and then seeing it happen in literally tens of thousands of other lives.
KING: Why do you believe that God is a Christian God?
WARREN: Well, the question, the bottom line is this -- every religion is mutually exclusive. The problem today, Larry, is not unbelief. The problem is today everyone wants to believe everything. They want to believe it all. I want to believe in reincarnation and heaven. Those are mutually exclusive things. I want to believe in Elvis, and I want to believe in Jesus -- those are mutually exclusive. And the truth is, it is all matter of faith. At some point you have to step.
KING: There's a leap.
WARREN: There is a leap of faith. And I just wish somebody had told me when I was younger that I could have doubts and still believe. This is a big deal. That I didn't have to have all my doubts resolved to believe.
I have to say there's a story in the Bible where Jesus is walking down the street, and a guy comes up to him, he's got a daughter who's sick. And Jesus goes -- he goes, "I need you to heal my daughter." And Jesus said, "Do you believe I can heal her?" And he goes, "I want to believe. Help me with my doubt." And Jesus goes, "That's good enough," and he heals his girl. So, to even say to God, "OK, God I want to believe." You know what -- I've been a pastor now, Larry, for 25 years. There are still things in the Bible I can't figure out. I look at them and go, "Why in the world did God do that?" You know, it doesn't make sense.
Charges of commercialism
KING: There are some critics of you.
WARREN: Sure.
KING: One accused you of commercializing Christianity. A Time magazine article quoted fundamental Bible church pastor Dennis Costello who said, "The purpose-driven ministry is a marketing strategy. We believe the Bible tells us to present the word of God without packaging it for contemporary cultural context." ... How do you respond to that?
WARREN: Well, first place, I don't even know this church. I mean, you know, you can find a critic anywhere. But I liked what The New York Times said about me. It said, you know, marketers create a message in order to market. Warren creates tools in order to create a message, in order to propel a message. And that's it.
If you talked about getting the message out, I'm going to use every way possible. Because I really do believe that we have a positive message. There's a lot of negativity in the world. I mean, we've been through this [presidential] election, the nation's divided. And I just think that the positive message that you're not an accident. I don't believe anybody's an accident. I believe that everything on this Earth has a purpose. Every rock, every tree and every human being. If your heart's beating, you've got a purpose.
Now, there may be accidental parents. OK? But I don't think there are accidental kids. I think that there is a God. And I think that that God even takes into account our mistakes, our errors.
KING: Is he judging you, too?
WARREN: Even our sins. God sets the rules. But God also forgives. And that's what the whole good news is about. The good news is that heaven is a perfect place. And that means only perfect people get to go there. Well, I stopped batting 1.000 a long time ago. Like, year one.
The worst sin
KING: You believe in sin?
WARREN: Of course I do. I do it all the time.
KING: Is a gay person a sinner?
WARREN: I think a gay person is a sinner just like I'm a sinner. I don't think ...
KING: No different from your sin?
WARREN: Oh, I think the worst sin is pride. In fact, the Bible says it. The Bible says that pride is the worst sin. It is, as the Bible says, it's the sin that got Satan kicked out of heaven. It's the sin that caused Nebuchadnezzar to lose his kingdom, and King Herod and a bunch of others. Pride goes before destruction.
Because pride is basically saying, "I'm in charge." The middle letter of pride is I, and the middle letter of sin is I ...
One of the things ... is we're in a narcissistic culture, that basically says, "It's all about me. I need to do what I want to do. I want to have what I want to have. I want to be what I want to be." It's a very self-centered culture. And that's why I think one of the things about the book that took off, it's kind of a slap in the face, because the first line of the book says, "It's not about you."
Now, I don't know a self-help book in the world that starts with, "It's not about you." But every other book on self-help will basically say, "It's all about you. It's all about your needs, your dreams, your desires."
KING: Is organized religion part of the problem?
WARREN: Well, it certainly can be. I think anything organized can get -- at our church, we have disorganized religion. I'm not that organized.
But a lot of things again are done in the name of religion ... that are not -- have -- don't have anything to do with Jesus Christ. OK? And don't have anything to do with faith or forgiveness or all these other things in life.
You know, everybody's life is driven by something. That's why I called this book "The Purpose Driven Life." Some people are driven by fear. You know people like this. They are driven by the opinions of others. They live for the expectations of their parent or husband or boyfriend or something like that.
Some people are driven by worry. They're driven by guilt. They're driven by shame. Some people are driven by loneliness. And I don't think God wants any of our lives to be driven by these things. I think the bottom line is that we were put on Earth for a purpose.
Part of that purpose is to know God and then part of that purpose is to help other people.
... God and the needs of people inspired me to write the book. It took me about seven months. And between December of 19 -- excuse me 2001 -- and July of 2002, I spent 12 hours a day in a little room writing. I'd get up at about 4:30 in the morning and work to 5 the next day. And I only spoke twice in my church -- I did Christmas and Easter -- and really focused on the book.
CNN.com - Author: 'Everything on this Earth has a purpose' - Mar 15, 2005
(CNN) -- Ashley Smith said she read to murder suspect Brian Nichols from a book called "The Purpose Driven Life" while held hostage Saturday in her apartment northeast of Atlanta, Georgia.
The book's author, the Rev. Rick Warren, appeared on CNN's "Larry King Live" on November 22. Here are excerpts from Warren's appearance:
LARRY KING: What led to writing [the book]?
WARREN: I just think, as I speak with people, there's a fundamental need. It's like -- this is the basic question of life. Why am I here? Why am I here?
Actually it comes out in three questions. Existence -- why am I alive? It comes out in purpose -- what is my purpose? And it comes out in significance -- does my life matter?
I think everybody at some point kind of lays their head down on the pillow and goes, what's this all about?
KING: Did it take off right away?
WARREN: Yes, it did. It actually -- we actually pre-sold half a million copies before it hit the market.
KING: Was it originally considered the Christian book sales?
WARREN: Yes, that's a big surprise. ... You know, I'm a pastor. And so I thought I was writing for church members, Christians, things like that.
This book has enormous crossover, and everybody's reading it.
Lessons but not self-help
KING: Does that mean that a Jew, a Muslim, an agnostic, an atheist could benefit from this book?
WARREN: If that's the question, sure. Anybody can benefit from it. In fact, the other day I heard about a story of a lady who was at a Little League game. She was Jewish and the lady sitting next to her was a Muslim. The Jewish lady was reading "Purpose Driven Life," and the other lady next to her said, "What are you reading?" She said, "I'm reading 'Purpose Driven Life,' " She said, "I'd like to read it, too." She said, "Well, take mine, I'll get another copy." And I thought, "OK, here's a Christian pastor writing a book that a Jewish lady is passing on to a Muslim lady."
KING: It is not, you have said, a how-to book this, right. What is it?
WARREN: Well, it's not self-help. Self-help ...
KING: It's lessons though.
WARREN: It is lessons. It's helpful. The bottom line, if I were to hold up an invention and I were to say, what's the purpose of this? You'd never seen it before. You wouldn't know what its purpose is. The only way you'd know the purpose is to either ask the inventor, who made it, the creator, or you read an owner's manual. And I think the same thing's true with us.
I think everybody wants to know their purpose in life. If you read most self-help books, they fundamentally will say things like, "Make up your purpose. Figure out your purpose. Look for your purpose." And the big one is, "Look within." It's kind of like -- "Trust the force, Luke." You know, "Look within." When I looked within, I didn't like what I saw. You know, I just got confused. The truth is, I didn't create me, so I can't tell me what my purpose is.
KING: How do you know who created you?
WARREN: Well, I believe God created me.
KING: You believe that. How do you know it?
WARREN: Well, you know, I have to say that I first accepted it on faith. And then I went through a doubting period where I really doubted, do I really believe in God? And then now, first my own personal relationship, the experiences I've had, and then seeing it happen in literally tens of thousands of other lives.
KING: Why do you believe that God is a Christian God?
WARREN: Well, the question, the bottom line is this -- every religion is mutually exclusive. The problem today, Larry, is not unbelief. The problem is today everyone wants to believe everything. They want to believe it all. I want to believe in reincarnation and heaven. Those are mutually exclusive things. I want to believe in Elvis, and I want to believe in Jesus -- those are mutually exclusive. And the truth is, it is all matter of faith. At some point you have to step.
KING: There's a leap.
WARREN: There is a leap of faith. And I just wish somebody had told me when I was younger that I could have doubts and still believe. This is a big deal. That I didn't have to have all my doubts resolved to believe.
I have to say there's a story in the Bible where Jesus is walking down the street, and a guy comes up to him, he's got a daughter who's sick. And Jesus goes -- he goes, "I need you to heal my daughter." And Jesus said, "Do you believe I can heal her?" And he goes, "I want to believe. Help me with my doubt." And Jesus goes, "That's good enough," and he heals his girl. So, to even say to God, "OK, God I want to believe." You know what -- I've been a pastor now, Larry, for 25 years. There are still things in the Bible I can't figure out. I look at them and go, "Why in the world did God do that?" You know, it doesn't make sense.
Charges of commercialism
KING: There are some critics of you.
WARREN: Sure.
KING: One accused you of commercializing Christianity. A Time magazine article quoted fundamental Bible church pastor Dennis Costello who said, "The purpose-driven ministry is a marketing strategy. We believe the Bible tells us to present the word of God without packaging it for contemporary cultural context." ... How do you respond to that?
WARREN: Well, first place, I don't even know this church. I mean, you know, you can find a critic anywhere. But I liked what The New York Times said about me. It said, you know, marketers create a message in order to market. Warren creates tools in order to create a message, in order to propel a message. And that's it.
If you talked about getting the message out, I'm going to use every way possible. Because I really do believe that we have a positive message. There's a lot of negativity in the world. I mean, we've been through this [presidential] election, the nation's divided. And I just think that the positive message that you're not an accident. I don't believe anybody's an accident. I believe that everything on this Earth has a purpose. Every rock, every tree and every human being. If your heart's beating, you've got a purpose.
Now, there may be accidental parents. OK? But I don't think there are accidental kids. I think that there is a God. And I think that that God even takes into account our mistakes, our errors.
KING: Is he judging you, too?
WARREN: Even our sins. God sets the rules. But God also forgives. And that's what the whole good news is about. The good news is that heaven is a perfect place. And that means only perfect people get to go there. Well, I stopped batting 1.000 a long time ago. Like, year one.
The worst sin
KING: You believe in sin?
WARREN: Of course I do. I do it all the time.
KING: Is a gay person a sinner?
WARREN: I think a gay person is a sinner just like I'm a sinner. I don't think ...
KING: No different from your sin?
WARREN: Oh, I think the worst sin is pride. In fact, the Bible says it. The Bible says that pride is the worst sin. It is, as the Bible says, it's the sin that got Satan kicked out of heaven. It's the sin that caused Nebuchadnezzar to lose his kingdom, and King Herod and a bunch of others. Pride goes before destruction.
Because pride is basically saying, "I'm in charge." The middle letter of pride is I, and the middle letter of sin is I ...
One of the things ... is we're in a narcissistic culture, that basically says, "It's all about me. I need to do what I want to do. I want to have what I want to have. I want to be what I want to be." It's a very self-centered culture. And that's why I think one of the things about the book that took off, it's kind of a slap in the face, because the first line of the book says, "It's not about you."
Now, I don't know a self-help book in the world that starts with, "It's not about you." But every other book on self-help will basically say, "It's all about you. It's all about your needs, your dreams, your desires."
KING: Is organized religion part of the problem?
WARREN: Well, it certainly can be. I think anything organized can get -- at our church, we have disorganized religion. I'm not that organized.
But a lot of things again are done in the name of religion ... that are not -- have -- don't have anything to do with Jesus Christ. OK? And don't have anything to do with faith or forgiveness or all these other things in life.
You know, everybody's life is driven by something. That's why I called this book "The Purpose Driven Life." Some people are driven by fear. You know people like this. They are driven by the opinions of others. They live for the expectations of their parent or husband or boyfriend or something like that.
Some people are driven by worry. They're driven by guilt. They're driven by shame. Some people are driven by loneliness. And I don't think God wants any of our lives to be driven by these things. I think the bottom line is that we were put on Earth for a purpose.
Part of that purpose is to know God and then part of that purpose is to help other people.
... God and the needs of people inspired me to write the book. It took me about seven months. And between December of 19 -- excuse me 2001 -- and July of 2002, I spent 12 hours a day in a little room writing. I'd get up at about 4:30 in the morning and work to 5 the next day. And I only spoke twice in my church -- I did Christmas and Easter -- and really focused on the book.
CNN.com - Author: 'Everything on this Earth has a purpose' - Mar 15, 2005
Friday, March 04, 2005
People Say They Were Cured by Faith Healings
Woman Told She Was Going To Die Says She Was Healed
CLEVELAND -- An unprecedented number of faith healings are taking place in Cleveland-area churches at a faster pace than ever before.
Many Clevelanders say they've been healed as a result of healing miracles, reported WEWS-TV in Cleveland.
Those claiming to be healed include prominent doctors, media personalities and people from other states. What they have in common is that each of them say they have received some sort of physical transformation through the power of prayer.
The hands-on healing services frequently run nine hours. Often, there are more than 1,000 people attending.
Liz Simmons finally saw one of the healers after more than 20 years of multiple sclerosis.
"So I saw him the following week, and that week I was healed of the MS," Simmons said. "I do not have MS anymore."
"I had a ruptured disc in my neck, and I had been scheduled for surgery at the hospital," Zinn said.
He never had his surgery. Zinn said was healed spiritually by Dr. Issam Nemeh, one of the members of the healing team.
"He said, 'Do you believe in God'? I said, 'I do,'" Zinn said. "He said, 'Do you believe that God could heal you'? I said, 'I could save you some time here, I believe in a God that could put man on earth, that allows the birds in the sky and who allows the grass to grow. Yes, I believe that all things are possible.' And he said, 'Well, this won't take very long.'"
In minutes, Zinn said, he was healed.
The healers travel from church to church. No money is ever accepted. No one is ever refused.
The trend is causing a stir among medical doctors. Some dismiss the accounts altogether, some say it's a placebo effect, but others within the medical profession are more open to the idea.
"I had a ruptured disc in my neck, and I had been scheduled for surgery at the hospital," Zinn said.
He never had his surgery. Zinn said was healed spiritually by Dr. Issam Nemeh, one of the members of the healing team.
"He said, 'Do you believe in God'? I said, 'I do,'" Zinn said. "He said, 'Do you believe that God could heal you'? I said, 'I could save you some time here, I believe in a God that could put man on earth, that allows the birds in the sky and who allows the grass to grow. Yes, I believe that all things are possible.' And he said, 'Well, this won't take very long.'"
In minutes, Zinn said, he was healed.
The healers travel from church to church. No money is ever accepted. No one is ever refused.
The trend is causing a stir among medical doctors. Some dismiss the accounts altogether, some say it's a placebo effect, but others within the medical profession are more open to the idea.
Dr. Scot Remick at the Ireland Cancer Center at University Hospitals in Cleveland is careful not to judge it.
"I've certainly been around long enough in the practice of medicine taking care of cancer patients that in many scenarios, obviously they're infrequent, but you do see miracle cases, miracle outcomes," Remick said.
He said medicine is now re-evaluating alternative healings -- such as the power of prayer -- as never before, and that he personally would never discourage his patients from it.
"Most of my colleagues have been in practice for many, many years and have what they call miracle patients," Remick said. "Things happen for sometimes unexplained reasons, and I am not here to second guess that."
Some doctors report spiritual healings of their own. Dr. Michael Hudec, of Parma, Ohio, once had cancer.
"But something powerful happened. I always heard of laying on of hands and falling in the spirit and I was a naysayer," Hudec said. "You know, in science, as a doctor, you always kind of question stuff like that until you experience it firsthand."
Hudec believes he was cured of testicular cancer by Sister Monica of the healing team. As proof, he points to children he was never supposed to have, and he thanks the nun.
"She doesn't know it. You know, I don't know her personally, but she is a miracle worker," Hudec said.
And another person who benefited by the miracle workers was Jill Mierau, who was dying in the final stages of cancer.
"By the time I came here, my cancer had so progressed, the lungs were infected, I was on oxygen, and you know, the pain was really bad," Mierau said. "I was on an extreme amount of narcotics for pain relief,"
Mierau's doctor said there was nothing more to do. She was given two months to live.
"She said, 'Get your house in order,'" Mierau said. "I planned the funeral, bought the grave, did the whole shabang. By May of last year, I was supposed to be dead."
But after coming to the healers, Mierau weaned herself away from most of her medications. She said her great pain is gone. She no longer needs oxygen, and the sole focus of her attention now is her 10-year-old daughter, Ashley, who gave her a necklace.
"So that represents my daughter, if that means anything," Mierau said. "My daughter says to me, 'Mom, what more do you need? You always tell me you need Jesus. So that's what you need, then.'"
She was helped both at the healing church services and at Nemeh's office. Mierau has come a long way since last year. Now, she wants to bring her out-of-town aunt who has fourth-stage cancer to the services. And Mierau wants others to know that she is still alive.
"I wish I could tell everybody, because it's such a wonderful feeling to still be here to know that my life has meaning again," Mierau said. "I am not done yet. You know, I am not done. I have a lot to do yet. I have a 10-year-old girl that I know just needs me."
Like many others who said they've been healed, Mierau continues to attend the healing services for the purpose of being spiritually supportive of others.
foxreno.com - Health - People Say They Were Cured by Faith Healings
CLEVELAND -- An unprecedented number of faith healings are taking place in Cleveland-area churches at a faster pace than ever before.
Many Clevelanders say they've been healed as a result of healing miracles, reported WEWS-TV in Cleveland.
Those claiming to be healed include prominent doctors, media personalities and people from other states. What they have in common is that each of them say they have received some sort of physical transformation through the power of prayer.
The hands-on healing services frequently run nine hours. Often, there are more than 1,000 people attending.
Liz Simmons finally saw one of the healers after more than 20 years of multiple sclerosis.
"So I saw him the following week, and that week I was healed of the MS," Simmons said. "I do not have MS anymore."
"I had a ruptured disc in my neck, and I had been scheduled for surgery at the hospital," Zinn said.
He never had his surgery. Zinn said was healed spiritually by Dr. Issam Nemeh, one of the members of the healing team.
"He said, 'Do you believe in God'? I said, 'I do,'" Zinn said. "He said, 'Do you believe that God could heal you'? I said, 'I could save you some time here, I believe in a God that could put man on earth, that allows the birds in the sky and who allows the grass to grow. Yes, I believe that all things are possible.' And he said, 'Well, this won't take very long.'"
In minutes, Zinn said, he was healed.
The healers travel from church to church. No money is ever accepted. No one is ever refused.
The trend is causing a stir among medical doctors. Some dismiss the accounts altogether, some say it's a placebo effect, but others within the medical profession are more open to the idea.
"I had a ruptured disc in my neck, and I had been scheduled for surgery at the hospital," Zinn said.
He never had his surgery. Zinn said was healed spiritually by Dr. Issam Nemeh, one of the members of the healing team.
"He said, 'Do you believe in God'? I said, 'I do,'" Zinn said. "He said, 'Do you believe that God could heal you'? I said, 'I could save you some time here, I believe in a God that could put man on earth, that allows the birds in the sky and who allows the grass to grow. Yes, I believe that all things are possible.' And he said, 'Well, this won't take very long.'"
In minutes, Zinn said, he was healed.
The healers travel from church to church. No money is ever accepted. No one is ever refused.
The trend is causing a stir among medical doctors. Some dismiss the accounts altogether, some say it's a placebo effect, but others within the medical profession are more open to the idea.
Dr. Scot Remick at the Ireland Cancer Center at University Hospitals in Cleveland is careful not to judge it.
"I've certainly been around long enough in the practice of medicine taking care of cancer patients that in many scenarios, obviously they're infrequent, but you do see miracle cases, miracle outcomes," Remick said.
He said medicine is now re-evaluating alternative healings -- such as the power of prayer -- as never before, and that he personally would never discourage his patients from it.
"Most of my colleagues have been in practice for many, many years and have what they call miracle patients," Remick said. "Things happen for sometimes unexplained reasons, and I am not here to second guess that."
Some doctors report spiritual healings of their own. Dr. Michael Hudec, of Parma, Ohio, once had cancer.
"But something powerful happened. I always heard of laying on of hands and falling in the spirit and I was a naysayer," Hudec said. "You know, in science, as a doctor, you always kind of question stuff like that until you experience it firsthand."
Hudec believes he was cured of testicular cancer by Sister Monica of the healing team. As proof, he points to children he was never supposed to have, and he thanks the nun.
"She doesn't know it. You know, I don't know her personally, but she is a miracle worker," Hudec said.
And another person who benefited by the miracle workers was Jill Mierau, who was dying in the final stages of cancer.
"By the time I came here, my cancer had so progressed, the lungs were infected, I was on oxygen, and you know, the pain was really bad," Mierau said. "I was on an extreme amount of narcotics for pain relief,"
Mierau's doctor said there was nothing more to do. She was given two months to live.
"She said, 'Get your house in order,'" Mierau said. "I planned the funeral, bought the grave, did the whole shabang. By May of last year, I was supposed to be dead."
But after coming to the healers, Mierau weaned herself away from most of her medications. She said her great pain is gone. She no longer needs oxygen, and the sole focus of her attention now is her 10-year-old daughter, Ashley, who gave her a necklace.
"So that represents my daughter, if that means anything," Mierau said. "My daughter says to me, 'Mom, what more do you need? You always tell me you need Jesus. So that's what you need, then.'"
She was helped both at the healing church services and at Nemeh's office. Mierau has come a long way since last year. Now, she wants to bring her out-of-town aunt who has fourth-stage cancer to the services. And Mierau wants others to know that she is still alive.
"I wish I could tell everybody, because it's such a wonderful feeling to still be here to know that my life has meaning again," Mierau said. "I am not done yet. You know, I am not done. I have a lot to do yet. I have a 10-year-old girl that I know just needs me."
Like many others who said they've been healed, Mierau continues to attend the healing services for the purpose of being spiritually supportive of others.
foxreno.com - Health - People Say They Were Cured by Faith Healings
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