Alternative and Mystical Healing Therapies

Are They Medically Sound & Spiritually Safe?? (2015)  pp. 396
Author:  Edwin A. Noyes M.D., MPH

Critique:

Alternative & Mystical Healing Therapies:
Are They Medically Sound & Spiritually Safe?
Edwin A. Noyes, MD., M.PH., Xlibris, Bloomington, IN, 2015

It’s Not Quite All Hokus-Pokus

With one close relative of mine involved with yoga, two others with acupuncture, and still remembering my mother administering ‘cupping’ on my dad’s back when he had a doozer of a cold, I wanted to see what the medical profession had to say about these and other alternative and mystical healing therapies. Edwin Noyes’ book was just the ticket.  Not only does it explain in detail what the mainline medical practitioners believe with respect to such therapies, but also describes the results of research carried out with regards to each type.

But Noyes went one step further as far as I was concerned. Writing as a Christian, he interweaves his understanding of what God and the Bible have to say on mystical healing therapies, carefully pointing out the dangers for the Christian believer.

Noyes is a balanced writer, pointing out that there are alternative & mystical therapies that actually do work, if not for everybody, for some. So, yes, there is power in many of these alternatives to scientific medical treatment.  What worries Noyes and should worry us is the source of that power. Taking us back to the very beginning, this former U.S. Army physician and surgeon explains how evil does not want to defeat good in direct combat, but rather achieves its goal by convincing us to blend the “good” in such a way with itself so that the evil is often not even recognized and lingers around to create havoc for mankind.

The book is also very historical in nature introducing us to three world centers and periods of medical influence.  Also, specific categories of therapy are described starting with their origin, the growth of their influence, as well as their modern age status and acceptance by the world including segments of the medical profession.

It turns out, as the author very successfully shows, that the “New Age” treatments are anything but new. Rather, they are a return to the “Ancient Age” of Eastern mysticism and beliefs held during the period prior to sound medical science and research. Most of the ancient Eastern religions and their origins play a prominent part in today’s alternative ‘healing’ therapies. Noyes also gives us evidence in writing of how the promoters of such therapies, in order to succeed in the West, keep quiet about their link to their religious or mystical sources and proudly claim they don’t have to refer to them.  They know the spiritual effect will impact a participant over time without his knowing it.  And before one knows, the idea that we all are, or can be, gods, will entice us to continue pursuing that state of perfect balance that each therapy claims as a condition of good health. For example, as you study and focus on the physical yoga position, you will eventually be ready to investigate the spiritual component, which is the “entire essence of the subject”.

The list of therapies and practices covered is long. Noyes also focuses of the various requirements for magnetism, energy flows, thought processes, etc. required by most of them. He examines each and shares documented evidence which points to the fact that almost all are not effective as real alternative healing remedies – most having the same or less impact than placebos.

What surprises him is how many of these (yoga being the prime example, but there are others) are thriving in the Christian church; some with the blessing of some well-known pastors. Outside the Church, he takes on and exposes the likes of Deepak Chopra and Dr. Oz.  He reserves even greater arguments for acupuncture, reflexology, and visualization techniques that are used widely today; the latter often in corporate business settings.

I remember several decades ago being in hospital with pericarditis (an infection and inflammation of the lining around the heart) and going through some pretty rough nights. One of the nurses practiced (without my consent) what was quite common in those days – the Therapeutic Touch therapy. Some of you may remember it or experienced it. Noyes explains it well. I can assure you, that is not what healed me.

And just when you thought the things you were allowing in your life may have escaped Noyes’ criticism, up come sections on herbology and flower therapy, crystals, homeopathy, divination, hypnosis, and biofeedback.

Let me conclude with one quote near the end of the book:

“This book does not present the idea that these methods do not work. The purpose of the book is to help us in answering the questions ‘Who makes it work?’ and “What power is behind it?’”

You’ll need to come to your own conclusion. But the book will stay on my reference shelf as an excellent tool to turn to for details about anything any one of my children, grandchildren, friends, or clients throw at me in support of why they swear by these alternative and mystical healing therapies.

• By Ken B. Godevenos, President, Accord Resolutions Services Inc., Toronto, Ontario, May 13, 2016. www.accordconsulting.com

Purchase:

http://www.edwinnoyes.com/book/ ; Amazon; Barnes and Noble

http://homewardpublishingministries.com

Additional endorsements:

Endorsement by Rick Howard
Alternative and Mystical Healing Therapies:
Are They Medically Sound and Spiritually Safe??

I had the pleasure and good fortune of meeting Dr. Edwin Noyes a number of years ago in Atlanta, Georgia. We sat together and shared our ministries, and have since come to highly respect one another. Our ministries are, in a way very similar; mine, being more specific and focusing on the use of spiritualism incorporated in the use of specific teachings that many Protestant churches have adopted. Dr. Noyes, on the other hand has done a far more exhaustive study on the various types of spiritualistic methods used through many different healing avenues, all dangerously deceptive, and ultimately leading to the disaster of the spiritual life.

Dr. Noyes asked me to share a little of my past experience. Prior to my own conversion, I searched for years through many of those “avenues” mentioned above; spirit mediums, Sylva Mind Control, Edgar Cayce Society, and on and on, reading and studying the various methods that use the supernatural, since this is what was occurring in my life. Not having a biblical back ground at the time, I did not know of the warnings that existed in scripture, so my search led me through the various religions and philosophies that incorporated what I knew and was sure of – the supernatural. I knew it was real.

I dabbled in many of the uses of the supernatural from automatic writing to astral projection and psychic phenomena, even to the extent of being trained as a spirit medium. This is where God finally intervened. For years I had been praying every day for two things I could not seem to find, yet desired more than anything else – to understand the reason we exist, and how to gain victory over those things in my life I knew were sinful. God led in a way that would not allow victory until He finally led me to the only solution, the power of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

After about a year of being disciples of the well-known guru, Sri Chinmoy, spiritual leader for the United Nations in New York, God finally led Rosalie and me out of the quagmire of the occult and Eastern Religions into His light. Disheartened once again, both of us desperately and totally surrendered to God, pleading for Him to lead us to the truth because we were unable to find it on our own. This was a true surrender on our part, one in which we were ready to surrender all dabbling with the supernatural, which allowed God to pull us out of that trap; a trap that many never escape from. Thank God for what He did for us as He providentially had me get a new job, and need to move – right next door to the minister who studied with us for the next year, leading us into a saving relationship with Lord. We were baptized and eventually called into the ministry, where we served the Lord for the last 40 years.

I want to add a fact about these deceptions God delivered us from. We erroneously believed that we had the power to extract the truth from the mixture of truth and error that we were exposed to. We were wrong and learned that when you engage these powers deceiving you, you are constantly under their control and cannot discern truth from error. This is extremely important to understand because many who advocate these methods believe in this false and incorrect dynamic, falling for this error in thinking. I share this testimony so others who may be caught in this trap will see that if we are willing to flee from the deceptive teachings of spiritualism, something very difficult for some, God can and will deliver us, and that we need to understand that God would not have us practice separating the truth from the error in these teachings, for as long as we continue to listen to these false and deceptive theories, our minds will continue to be under the influence of the evil powers that espouse them. Like it or not, for this reason, we should not continue to study or listen, but need to altogether flee from every aspect of these teachings.

Getting back to Dr. Noyes book, I want to point out what an excellent and unique work he does of unfolding how demonic supernatural power is what is behind most methods and techniques of not only the healing arts, but all other supernatural traps used by the powers of darkness, from martial arts to mind control, yoga and all the modern arts involving energy manipulation. He exposes how it is the belief in pantheism that lies at the heart of most of these deceptions, also expertly outlining the use of these powers throughout history, from the earlier eastern religions all the way down to the world we live in today. He reveals the almost universal deception, the idea that each of us is simply a projection of – and actually consist of, “God” one of the most dangerous and invasive of these theories. If we make this revolutionary false discovery, that we are “God,” the natural conclusion is that all we need do to have infinite supernatural power at our fingertips, is exercise that power that is naturally within each of This “God” within us is often referred to in the occult religions and philosophies as the “Universal Subconscious Mind,” and is the basis of all the deception Dr. Noyes is able to expose, and in which he has done an excellent work in the writing of Alternative & Mystical Healing Therapies: Are They Medically Sound and/or Spiritually Safe?

I would recommend this book to all whose lives touch in any way, or have any connection with those who are influenced by the use of energy above and beyond what comes naturally through methods that are not supernatural or fully understood. Those working in the healing arts, such as massage therapists, chiropractors, physical therapists, or any who use arts that manipulate energy in the new techniques that are being devised daily, need to have this book in their library, and that is – in my opinion, without exception. Thank you Dr. Noyes for the time you dedicated to give the world a warning desperately needed.

Pastor Rick Howard

Review by Premium US Reviews

The objective of this book is to present information that will enable the reader to differentiate between therapy which follows the known physical and chemical laws (God’s system) and the system of the great deceiver. This examination of myriad medical and spiritual healing systems reaches back into ancient religions and cults, as well as up to the present day, into New Age and other philosophies that lay claim to non-scientific cures through dubious mental, physical, and magical practices. The author, Edwin Noyes, a retired physician who has done medical missionary work and conducts seminars on nutrition and preventive medicine, believes that human beings are easily deceived. Each step toward a nonstandard method or technique offering relief from pain, illness, or anxiety is a step away from the truth of Christianity.

Noyes expends considerable effort exploring these alternative therapies, including Reiki, transcendental meditation, Rolfing, reflexology, therapeutic touch, shiatsu, homeopathy, aromatherapy, and others. For example, in speaking of mindfulness, a kind of meditative state first promulgated by the Buddha, Noyes notes that its goal is not thinking, making the mind a blank, so that it can be influenced and/or controlled by occult forces.

Noyes firmly believes that conventional scientific methods are most closely aligned with the laws of God and least likely to lead to false thinking and presents his information in an orderly, logical way, citing many useful sources and providing a helpful glossary.

Having worked overseas in Vietnam and Thailand, he has observed firsthand some of the spiritual healing practices he delineates in this thoughtful and thought-provoking work. Though some readers may feel uncomfortable with his basic premise, the unique and ultimate supremacy of the Christian message, there is no doubt that his views are sincerely held and carefully researched. The author’s Christian beliefs have informed this book, which seeks to inform readers of the dangers of alternative medical practices and lead them back to more orthodox and scientific methods.

This review was written by a professional book reviewer with no guarantee that it would receive a positive rating. Some authors pay a small fee to have a book reviewed, while others do not. All reviews are approximately half summary and half criticism. The US Review of Books is dedicated to providing fair and honest coverage to all books.