Oral Roberts

Oral Roberts is dead.

The healings finally ran out.
I'm sure Oral's ministry has helped many people.
I'm also sure that his ministry deceived a host of folks.
Anyone can stand before a large crowd and say, "Someone is being healed," -- and sure enough, some suggestible person will come forward and declare that their pain is gone or that they can now walk again.

The mind-body connection is a mysterious thing.
All some people need is for someone to tell them
they are getting better, and they will.
I don't call that a miracle,
but if you feel better, I won't take that away from you.


One of my New Testament professors in seminary told our class that if there really were someone going around bringing miraculous healings to people just like Jesus did, he would invite them to go over to the home for the blind and give all those people their sight back. But--he said--none of them ever do that.


I went to a healing service once and the preacher called me down front. I sat on the front pew while he took my feet in his hands and showed me that one leg was slightly shorter than the other. Then he prayed fervently for me and took my legs again and showed me that they were exactly equal.


Well. Later in my life I went to a chiropractor who sort of did the same thing, except he jerked my legs harder.

What I don't like about spiritual healers is that they lie.
They claim to have powers that they don't have.
They manipulate and take advantage of people.


When I was younger I used to listen to Pentecostal preachers on the radio. A common message was: Expect a miracle every day. If your life isn't filled with miraculous happenings, then there is something wrong with your faith. 
I know there are many people who want to hear that sort of thing.
They are looking for some sign of God's presence in their lives. They are looking for hope, and they will grasp hold of anything. There are enough of those kind of people around that evangelists and healers can make a nice living.


Unless we play fast and loose with the definition of 'miracle,' we shouldn't be expecting to see miraculous events often.
I know someone will say, "But I see miracles every day. Life itself is a miracle; love is a miracle; new medical treatments are miracles..." etc. Okay. But if by miracle we mean blind people suddenly see and the lame suddenly walk and the dead come back to life, well, don't expect that to happen.


Back to Oral...


He had the biggest ear lopes I've ever seen. Did you see them? 
And putting your hands on the TV -- well, that has gotten more difficult since remotes came along. We tend to sit farther away from the screen. And now with all these Big Screen TVs, we sit even farther away. I wonder if you can get healed by putting your hands on the computer screen.


It's in the quotidian that we find God.
In the ordinary.
Real spiritual living happens in the routine.
The Lord is everywhere--all the time.
God doesn't usually jump out at us like a Jack-in-the-Box.
The Holy One is more subtle.
I learned this from reading the parables of Jesus.
A sheep, a coin, a seed, yeast... a son, a farmer, a woman, a guest...
Even the wonderful healings and exorcisms that Jesus performed were parables--acted-out parables.


I'm suspicious of religious things that happen in big crowds.
It seems to me that small groups and less emotional settings
are more likely to produce authentic spiritual experiences.


I wish Oral's family God's consolation.
I also wish people would not get hooked into religion with big crowds, flashy music, and charismatic speakers. It reminds me too much of Adolf Hitler and his popularity.