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 non-standard 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 "Satan’s deceptions in health and healing."

Noyes 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.

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