Lynne McTaggart

Some people believe in the power of prayer. Others don't. Those who don't are perhaps more likely to put their faith in science. So Lynn McTaggart's scientific approach to prayer in “The Power of Eight” (2017) may come as surprise.

McTaggart, who begins by describing herself as "a hard-nosed reporter," more often uses the term intention than prayer, perhaps to give her work a more scientific air. Her thesis is that a group of people — eight being an ideal number, she finds, though show more sometimes her groups number in the thousands — can lead to physical healing, decreased crime rates, improved relationships and even peace in war zones when everyone intends at the same time that such things take place.

Her early work took the form of actual scientific experiments, complete with control groups. Her groups intended that certain plants grow at a faster rate than other plants, and that is exactly what happened. In what she calls the Peace Intention Experiment, a large number of people around the world all focusing on peace in Sri Lanka at the same time led to a sudden decrease in hostilities there in 2008. "This was like entering another dimension," she writes.

The author reports scores of positive results from her Power of Eight groups. Here is a partial list: "Kristi's digestive issues disappeared; Marie began attracting new tax clients with no effort; Bev reconciled with her estranged brothers; Iris's chronic congestion began clearing up; Martha's insomnia completely resolved." Individually none of these occurrences could be described necessarily as a miracle. Taken as a group these and countless other examples make one wonder.

Yet the benefits of intention or prayer fall not just on the targets of these intentions and prayers but also on members of those groups. She calls it the Mirror Effect. "Focusing on healing someone else brings on a mirrored blessing." It helps explain, she writes, why people who attend church services regularly on average live seven years longer than those who don't.

Hers is a remarkable book, one that will tempt readers to conduct their own experiments in prayer. show less

Labeled as "science" loosely because it does deal with matters that are scientific, regardless of actual credibility. There are certain components to this book that I have observed personally and that I do believe there is general scientific evidence for, but there are other aspects that I am uncertain about and that I am very skeptical of. This book ends up producing a relatively pessimistic tone where all things medical/widespread medicinal are concerned, and more optimistic towards show more less-known medicine and homeopathic remedy. I do like the sections pertaining to the importance of diet and I find those sections to be the most well-supported, based on other reading I have done, as well as personal experience. I cannot speak at all to the credibility of the studies and articles referenced, the use of accupuncture as a benefit to arthritis, some of the grounding methods, or activities/approaches involving qi. I have no experience with any of that whatsoever. I have not partaken in New Age methods of healing and am generally a skeptic of them.

This is a decent book. Not the best, but certainly not the worst, with some valid and generally good dietary information in it. Some foods are more inflammatory and others are less inflammatory. Elimination diets can prove very helpful in knowing what works best for your body, if you approach it using the scientific method and observe the reactions and changes in your body based solely on changing the foods you eat. There are other books and articles that scientifically back the importance of diet when it comes to health (hence why we have nutritionists and the study of nutrition). HOWEVER, it should be noted that the author is a journalist and not trained or educated in any particular medical field. I endorse the general collection and sharing of available information, but I would not suggest that anyone make serious medical decisions using this book alone. Use it to familiarize yourself with some components of self-care and self-nutrition, test out some of the dietary information to see if you find any impact, and use it to explore your options and expand your research on this ailment. It should guide your research, not be the basis for your conclusions and ultimate decisions. show less

Kathleen's cameo in the Fitzwilliam family biography, Black Diamonds, inspired me to look up Lynne McTaggart's original account of 'Jack's favourite sister', but I actually needn't have bothered. Catherine Bailey neatly cribs the essence of Kathleen's life and character in Diamonds; McTaggart doesn't even add references! Another good book about Kathleen - albeit semi-fictional - is The Importance of Being Kennedy by Laurie Graham, which is livelier than this rather terse life story.

Kathleen show more herself is a sympathetic subject - sort of like the female version of Jack, which is probably why I like her so much. Joes Sr and Jr, who also naturally feature in any Kennedy biography, and matriarch Rose, are way down at the bottom of my list. Star son Joe comes across as a blockhead with a temper and his father's 'yes' man (although he can hardly be blamed for that, as all the Kennedy boys suffered the same fate), Papa Joe ruined all his children, both materially and mentally, and Rose had a lot to put up with but treated daughter Kathleen abysmally. Lively, likeable Kathleen just wanted to live her own life - in England, first with Billy Hartington, heir to Chatsworth, and then with Peter Fitzwilliam, the married Earl of Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire. She was tragically killed in a plane crash with Peter, flying to the south of France through a thunderstorm, which the Kennedys tried to cover up ever after. I would say that she and Joe had a lucky escape - Joe from his father's machinations, Kathleen from her mother's religious fervour.

Although Lynne - and Catherine in summary - have said all there is to say about Kathleen's life and death, surely there is room for another biography? Sad that she only gets the one, with dubious sources and dry writing, while Jack and Bobby alone could fill a library (yes, I know why, but still). show less

There is a minor genre of books that attempt to provide justifications for mystical or metaphysical beliefs on the basis of modern physics. Lately, the ludicrous idea that "quantum physics" makes claims for psychic powers plausible has become commonplace among the New Age crowd. Lynne McTaggart's book The Field is probably the least unintelligent book arguing for this view.