42 | March• 2018THE HEALING POWER OF YOUanother man experienced what
seemed to be a medical miracle.
At42,MikePauletichwasdiag-
nosed with early-onset Parkinson’s
disease.Foryearshestruggledwith
thediseaseandwithdepression,as
talkingandwritingbecameevermore
difficult.
Then, in 2011, Pauletich turned to
Ceregene, an American company
that was testing a new gene therapy.
Parkinson’sistheresultofachronic
lossoftheneurotransmitterdopa-
mine. Ceregene’s experimental treat-
mentwastocuttwoholesthrougha
patient’sskullandinjectneurturin,a
protein that had been shown to halt
theprogressofthediseaseinmon-
keys, directly into the brain.Today,at74,Mödlhasawarmsmile
andawiryframe.Sincehisfoot
healed,he’smadethepilgrimage12
moretimes,andhe’sapassionate
believer in its transformative power.
Mödl is not alone in his belief.
Whether it takes the form of a touch
of the Holy Spirit at an evangelical
revival meeting or a dip in the water
of the Ganges, the healing power of
belief is all around us. Studies suggest
that regular religious services may
improve the immune system, de-
crease blood pressure, add years to
our lives.
Religious faith is hardly the only
kind of belief that has the ability to
make us feel inexplicably better. Ten
thousand kilometres from Altötting,R
ICHARDMÖDLHADRECENTLYBROKENHISHEEL,
butin2003hewasdeterminedtocompletehisfirst
pilgrimage from Regensburg to Altötting, Germany.
It was agony to walk at all, let alone endure the135 kilometres that thousands of believers trek each year to
behold the Black Madonna of Altötting.
ButMödlhadadeepfaithintheVirginMary’sabilityto
deliver him. “When you are on your way to Altötting, you
almost don’t feel the pain,” he says.EXPENSIVEPLACEBOSWORKBETTERTHAN
CHEAP ONES. BUT FAKE SURGERIES SEEM
TO BE THE MOST POWERFUL OF ALL