From Wired: The Jerusalem Syndrome

[LucySnowe]

The Jerusalem Syndrome: Why Some Religious Tourists Believe They Are the Messiah

 

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2012/02/f ... rome/all/1

 

(searched, didn't find this; apologies if it's been posted already)

[finleeport]

Interesting, and I was planning to go to Jerusalem next year, but now this terrifies me a little.

[ilovetchotchkes]

Interesting, and I was planning to go to Jerusalem next year, but now this terrifies me a little.

There is a very entertaining Simpson's episode that addresses this... ;-)

[Librul]

There was a Simpsons episode about this syndrome...

[chiccy]

The article was very interesting. A few questions/points:

--I find it interesting that mostly evangelical Christians experience this syndrome, since Christians are supposed to believe that the Messiah has already come. I would expect Jews to have it more often, since they are taught that the Messiah is still to come. I read a discussion on Frumsatire where some former yeshiva boys were talking about how each one wondered if he was the Messiah. Apparently it's a pretty common phenomenon in yeshiva, especially after they are taught the characteristics of the Messiah.

--It's a bit discomfiting that the doctor said "he’ll talk about past patients as long as [the journalist] [agrees] to de-identify them." Aren't doctors not supposed to do this?

--It's not only psychotic spells that can cause perceived communication with God, but also neurological disorders such as partial temporal seizures. (They are not grand mal seizures and don't cause loss of consciousness; they just feel like a wave of intense perception and realization of the Divine or something like it.) I think it's odd that these were not considered in the article, as they are thought to be responsible for many of the most compelling mystical/spiritual experiences that humans have.

[bubbabearzle]

The article was very interesting. A few questions/points:

--I find it interesting that mostly evangelical Christians experience this syndrome, since Christians are supposed to believe that the Messiah has already come. I would expect Jews to have it more often, since they are taught that the Messiah is still to come. I read a discussion on Frumsatire where some former yeshiva boys were talking about how each one wondered if he was the Messiah. Apparently it's a pretty common phenomenon in yeshiva, especially after they are taught the characteristics of the Messiah.

--It's a bit discomfiting that the doctor said "he’ll talk about past patients as long as [the journalist] [agrees] to de-identify them." Aren't doctors not supposed to do this?

--It's not only psychotic spells that can cause perceived communication with God, but also neurological disorders such as partial temporal seizures. (They are not grand mal seizures and don't cause loss of consciousness; they just feel like a wave of intense perception and realization of the Divine or something like it.) I think it's odd that these were not considered in the article, as they are thought to be responsible for many of the most compelling mystical/spiritual experiences that humans have.

Doctors in the US aren't supposed to, but the rest of the world doesn't follow our specific rules....

[chiccy]

Doctors in the US aren't supposed to, but the rest of the world doesn't follow our specific rules....

I thought medical ethics were pretty universally standard?

[Elle]

HIPAA doesn't prevent doctors from talking about you. What they can't do is give enough information to identify you.

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/un ... index.html

De-Identified Health Information.

There are no restrictions on the use or disclosure of de-identified health information.14 De-identified health information neither identifies nor provides a reasonable basis to identify an individual. There are two ways to de-identify information; either: (1) a formal determination by a qualified statistician; or (2) the removal of specified identifiers of the individual and of the individual’s relatives, household members, and employers is required, and is adequate only if the covered entity has no actual knowledge that the remaining information could be used to identify the individual.

[chiccy]

HIPAA doesn't prevent doctors from talking about you. What they can't do is give enough information to identify you.

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/un ... index.html

De-Identified Health Information.

There are no restrictions on the use or disclosure of de-identified health information.14 De-identified health information neither identifies nor provides a reasonable basis to identify an individual. There are two ways to de-identify information; either: (1) a formal determination by a qualified statistician; or (2) the removal of specified identifiers of the individual and of the individual’s relatives, household members, and employers is required, and is adequate only if the covered entity has no actual knowledge that the remaining information could be used to identify the individual.

Yeah but if you read my quote from the article, it was the JOURNALIST who was being asked to de-identify the patients. This implies that the doctor was telling the journalist their identities.