Jim Jones had a gift for recognizing and cultivating a person’s capacity for magical thinking or the belief that unrelated events are connected by invisible, supernatural threads. Those who followed Jim Jones surrendered their will, believing that, whatever Father was planning, he had the power...

The paranormal healing ministry drew new members into the movement with Jim Jones’ promises of supernatural support for the cause. The divine gifts physically drained him, he could feel people’s sickness and pain as he healed them. He began using sleight of hand when removing cancers, this seemed...