Five hundred years after Luther, his heirs are peddling indulgences.Father Kieran Conry, of the Catholic Media Service, while politic, is not keen. "The association of ministry and money is never a good thing Simony is illegal within the Catholic Church". And miracles? "If they do happen at Lourdes, they don't happen at the intervention of an individual." Cerullo's followers would no doubt counter that Lourdes' recent record, compared with the 2,000 a week they claim, shows which approach works.Damian Thompson, author of The End of Time: Faith and Fear in the Shadow of the Millennium, published by Sinclair Stevenson next month, says: "There is a powerful urge abroad to find something else. Mailshots have asked devotees to give seven pounds each week for seven weeks for seven miracles; to hand over pounds 49 to salvage his computer system after Satanic sabotage. And yet the majority of self-help gurus have made their millions purely from other peddling their opinions And so with Cerullo. In 1993, the promise that pounds 5 per soul would save the souls of family members was reputed to have raised pounds 27m.

This is also one of the rallying cries of self-help gurus.The flipside of self-help is Help Yourself. A huge industry revolves around the belief that giving someone money will transmit their Midas Touch to the donor. Yes, and the Little People make shoes in the middle of the night, as well.Camelot's Finger of God advertising is uncomfortably similar to this Prosperity Theology. Man may not live by bread alone (Matthew 4:4), but having several slices represents virtue, while poverty and illness indicate a lack of faith. Thus Morris and his preachers dress in fine-cut suits (Genesis 27:11, "Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man and I am a smooth man") and proclaim that they, too, were afflicted until they found the Way. write down the amount you need to cancel all the debts in your life Then act on on your faith. Send your Miracle of Debt Cancellation Harvest Gift of pounds 30, or more as the Holy Spirit will lead you" "Every debt you owe can be cancelled," the leaflet promised.

The justification? II Kings, 4:1-7, which is the story of Elisha, a widow and a multiplying pot of oil. "Ask," says St Matthew, "and it shall be given to you." Morris Cerullo asks, and indeed they give It's a miracle.And there have been many more. In 1994, 8,000 circular letters invited recipients to experience Cerullo's Miracle of Debt Cancellation "Lay your hands upon the Miracle of Debt Cancellation Reply Let the anointing flow into your life ... Never since have I seen so many poor people throw their last pennies into buckets. Well, maybe not admire: it's more the feeling of being face to face with a Komodo dragon. He holds thousands spellbound, shows them miracles, fills their bodies with electricity. Morris Cerullo parts people and their money with the ease of Moses parting the Red Sea.