But Byrne is not saying you should not care about other people. You should care about them — because it is good for you: “If you think thoughts of love, guess who receives the benefits — you!”

Unfortunately, people are really swallowing this stuff. And it is dangerous. The book contains examples of people who supposedly cured themselves of cancer without treatment, and people who bought expensive things because they just knew the money was coming in — I saw many of those in bankruptcy court when I was a practicing attorney. Karin Klein reports in the Los Angeles Times, “Therapists tell me they’re starting to see patients who are headed for real trouble, immersing themselves in a dream world in which good things just come.”

Byrne has scammed millions of people by appealing to their pride and greed, and she is making a fortune. But I will tell you this for free: Byrne’s hot new trend is simply a repetition of the oldest lie there is — “You shall be like God.”

That’s the secret, not of success, but of misery.

For further reading

Tim Watkin, “Self-Help’s Slimy ‘Secret’,” Washington Post, 8 April 2007, B01.

Karin Klein, “Self-Help Gone Nutty,” Los Angeles Times, 13 February 2007.

Lynn Yaeger, “Shopping with The Secret,” Village Voice, 20 March 2007.

Douglas Todd, “Here’s a Secret: It’s All Your Fault After All,” Vancouver Sun, 28 April 2007.

Victoria Moore, “It’s Become the Fastest-Selling Self-Help Book Ever, But Is The Secret Doing More Harm than Good?” Daily Mail (London), 26 April 2007.

Anita Wadhwani, “‘Secret’ Book Attracts Christian Fire,” Tennessean, 20 April 2007.

Jennifer E. Jones, “What Lies beneath ‘The Secret’,” CBN.com.

Froma Harrop, “The Sickness behind ‘The Secret’,” Detroit News, 21 April 2007.

Martha Anderson, “Spirituality—American Style,” The Point, 16 February 2007.

Kristine Steakley, “Think about It,” The Point, 23 March 2007.

Lori Smith, “‘Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust’,” BreakPoint Online, 24 April 2006.

BreakPoint Commentary No. 930422, “Prosperity Preachers: Which Gospel Are They Preaching?”

BreakPoint Commentary No. 040302, “Miserable in the Midst of Plenty: The Progress Paradox.”

BreakPoint Commentary No. 060824, “Vanity of Vanities: The Source of Happiness.”

Mark Earley, former State Senator (1988-1998) and Attorney General of Virginia (1998-2001), became president of Prison Fellowship on February 1, 2002. As President and CEO of Prison Fellowship USA, Earley oversees the national ministry founded by Charles Colson in 1976, which has since spread to 108 countries in addition to the United States. Prison Fellowship’s core commitments are Fellowshipping with Jesus, Visiting Prisoners, and Welcoming Their Children. Earley is a graduate of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he received a B.A. in Religion.  He earned a juris doctor degree from Marshall-Wythe School of Law.  He resides in Lansdowne, Virginia, with his wife, the former Cynthia Breithaupt, and their six children.

© 2004-2006 Prison Fellowship. Used with permission.