James Arthur Ray

[[File:James Arthur Ray 2017.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Ray in 2017]]
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'''James Arthur Ray''' {{lived|1957}} is a convicted felon and 
self-help
 motivational [[guru]].{{efn|As in: let me help myself to your money.}} In June 2011, a court found Ray guilty of negligent homicide<ref>[http://www.azfamily.com/outbound-feeds/yahoo-news/James-Arthur-Ray-convicted-of-negligent-homicide-124383639.html AZ Family: James Arthur Ray convicted of negligent homicide] 22 June 2011</ref> after three participants died at a "sweat lodge" ceremony he had conducted as part of a five-day [[large group awareness training]] retreat called "Spiritual Warrior" in 2009.

Native American activists consider him an [[asshole]] for not just casually appropriating chunks of their culture in this manner, but doing so with such gross negligence.

==Views==
Before killing 3 people and going to prison for manslaughter, he wrote [[self-help]] books titled <i>The Secret of Attracting the Life You Want</i> (2008) and <i>Create the Life You Desire and Deserve</i> (2009). Based on his circumstances, some may actually question if his philosophy is actually helpful.{{nofact}} But perhaps his techniques have simply 
transformed
 improved.

Ray adheres to the [[law of attraction]] (Code of the International Industrial Union of Physicists, clause 13(c){{nofact}}) and teaches that tapping into this can [[creation|create]] "harmonic wealth" in all areas of your [[Life (moral value)|life]]. He appeared in the 2006 film ''[[The Secret]]'', has been promoted by [[Oprah Winfrey]] (a [[woo]]-space sales-person), and has written articles published by ''[[The Huffington Post]]''.

==Trial==
He went on trial in Yavapai County, [[Arizona]]. Prior to the sweat lodge, he had participants [[fasting|fast]] for three days with no food or [[water]]. He reportedly discouraged participants from leaving the "sweat lodge" even after people were unconscious or vomiting.<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-6186963-504083.html CBS News: James Arthur Ray Employees Rat Out Self-Help Guru, Get Immunity from Sweat Lodge Deaths] 9 February 2010</ref>

===Aftermath===
After the deaths, he had the chutzpah to continue to advertise future retreats (rather than, say, refund the money of everyone who had paid $9000 to attend, and then 
throw himself into a volcano to atone for his [[sin]]s
 get out of the self-help [[business]] forever), and to have [[skeptic]]s who showed up at his seminars to ask questions about the sweat-lodge deaths escorted out.<ref>[http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/749-james-arthur-ray-in-denver.html James Randi Educational Foundation: James Arthur Ray in Denver] 25 October 2009</ref>

==External links==
*[http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=2380.0 Native American activists discuss Ray]
*[http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,page=1 Anti-cult activists discuss Ray]
*[http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/r/james_arthur_ray/index.html New York Times articles about Ray]
*[http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/12/justice/james-arthur-ray-released/index.html James Arthur Ray Released from Prison]

==Notes==
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==References==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, James Arthur}}
[[Category:Convicted felons]]
[[Category:Criminals]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Native American woo]]
[[Category:Self help]]

Categories: Convicted felons, Criminals, Living people, Native American woo, Self help