Messiah Reflex by Sarah J. Bennett

Every year, dozens of perfectly healthy tourists arrive in Jerusalem and suddenly decide they are John the Baptist, the Virgin Mary, or the Messiah himself. They wrap themselves in hotel bedsheets, march to the Wailing Wall, and begin to preach. This is not a metaphor; it is a clinically recognized acute psychotic state known as "Jerusalem Syndrome."

This book explores the fascinating psychology behind this phenomenon. Why does this specific city trigger a mental break in people with no history of mental illness? Is it the intensity of the history, the religious pressure, or something deeper in the human psyche that craves divine purpose? Through case studies of "prophets" escorted to the hospital by police, we learn how fragile our identity really is when confronted with the weight of faith.