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pious fraud
A pious fraud is someone whose fraud is motivated by misguided religious zeal.
Examples of pious frauds include Catalina Rivas and other alleged stigmatics such as Padre Pio; Sister Lucia dos Santos, who claimed the Virgin Mary appeared to her and two other kids at Fatima, Portugal, in 1917; the creator of the shroud of Turin; psychic 'surgeon' Stephen Turroff, and anyone who has lied about witnessing a miracle.
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updated 02/23/09
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Piltdown hoax