Here in the Philippines, there are groups that practice
REAL crucifixions, and not so far from where I live, on Cebu.
They are not, however, punishment.
They are real reenactments of the crucifixion of Christ, nails and all.
“He was a lens grinder by trade.” Made a spectacle of himself, did he?
Apparently, this is the same Emanuel Bronner who founded the company that makes liquid Castilian soap under his name. Bronner himself did time in the Elgin State Hospital and escaped after electroshock treatments.
He relocated to California and continued with his soap business for many years. Although Dr Bronner died in 1997, his soap product, with its eccentric labeling, continues to be made.
Bronner was a name he truncated from his ancestry, which was originally Heilbronner, meaning the family originated from Heilbronn, Germany, about 50 kilos north of Stuttgart.