PRAYER AND HEALING

We all have the human desire to be in good health and a good bill of health, spiritually and physically as complete wellbeing. But at times the reality of our sickness and sudden change of health conditions puts most us off to rethink and question the state of nature we find ourselves in. We start asking many questions in the why form with few or none of the why not? Once our health fails, we tend to have a human mode of falling to quick fix, miracle, we tend to pray a lot, and simply look for charlatan pastors, seeking miracles and instant solutions to our health.

To those who feel like don't believe in God seek independent prophetic healing or consult the medicine men or simply fall back to the traditional way of doing things. (waganga na wajajauri- witchcraft, sorcery or devil worshipping or cults of all sorts). For the ardent followers of Christ, tend to move from one adoration chapel to another, one prayer group to another, one charismatic group to another, from one priest to another, in that even some priests in this prayer groups often feel mixed up going overboard with all sorts of miracles Mobile  Mass hours and crusade healings, out of jurisdictions and without the local ordinary fully getting informed of what this healing masses and crusades publicized all over of visiting priests in coordination with one priest of his diocese. Of course, there is some information passed but sometimes most of our bishops play damn without a Yes or No answer. It turns out to poor fame and bitter taste in the mouth for the organizers and group members, and without the bishop shout out, it ends up into group struggles in parishes with his priests. The priests too feel reluctant to respond or accept these groups in parishes.

Prayer for restoration to health is part of the Catholic Church experience in every age, including ours today. This will call for proper discernment from a liturgical perspective, more so on the part of those responsible or the authorities, who are the safeguards of the norms for the proper function of a liturgical celebration. The right place to get this healing and anointing is right in the church, not outside the church and above all in that name Jesus Christ the healer, not one famous human healer, the power originates from Christ to a person who guides the group in that given power of healing. This guidance is well guarded by the ordinary of the diocese as far as what is good and correcting what is to be avoided stipulated in the Code of Canon Law 34. (Cf. Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith: Instruction on Prayers for Healing).

In the OT the experience of sickness was attached to sin and evil and God would punish the individual or the community for being unfaithful this we can read in (Deut 28:21-22. 27-29, 35). The sick person who beseeches God for healing confesses to have been justly punished for his sins (Cf. Psalm 37; 40; 106:17-21). Sickness too could strike the just, and people wonder why. The best example for everyone who reads the Holy Book is Job, this question occupies many pages. Of course, suffering has the meaning as punishment more so if it is connected with a fault, it is not true that all suffering is consequences of a fault and has the nature of a punishment. The figure of the just man Job is a special proof of this in the OT…if God consented to his suffering it's because He wanted to demonstrate His righteousness. The suffering has the character of a test.

In the NT, we also come across illness that afflicts the just, but Jesus heals many through miracles, so that miraculous healings characterized his activity: For “Jesus went through towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness” Mt 9:35; 4:23). These healings were part of his strategic mission plan which lasted for short term plan of three years. (Luke 7:20-23), overcoming all sorts of evil, and becoming a symbol of restoration to health of the whole human person, body and soul. They serve to demonstrate that Jesus has the power to forgive sin (Cf. Mk 2:1-12).

Jesus promised the following signs to follow his disciples… “They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover (Mk 16:17-18). The preaching of Philip in Samaria was accompanied by miraculous healings: “Philip went down to a city of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Phillip when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing. For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice, came out many possessed people, and many paralyzed and crippled people were cured” (Acts 8:57).

The signs and wonders, manifestations of the power of God that accompanied the preaching of the Gospel, were constituted in large part by miraculous healings. Such wonders were not limited to St. Paul's ministry but were also occurring among the faithful. Christ has raised human suffering to a level of redemption. Thus each man in his suffering can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ.

The phenomenon of healing was not confined to only to the apostolic period, but special prayer meetings organized to obtain wondrous healings among the sick who are present, or prayers of healing after Eucharistic communion for the same purpose. St. Paul had to learn from Jesus his master that "my grace is enough for you; my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9) and that means that meaning of the experience of suffering can be that “in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church” (Col 1:24). Today we have disciplinary norms that ought to be followed if we are to be fully engaged in healing ministry, those norms stipulated by IPH, disciplinary: 

-          It's illicit for every member of the faithful to pray to God for healing. It's appropriate that such prayers be led by an ordained minister.

-          Liturgical books approved by the Church’s competent authority; otherwise, they are non-liturgical.

-          Liturgical prayers for healing celebrated with proper sacred vestments indicated therein.

-          The diocesan bishop has the right to issue norms for his particular Church regarding liturgical services of healing, following can.838 § 4.

-          Those who prepare liturgical services of healing must follow these norms in the celebrations of such services.

-          Permission to hold such services must be explicitly given, even if they are organized by Bishops or cardinals or include such as participants. The diocesan bishop has the right to forbid even the participation of an individual Bishop.

-          Anything resembling hysteria, artificiality, theatricality or sensationalism, above all on the part of those who are in charge of such gatherings, must not take place.