THE MINISTRY OF HEALING AT ST NINIAN ’ S
I have decided to introduce ( strictly speaking re-introduce ) a monthly Healing Service on the first Saturday of the month .
I believe that we are all in need of “ healing ” in the broadest sense because we either struggle with issues physical and mental or we are carers for those who do . However , I think it is important to set out what I believe the charism of healing to be . In rough terms , there are two distinct approaches .
The first is more accurately termed “ faith healing ” where the healer “ lays hands ” upon , say , the broken leg and by the supposed fervour of the prayers of the healer “ demands " that God ought to perform a miracle and un-break the leg before an enthusiastic crowd of noisy believers .
If the miracle doesn ’ t happen then it means that healer and / or the crowd lacked sufficient faith ! Now , I am not in the business of denying the ability of God to intervene and interrupt the laws of physics as God sees fit . However , this is not my approach .
I believe that there is a very important distinction to be made between “ healing ” and “ cure ”. I am in the business of helping everyone to avail themselves of the sacraments of the church in an effort to produce a healing of the spirit as an aid to dealing with a physical or mental ailment .
I am not in the business of trying to downgrade the role of modern medicine . It is not either / or but both / and . The best healing ministry works in harmony with the medical profession for the complete healing of mind , body and spirit .
Healing , therefore , is a way of life and the healing ministry is a microcosm of the whole of Christian life and mission .
We are , to put it another way , a group of pilgrims at St Ninian ’ s journeying towards wholeness . Healing has to be seen as a natural part of our life together .
My understanding of healing is rooted in scripture and tradition . Healing , for example , played a large part in the ministry of Jesus . Jesus asked us to preach the gospel and heal the sick .
We pray on a regular basis for wholeness in this sick and broken world . Prayer is also a fundamental part of our overall approach to healing at St Ninian ’ s and we are most blessed to have a dedicated group of people who pray regularly for those who ask for such .
As I mentioned above there have developed different traditions about how a specific healing service should be performed .
My approach to a specific service is to root its structure firmly within the sacramental tradition of the Church . Supremely there is the Eucharist .
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