Healing through Prayer: Health Practitioners Tell the Story

Authors: Larry Dossey, Herbert Benson, John Polkinghorne, and Others, with a forword by Peter Downie

Publisher: Anglican Book Centre, paperback, 167 pages, including Forword

Contents

In addition to the Forword, this volume contains 5 parts. The part titles are: Part 1: Science and Spirituality; Part 2: Healing Prayer in Practice; Part 3: The Healing Community; Part 4: The Perspective of Other Faiths; and Part 5: A Healing Program at a Local Church. Each part contains a number of chapters, with a wide array of authors. With the exception of the Forword, each chapter consists of a question and answer format. 

In the Forword, Peter Downie, speaking of the wide representation of healers in this volume, believes that they share one thing in common: “Every healer eventually mentions the need to be filled with good intentions and to keep an open heart and mind towards others” (p. 9).

John Polkinghorne, was a theoretical physicist for 25 years, then became an Anglican minister. In answer to the question: “How do you reconcile your life as a scientist with your life as a priest?” Polkinghorne states: “They are, of course, looking at different aspects of the truth. But they have enough in common, I think, to be friends rather than enemies” (p. 16). Speaking of prayer, he observes: “Nobody can talk about prayer without acknowledging the mystery of individual human destiny” (p. 22). 

At the time of this volume’s publication, Larry Dossey was a best-selling author and medical doctor in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and co-Chair of the Panel on Mind/Body Interventions, National Institute of Health. In answer to the question: “As a scientifically trained physician, how did you become involved in investigating the value of prayer in healing?” Dossey discovered that some patients with fatal illnesses who were prayed for recovered completely. This led him to write three books about intercessory prayer and healing. He goes on to say: “Certainly the great healers throughout history have affirmed the role of love in healing” (p. 35). An Aboriginal healer once told Dossey that the words ‘deliver us from evil’ in the Lord’s Prayer are: “…one of the most powerful forms of protection going, and you don’t even realize it” (p. 38). 

Dr. Herbert Benson teaching medicine at Harvard University when this volume was published, has observed three degrees of healing: i) healing is curing a disease; ii) healing is accepting a disease; iii) healing can be mental/psychological, helping to alleviate physiological symptoms. He says that belief is powerful for good and for ill. One example he cited was a pastor who was allergic to flowers. A woman at one wedding brought a dozen plastic roses. The pastor ended up in the hospital with an anaphylactic reaction. Later, the woman told him the flowers were plastic.

Pauline Bradbrook speaks of the love and support that she experienced when she was prayed for by many people when she was diagnosed with cancer and had a mastectomy. Speaking of healing, she observes: “The word healing is related to holiness, and it means learning to live in a holy state with whatever the condition is” (p. 90). 

Anglican minister, Trevor Denny is a committed advocate of healing ministry: “Every church should be a healing centre where people come to have peace, relaxation, and support groups, and where prayers are made for healing” (p. 109). He emphasises that the ordained ministry involves preaching, teaching and healing. 

In Part 4: The Perspective Of Other Faiths, four non-Christian faith traditions are included—Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Indigenous. In answer to the question: “Is prayer for healing part of the Jewish tradition?” Rabbi Ronald Weiss, Director of Chaplaincy services for the Toronto Jewish community, and chaplain for the Jewish Hospice Program, identified 3 aspects of prayer: Thanksgiving—ho-da-ah; Praise—shevach; and Requests/petitions—bakashoat. He stated: “There’s a prayer called Misha Barach in which we invoke God’s blessing on those who are ill” (p. 129).

The final part of this volume focuses on the healing ministry at Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver. Clergy and laity organized a healing team, and prayer for healing, laying on of hands and anointing were offered at the Thursday eucharists, and eventually at the Sunday liturgy. This part also includes information on how to set up and train a healing team, as well as the theological and spiritual foundations of healing ministry. 

At some point in life, most likely every human being experiences some kind of illness or disease, and can benefit physically, mentally/psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually from prayer. 

For readers interested in healing ministry, this volume is a valuable resource.