Healing Ministry in the Church
On Sunday, May 21 during the 9 am Adult Formation Class, Fr Denny Allman will teach about the ministry of healing and the use of anointing for healing with blessed oil. He will also invite those who might have a particular calling to this ministry, to be part of our healing rota where we will have individuals trained to pray and anoint people during communion at both of our Sunday masses.
"Healing is a significant part of the church’s ministry, and this happens in many ways through all the ministers of the church. One of the ways in which we continue to carry out Christ’s healing ministry through the Church is by integrating rites of healing in our lives together. Rites for healing are part of our tradition and have existed throughout the life of the church. The Gospel of Mark notes that Jesus sent the disciples out and that they anointed with oil many who were sick. Some wonder why we use oil in anointing. Yes, it is a tradition we carry on from the ancient church, but it is also important to remember why. “The disciples use of oil is not remarkable. Oil was a common medication in the ancient world. But in this context it had a larger significance: the strength which oil gave was understood, as in the anointing of a king, as mediating the strength of the Holy Spirit, and the work of the Spirit heralded the dawn of the new age of God’s kingdom, God’s reign” (Byron Stuhlman, Occasions of Grace, p. 150). When we come to ask for healing, we open ourselves to the wonderful life-giving work of the Holy Spirit.
All of us are in need of healing in some way. While the most obvious need may be for physical healing that is not the only time to request anointing. Many times it is not the body where our disease is experienced. Healing may be needed in our spirits, our minds, our emotions, our relationships. So, perhaps we are anxious, dealing with a difficult situation at home, struggling to forgive someone. These are all painful circumstances where God’s healing occurs. Sometimes people are healed physically. Other times an illness may not end, or things may not change in the way we might expect, but healing takes place in other ways. God’s life-giving Spirit is available to all of us." (by Joy Daley from Church of the Transfiguration)
Every Wednesday at 5:30 pm, St Margaret’s offers a Healing Mass where we offer a litany for healing and the opportunity for laying on of hands with anointing in the context of a Eucharist. You may come forward for prayers of healing during the Wednesday evening Eucharist at 5:30 p.m. and on Sunday mornings at both services. All are welcome. Please know that this is an invitation rather than a requirement.
