Healing service

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The healing worship service is a form of worship service in which the prayer for the healing of illness , suffering and ailments is central.

origin

The justification for this form of worship is derived from the practice of Jesus , who also healed numerous sick people (for example "blind", "deaf" and "lame"). From there, various forms of liturgical care for the sick (for example prayer with the laying on of hands and anointing) have been preserved.

Current practice

In this episode, healing as an important topic of the Christian faith was rediscovered in church and theology, especially in the 20th century, and was regained for the practice of worship. In the 21st century the healing service is practiced in some churches, Christian denominations and free churches both in the smaller context of pastoral care and in the larger context of a worship service . The prayer for healing is usually done with the laying on of hands in the healing service . Sometimes there is also anointing with fragrant anointing oil .

The Lutheran congregations like to combine the healing service with the celebration of the Lord's Supper . The liturgical aim of the healing services celebrated there is to present the Christian community, which includes the sick, in their trust in God, who heals people in very different ways and takes them into the realm of his salvation.

In the charismatic movement and the Pentecostal movement , the healing of the sick is considered a gift of the Holy Spirit , which means that the healing service (possibly with elements such as speaking in tongues ) is now an established form of worship that has become a matter of course.

In Christian Africa , healing services play an important role in practically all denominations, on the one hand because disease always has a spiritual component in African culture, on the other hand because many Africans have no access to medical care and therefore the only hope in the church look to healing.

For Christian Science , healing is one of the essential elements of their belief.

Basic theological considerations

In all forms of devotional service to a sick person, God's freedom must not be touched. In the healing service, for example, reference is made to the reservation in a prayer of Jesus: “Not my will, but yours be done!” ( Mt 26 : 39-40  EU ). This reference has become important in comparison to the movements (for example some Pentecostal churches ) that combine the healing service with a promise of healing. In the Vineyard Movement, for example, the view prevails that in the healing service and in the healing service, any disease can be cured by the power of the Holy Spirit , be it physical, psychological or spiritual.

The majority of churches and biblical interpreters see this clear promise of healing in connection with worship and pastoral care as not covered by the New Testament . In this context, Walter J. Hollenweger speaks of the "unpredictability of grace" and reckons with all three possibilities with regard to the effect of healing services:

a) the sick person actually gets well in the healing service
b) the sick person remains sick despite the healing service
c) the patient dies (for example during or shortly after an operation)

See also

literature

Web links