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It was 8 am and thirteen
of us were in church for a communion service led by a retired priest from the
Diocese of Carlisle. ‘After the service’ he said, ‘there will be an
opportunity, for those who wish to, to be anointed with holy oil as a sign of
God’s healing. We were drawing to the end of our stay on Holy Island in 2003 and this
invitation was one we all took advantage of. There at the rail of the parish
church which has stood on that spot for over 1400 years, we were anointed with
the oil of ‘unction’ or healing. It was a very moving experience as the
priest prayed for each of us individually and anointed our foreheads and wrists
with the sweet smelling oil.
Healing services are an invaluable
part of Christian worship. A central feature of Jesus’ public ministry was the
healing power of God that he released for people. As the body of Christ this
healing is available to the church today and whenever we gather for worship, we
always include in our prayers requests for those who are sick and bereaved.
The invitation for healing is made
to each and every one of us. Each of us has some sort of hurt whether it be
physical, emotional or spiritual that we can bring before God. Each of us will
know someone who has particular needs. The healing ministry is something we can
all be part of both as recipients of God’s healing touch and as channels of
this to others.
Healing services can take many
forms and healing itself can come in many guises.
Our healing service at St
Giles is held on the first Thursday in the month with Quiet Prayer on the 3rd
Thursday of each month?
The service
is open to all and is a simple invitation to come before God in openness to receive the
love and the wholeness that he wants for our lives. The services
are an invitation to all who
wish to bring themselves or loved ones into the healing presence of God.
William Smith
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