Why are so few healed?

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Healing was such a prominent ministry in the scriptures. There is not a single case where someone asked Jesus for healing and He refused. He imparted the gift of healing onto his disciples and whoever they laid hands on was healed, so what ever happened to the healing ministry? In scripture, all the sick were healed instantly, not over time, not by medicine, but by miracles. What has happened to this healing ministry? Is it because there is no faith?

Jesus says to imitate Him. He says “You will do greater things than these.” Jesus led the way and performed miracles, His apostles performed miracles, so where are the miracle?
 
Not everyone was healed, only the one’s we get to read about.

In the end, no one gets out of this world alive.

Jim
 
I think the physical miracles were more about showing who Jesus was and the authority/power He had. He painted his chosen few, the leaders of the church… with the same light so to show Christ was with them and their ministry. Once that was established, the church rallied around them and we watched the succession of their position through the ages.

Now, miracles like in the gospels STILL happen…but “greater works than these” happen when the priest absolves sins and brings a soul dead in mortal sin back to life, when the sacraments create and sustain saints, etc etc.

God bless
 
I tend to think many are healed in a more hidden way. In the early Church, the miracles were a means to expose the gospel. The Church and her message is quite established and heard. Miracles are not so much manifested for a public display as they are realized in the hearts of the faithful as Gods answers to their prayers and signs of His confirming love and active hand in our lives.

But, i still wonder as you do about the miracles. Maybe a lack of faith in the world. But in the sense that He wants a people who are converted through loving and believing the message, and to offer our sicknesses and troubles to Him in a way that accepts our hardships. After all, these times are nothing compared to years of persecusions the early Church neede to be prepared for.

Michael
 
Modern people idolize scientific medical care that was unavailable back then. In those days people were more willing to have faith.
 
What about the Shrine at Lourdes? Or, the Shrine at Fatima? Or many, many other Shrines, where miraculous cures have been effected over the years?
 
MichaelHowling said:
I think the physical miracles were more about showing who Jesus was and the authority/power He had. He painted his chosen few, the leaders of the church… with the same light so to show Christ was with them and their ministry. Once that was established, the church rallied around them and we watched the succession of their position through the ages.

Now, miracles like in the gospels STILL happen…but “greater works than these” happen when the priest absolves sins and brings a soul dead in mortal sin back to life, when the sacraments create and sustain saints, etc etc.

God bless
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rcwitness said:
I tend to think many are healed in a more hidden way**. In the early Church, the miracles were a means to expose the gospel**. The Church and her message is quite established and heard. Miracles are not so much manifested for a public display as they are realized in the hearts of the faithful as Gods answers to their prayers and signs of His confirming love and active hand in our lives.

But, i still wonder as you do about the miracles. Maybe a lack of faith in the world. But in the sense that He wants a people who are converted through loving and believing the message, and to offer our sicknesses and troubles to Him in a way that accepts our hardships. After all, these times are nothing compared to years of persecusions the early Church neede to be prepared for.

Michael
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I think the 2 Michaels hit it on the head ;). God granted these powers to the early Church to show that it was indeed Him who sent them.
 
I remember reading a post on CAF a while back where someone pointed out that we assume that someone with an illness or disability is in need of healing. But would being physically healed bring someone any closer to God’s grace? Does being physically healed move someone closer to Heaven? Can we not love and follow Jesus in both sickness and in health? We may see an illness as something overarching, but in God’s eyes our physical health is dwarfed by our spiritual health. And often, those who are weak physically find a deeper spiritual strength. What is ultimately more important?

Remember 2nd Corinthians 12:10:
That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
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Lady_Love said:
Healing was such a prominent ministry in the scriptures. There is not a single case where someone asked Jesus for healing and He refused. He imparted the gift of healing onto his disciples and whoever they laid hands on was healed, so what ever happened to the healing ministry? In scripture, all the sick were healed instantly, not over time, not by medicine, but by miracles. What has happened to this healing ministry? Is it because there is no faith?

Jesus says to imitate Him. He says “You will do greater things than these.” Jesus led the way and performed miracles, His apostles performed miracles, so where are the miracle?
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Well, first, there still are healings.

Second, physical healings were not as important as spiritual healings.

For our human imperfection that leads to illness is the result of that nature which is being transformed as we attain heaven, and furthermore our sufferings are offered to the Father as a continuation of the Passion for the conversion of sinners and the salvation of souls.

When 10 lepers were cured, one came back to give thanks to the Lord. Which one was healed?

The Lord also warned us, lest after being delivered from evil we may find ourselves in a much worse condition that we previously were.

Medicine is, in itself, the fruit of God’s grace, and physicians its channel. For it, we must be grateful, as the sick with no access to any medicine or science were grateful for the ministry of healing coming from God’s ordained ministers.

The works of the Holy Spirit are many and varied. I also pray for many to respond to His call to service, but I don’t think He is doing less than He should be doing 😉
 
George_Stegmeir said:
What about the Shrine at Lourdes? Or, the Shrine at Fatima? Or many, many other Shrines, where miraculous cures have been effected over the years?
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The point of the OP is, few are cured at these sites in comparison of the many who visit and are not cured.

However, the level of healing that takes place is often not before the eyes of people who see the inflicted visit the shrine, such as Lourdes.

Often the healing takes place in an non-dynamic way where only the person who receives the healing knows what took place.

Jim
 
Lady_Love said:
Healing was such a prominent ministry in the scriptures. There is not a single case where someone asked Jesus for healing and He refused. He imparted the gift of healing onto his disciples and whoever they laid hands on was healed, so what ever happened to the healing ministry? In scripture, all the sick were healed instantly, not over time, not by medicine, but by miracles. What has happened to this healing ministry? Is it because there is no faith?

Jesus says to imitate Him. He says “You will do greater things than these.” Jesus led the way and performed miracles, His apostles performed miracles, so where are the miracle?
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As you can see by the replies so far, no one has enough faith to even think it’s even possible anymore. The spirit of religion has carved up the church and it makes me angry. Our beloved church is full of excuses and ‘man made traditions’ that make the power of God void just like it was for the Jews of Jesus’ day.

Jesus is our model. He is the most normal Christian there is. We should all be striving to be just like him and he was a ‘miracle working machine’. There’s not enough room on the earth to record everything he did.

Jesus asked the lepper what he wanted and he said if you wish you can make me clean. Luke 5 12. Jesus said 'I do will it." The will of God is the word of God. The 10 leppers were all healed of leprosy but the one who came back left ‘whole’. That means he got all his fingers and toes back.

The crowd of 5000 men and he healed them all.

When they asked Jesus how to pray and he gave them the words for the Our Father.
Don’t miss the bit where Jesus told us to pray “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” That means perfection on the earth. No sickness, lameness, blindness, no nothingbad.

Then they accuse Jesus of casting out devils in the name of beelzebul. Jesus ends up saying to them …“but if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.” See Jesus demonstrating what he wants us to pray for? The Kingdom of God manifested on earth as it is in heaven.

Luke 16;16. The law of the prophets lasted until John, but from then on the KINGDOM of GOD is proclaimed and everyone who enters does so with violence. This means unless we engage in spiritual warfare we will not see the Kingdom manifested on the earth producing new testament type miracles. We need to kick some demon butts but most don’t really believe in demons now a days. This has got to change.

Then Luke 17.20. “The coming of the Kingdom of God can not be observed, …for behold the Kingdom of God is among you.” and he’s not talking about himself. The Kingdom is at hand. Its there in the spiritual realm and available. We just have to clear out the demons stopping it from manifesting on earth. It’s so possible if we just believe. The Holy Spirit can do it. The Holy Spirit is the power of God, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and it’s alive in you and me and it wants out. Its in us flowing like a river. Have faith and let if flow out of you to others.

Jesus said many times that what ever we prayed for with faith it would happen. Even for a mountain to be lifted up and planted in the sea. My favourite one of these is in Mark 16;16 These signs will accompany those who believe; In my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages, they will pick up serpents (with their hands) and if they drink any deadly thing it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick and they will recover.

Jesus isn’t talking about after his return on the earth. He’s talking about now.

The miracles of the new testament are available now. Jesus denied no one.
 
JimR-OCDS said:
The point of the OP is, few are cured at these sites in comparison of the many who visit and are not cured.

However, the level of healing that takes place is often not before the eyes of people who see the inflicted visit the shrine, such as Lourdes.

Often the healing takes place in an non-dynamic way where only the person who receives the healing knows what took place.

Jim
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There is also spiritual healing which may underlie the physical condition, and when the spiritual healing takes place it takes time to manifest physically.
 
There are miracles today - first class miracles: just look at all the canonisations to name just a few. Even non catholic christians talk about miraculous healings in answers to their prayers - they just havent been proven. The church cant prove all the miracles that occur. However there is a degree of popular opposition to the notion of miracles; not because they do not occur, but because people often do not want to know.
 
I posted this thread last night and then went down stairs to watch T.V. and guess what!? I watched a program on people who have been healed of serious diseases through Jesus’ name.

I think of how Jesus went into His own home town and was unable to perform very many miracle due to the lack of faith. I wonder if this is happening now, because most of the healings seem to be happening outside of the church. Have those in Jesus’ own home stopped having faith in Him?

Do we open ourselves to receiving God’s anointing of healing? Maybe we are too afraid because we lack faith and it will soon be evident that we lack faith if we try? I will admit, I’m afraid to step out in faith. I’m afraid I will crash and burn. I’m afraid that I will lay hands on a person and nothing will happen.

We Catholics are supposed to be the hands of Christ extending His mercy, His living presence. I, right this instant, ask God to be merciful to me for my lack of faith, I ask You Holy Trinity to forgive me for being an unworthy vessel of Your presence. Please, increase Your presence in Me, use me to perform Your miracles of healing, show me what to do. I believe that you desire healing for those who ask, You said, “What father, when his son asks for bread, will hand him a serpent?” You are the source of healing, peace, forgiveness, and abundance. Give us Your heart and Your Spirit. Give us hearts so compassionate, that we will leave no suffering person without an experience of your mercy. You came that we may have life and have it abundantly, starting in this life. Show us the way to Your abundant living. Increase our faith in You and reveal Yourself to a broken world through Your hosts. I praise You for Your goodness. I praise You for Your mercy and compassion. Be it not our lack of faith that prevents You from working in us and through us and with us. Let us be like You, that through our stripes others may be healed and that through Your presence in us the world will be healed and transformed more into Your likeness, more generous, more compassionate, more powerful, more gentle, and more healing.
 
Lady_Love said:
I posted this thread last night and then went down stairs to watch T.V. and guess what!? I watched a program on people who have been healed of serious diseases through Jesus’ name.
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Wow, that is great timing.

I have met 2 people who have been healed and left doctors scratching their heads.

The first was a man who had a bad limp and was in significant pain after an accident and never expected to recover. After a number of years he was healed at a prayer meeting. He told me he did not believe he would be healed and went up for prayers just because a friend was asking him to. He said he felt nothing during the prayers and went back to his seat feeling embarrassed, and then on his way to the bus stop he stared walking normally again. He was so amazed he started walking faster and then running. And that was it. The bad limp and the pain never returned. He has been completely healed.

The other was a boy who had brain tumour. His parents prayed and prayed and enlisted many people to pray for him. He was supposed to have surgery and at the last doctor’s appointment before the procedure it was discovered that the cancer had gone. Nothing, not a trace.

Praise be to God.
 
Lady_Love said:
Healing was such a prominent ministry in the scriptures. There is not a single case where someone asked Jesus for healing and He refused. He imparted the gift of healing onto his disciples and whoever they laid hands on was healed, so what ever happened to the healing ministry? In scripture, all the sick were healed instantly, not over time, not by medicine, but by miracles. What has happened to this healing ministry? Is it because there is no faith?

Jesus says to imitate Him. He says “You will do greater things than these.” Jesus led the way and performed miracles, His apostles performed miracles, so where are the miracle?
Click to expand...
Fr. Solanus Casey was a simple priest in the USA, who was permitted to say Mass but was not permitted to hear confessions or preach. His intellegence was thought not enough but in spite of this was considered a very holy man.

People flocked to him looking for cures from cancer, tuberculosis and heart disease. He was able to help thousands physically, emotionally, and spiritually. He changed the lives of others in a meeting with him of only moments. He was given the gifts of miracles, prophesy, healing and others mentioned by St. Paul.

Besides Father Casey, there was another brother in Canada who used blessed oil to heal people, and was quite famous in the early part of the last century. People lined up to see him too.

Not to mention Lourdes, where thousands also are healed physically and spiritually.

Just some thoughts.​

“For healing, for wholeness, for new life, hear our prayer” (hymn)
 
fred_conty said:
Fr. Solanus Casey was a simple priest in the USA, who was permitted to say Mass but was not permitted to hear confessions or preach. His intellegence was thought not enough but in spite of this was considered a very holy man.

People flocked to him looking for cures from cancer, tuberculosis and heart disease. He was able to help thousands physically, emotionally, and spiritually. He changed the lives of others in a meeting with him of only moments. He was given the gifts of miracles, prophesy, healing and others mentioned by St. Paul.

Besides Father Casey, there was another brother in Canada who used blessed oil to heal people, and was quite famous in the early part of the last century. People lined up to see him too.

Not to mention Lourdes, where thousands also are healed physically and spiritually.

Just some thoughts.​

“For healing, for wholeness, for new life, hear our prayer” (hymn)
Click to expand...
I am aware of Lourdes and thank you for sharing about the priest and brother. I am forever grateful for their presence but why are there so few healers. I know it is not because God’s desire to heal is lacking.
 
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