Priestly Service

Seriousness and Spirituality in Prayers

Seriousness and Spirituality in Prayers
If the priest prays with spirit and seriousness, people feel the depth and impact of his prayers—unlike one who prays quickly and routinely.
Let us give one or more examples:

Anointing a sick person with oil:
There is a great difference between two priests anointing a sick person with oil:

1. One anoints him quickly, perhaps while speaking to him or to those around him… or in silence…
2. Another priest places his hand on the sick person, then recites with all reverence and in an audible voice some readings from the Gospel, including:
   • A passage from the Gospel of our teacher Luke the Evangelist, whose blessings be upon us, Amen:
   “Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him for her. So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her! And immediately she arose and served them. And when the sun was setting, all those who had any sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.” (Luke 4:38–40).
   Yes, Amen—please, O Lord, heal this sick person.
   • Then he recites (Matthew 10:1, 8) about the authority the Lord granted His disciples to heal the sick…
   • Then he takes the bottle of oil with all reverence, makes the three signs of the cross over it, and recites:
   From the Epistle of our teacher James the Apostle, whose blessings be upon us, Amen:
   “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (James 5:14–15).
   • Then he anoints the sick person with oil calmly, saying in an audible voice: “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit…” in Coptic or Arabic.
   • After that, he says a word of supplication for the sick person, from the depth of his heart and with love. The sick person feels the priest’s blessing, his prayers, and his supplication. He also feels the seriousness of the prayer—and even senses the effectiveness of the prayer.                                                                             And perhaps at the same time, the priest reads for him the absolution, or the third part of the prayer of absolution.

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