Brought to heal: Margaret Roy on a spiritual process

‘You really can’t get away from that God thing.’

George Fox promoted a healing ministry, and Jesus’ healing fills the pages of the Gospels. But this ministry is bypassed a little when prayer is seen as worship of a deity. How can we accommodate spiritual healing while we struggle with what we might mean by ‘spiritual’? The word gives rise to all sorts of images that do not fit in with our modern culture. It’s weird!

There are different kinds of spiritual healing. The kind recommended by the Friends Fellowship of Healing is simply to name a person or situation and ‘hold it in the Light’. There are reasons for not going any further, although sometimes we have ‘laying on of hands’. We are not there to ‘fix’ anything. In regards to illness in particular, we do not know what it is that really needs to be ‘cured’. Apart from the fact that few of us are doctors, the body has great depths that we (even doctors) cannot fathom. So, we simply channel light, or healing energy, to allow a process to begin or deepen.

Another, simpler way, is to hold the person/situation in the heart and to let love flow in that direction. No judgement or interpretation should be made. This is a powerful healing prayer, probably the most powerful.

But let me dally a little. Letting go is an act of surrender. We might say we let nature take its course, except ‘healing’ implies a belief in the ability for change in the situation.

What do we mean by ‘hold in the Light’? At the very least it is an emptying the mind of all other thoughts, to allow Light to enter. We then hold a vision of the other person. We may or may not add the thought of them attaining wellness, or, as we create their image, make it of a healthy radiant person. The latter uses the skill of imagination – some might call it visualisation. Note that we still do not intervene, but merely create and hold an image. This has unbelievable results – unbelievable to those who deny that humans are creative beings, or who, put another way, have lost the ability to share in the Creation. There are those who would see this as God-talk.

A modern way of looking at this is ‘exchange’ or ‘flow’. In relationship, when we are in contact with another person, this can be for good or ill. The ‘ill’ bit is why many religions have such emphasis on improving character, to create a world that is more positive. One might label this positivity as ‘just’, ‘equal’, or giving space to see that of God in everyone. But you really can’t get away from that God thing, so we need to face it head on and explore the experience.

Spiritually, the process starts with surrender. Yes, it could be surrender of the ego, or self, but it is not a loss. Moving from our head, our thinking mind, to our heart, opens new vistas on consciousness. These are based on connection, not specific definitions, or separating things. Unity is the key: oneness. Of course, this is what we do in Meeting for Worship, which is why the healing ministry is such a core and essential part of our stillness.

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