"It was becoming increasingly clear to me that the ministry of prayer for healing is meant to enable the person who is hurting – physically, emotionally, spiritually – to experience the Lord meeting her in her need. If the minister uses the many resources at his disposal well, the supplicant experiences God meeting her in her need" Father Leo Thomas O.P. SALT LAKE CITY — St. Catherine of Siena Newman Center and Parish will begin its popular "Spiritual Formation Program in Prayer for Healing" (FHM) beginning with a retreat Sept. 9-10. Weekly meetings will then be conducted Tuesday evenings over a two-year period. Penny Lazalde and David Hughes will teach the formation program, an in-depth ecumenical training program. St. Catherine’s has offered prayer for healing training according to the teachings of Dominican Father Leo Thomas and the Institute of Christian Ministries (ICM) since 1986, said Tina Hornung. That year, Fr. Leo was living at the Newman Center. A revised program was re-introduced in 1994 under the direction of Dinny Abaunza. Prayer for spiritual healing involves neither psychic healing nor faith healing, Fr. Leo made clear in his 1987 book "The Healing Team." "The truth that this ministry belongs in the category of worship rather than in that of healing has many practical consequences," Fr. Leo wrote. "The first is that it gives us clarity about who we are and what we are doing. It makes a great difference whether we think that we are health care workers making therapeutic interventions or understanding ourselves to be ministers who are enabling a suffering Christian to experience God meeting him/her in his/her soul." Carrying on the work of Fr. Leo, who was ordained a Dominican priest in 1954 and died in 1997, is valuable for those who are trained in the formation program as well as for those people who come to them seeking comfort. Hornung, Sister of Christian Community Julie Maher, Dominican Father Peter Rogers, and Therese Davy-Graham sat down with the Intermountain Catholic Aug. 15. "Fr. Leo developed the program making use of healing teams of from two to four ministers," said Fr. Peter. "His program came out of the charismatic movement of the 1970s and borrows from the tent healers." Fr. Peter tells the story of four Catholic priests who went to a tent prayer meeting and, because they were wearing Roman collars, were called to the stage to participate in a demonstration. One, Father Francis McNutt, began to leave the stage because he felt the demonstration was not for him. "The next thing he knew, he was laying on the stage looking up at the inside of the tent. He’d been slain in the spirit, even though he didn’t want to be." The ICM doesn’t see many people who are "slain in the spirit," but they do see people who experience enhanced spiritual well being when they pray with members of the healing teams. Hornung said no matter what prompts a person to seek spiritual healing, the healing teams look for healing within a person’s relationship with God. "Often through that prayer, they will experience healing of their relationships with family. It may help them prepare for death. Spiritual healing opens a person to new relationships with God and others through prayer." People may seek out members of a healing team to help them deal with grief, feelings of loss due to divorce, or alienation, said Sr. Julie. "The two years of formation include one year of learning how to use affirmation," said Davy-Graham. "People in formation learn how to listen, to themselves, to others, and to God. The first year helps people discover the gifts God has given them and how to bring them out for the benefit of others." The second year of formation involves identifying team members and learning how to pray as a team, said Davy-Graham. "A lot of trust goes into praying as a team. Even people who take the formation classes but choose not to become members of a healing team will experience growth in their spiritual lives." Davy-Graham said the healing ministry was kept alive for some time in the Diocese of Salt Lake City by Ed and Mary Dean of Ogden, and Dinny Abaunza, all lay ministers. Fr Peter is the only priest currently trained in Fr. Leo Thomas’ methods of healing prayer. "We hope to experience the critical mass of between 20 and 24 people participating in the formation classes," he said. "When you have that many people together in one room, you really experience the power of prayer. Some people will discover they have gifts they didn’t know they had, like the gift of Scripture, the gift of music, or the gift of vision." Sr. Julie said the gift of imaging can be very touching for people seeking healing through prayer. "The formation process really teaches a person to learn to listen to God," said Hornung. "We realize the prayer is not our own, but God’s. Sr. Julie points out that seeking spiritual healing is not a counseling session. Rather it is creating a prayerful situation for a person so that person can better communicate with God. The team is there to guide the supplicant through the experience. "Often people come to us in great need," said Davy-Graham. "Sometimes meeting their needs takes a few sessions. On the other hand, the supplicant can stop a session any time they want. They are completely in control." "We stress privacy, confidentiality in all we hear, and support of each other throughout the prayer process," said Fr. Peter. "We never approach a supplicant to talk with them or address them outside the group." Davy-Graham said while Fr. Leo Thomas’ formation is based on Catholic prayer tradition; people of all Christian faiths are invited to participate. "Much of what we do is based on Jesus’ life and the trinity. There is great power in prayer, and we look forward to sharing this method of prayer and prayerful healing with others." For further information about ICM Spiritual Formation Program in Prayer for Healing, call Penny Lazalde, 801-733-5951, David Hughes, 801-466-7346, or Therese Davy-Graham, 801-484-2861
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