The Sacred Self: A Cultural Phenomenology of Charismatic Healing

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This series ofphotographs documents a typical public healing service conducted by one ofseveral well-known Catholic Charismatic healing ministries in New England. Their healing services took place every Sunday for more than ten years under the leadership of the late Franciscan priest Rev. John Lazansky. Supplicants at the healing services offive such ministries responded to our questionnaire about their experiences of being prayed with for healing. 1. Before going into the main part ofthe church where people who desire healing have assembled, members ofthe ministry gather in the church sacristy, clasping hands in a gesture ofspiritual community as they pray for divine blessing oftheir efforts. The man in the suit at left wears a red sash with a dove representing the Holy Spirit which identifies him as an usher in the service. The man at right holds his hand in the characteristic open-palmed Charismatic prayer posture. 2. The service begins with Father Lazansky walking through the assembly, holding a crucifix in one hand and selectively laying the other hand on devotees as they sing a hymn. Other healers observed sometimes used a liturgical instrument known as an aspergillum to sprinkle holy water on the assembly while walking among them. Some people "rest in the Spirit" as the healer lays hands on them or sprinkles them, slumping back into their seats in the pew. 3. Following a sermon on the theme ofdivine healing power and the way it transcends scientific understanding (an allusion to the presence ofwe researchers who were photographing the event), Father Lazansky asks people with particular problems to come forward for special attention. His selection ofproblems varies from week to week based on the divine inspiration available through the charism or spiritual gift known as "word ofknowledge." In this service he was inspired to pray for children and those who had problems with their legs. Here he lays hands on a young girl surrounded by her family. 4. While the leader prays at his central station in front of the altar, other members ofthe healing ministry divide into teams and spread to various locations throughout the church. Ushers organize the orderly approach ofdevotees to the teams for healing prayer. It is made clear that healing power is as readily available through the teams as it is through the principal healer, but nevertheless it is evident that he is the only one who prays unassisted. Here a team leader (at right) is assisted by two others as they pray over the woman in glasses. The team member with his back to the camera also lays a hand on the team leader in prayerful support. The man at left is the "catcher" who will break the devotee's fall ifshe rests in the Spirit. Note the look of rapt intentness on the faces of team members. 5. Throughout the healing service the "music ministry" performs from a position beside the altar. Some ofthe numbers are hymns in which everyone participates, but devotional background music in the form ofsoft, prayerful chants is also played, especially during the long period in which individuals are receiving attention from the healing teams. A healing team can be seen at work in the right background, behind the music ministry. 6. A woman beginning to rest in the Spirit falls away from the outstretched hands laid on her by three healing team members into the waiting arms ofthe catcher. Referred to as "slaying in the Spirit" among Protestant Pentecostals, the experience is described as being overcome by the power ofdivine presence. As shown here, the body is characteristically straight-legged during the fall, and the person falls directly backward to the catcher. It is rare for people falling in the sacred swoon to collapse or have their knees buckle under them. 7. The same woman resting in the Spirit after having been laid gently on the floor by the catcher. She will remain there for several minutes, experiencing divine power and presence, then get up on her own and return to her seat in the pews. Not everyone who is prayed with rests in the Spirit, and the proportion varies from one healing service to another, depending in part on the emphasis placed by the principal healer on this practice. The length of time any person remains on the...