Divine healing

Divine healing is the belief that God can cure illness through supernatural action, often in response to prayer. Traditions differ on whether it complements medical treatment or replaces it.

Intercessory prayer: Prayer offered on behalf of another person, often asking God for help or healing. It is a common way believers ask God to heal someone who is ill.
Healing in the Hebrew Bible: Accounts and teachings about illness, recovery, and divine healing in the Hebrew Bible. These texts provide earlier Jewish contexts for understanding God as healer.
Evidence-based medicine: Clinical decision-making that integrates research evidence, professional expertise, and patient values. It evaluates treatments through clinical evidence rather than claims of supernatural intervention.
Medical neglect: Failure to obtain or provide needed medical care, sometimes resulting in preventable harm. Refusing effective treatment in expectation of divine healing can create serious health risks.
Laying on of hands: A religious practice in which one person places hands on another during prayer or blessing. Some healing traditions use touch as a sign of prayer and divine action.
Healing in the New Testament: Narratives and teachings about healing associated with Jesus and his followers in the New Testament. The accounts became central scriptural foundations for Christian beliefs about divine healing.
Placebo effect: A beneficial change in symptoms or experience associated with treatment context rather than an active treatment ingredient. It offers a non-supernatural explanation for some improvements reported after healing rituals.
Religious coping: The use of religious beliefs and practices to manage stress, illness, or other adversity. Prayer for healing can help people find meaning and support during illness.
Faith healing: The practice of seeking recovery from illness through religious faith or spiritual intervention. It describes healing practices centered on faith, including some claims of divine healing.
Jesus healing the paralytic: A Gospel episode in which Jesus heals a paralyzed man and declares his sins forgiven. The story links physical healing with Jesus' authority and forgiveness.

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