Any real experiences with blessings?

[1smartdodog]

One of the main things that destroyed my belief in the church was the notion of healing blessings. With a critically ill wife I was faced with the fact that blessings did little or nothing. So I have often told people tell if they have ever witnessed a healing from a blessing. Of course I get the usual coincidental stories but I have never spoke to anyone who witnessed something miraculous.

So I wonder if anyone has ever seen a real healing. Not one of those vague stories, but a real life miracle. Something like a cripple getting up and walking or blind person seeing. Or even broken arm fixed.

I think it would be great if such things actually happened.

[wtfluff]

So I wonder if anyone has ever seen a real healing. Not one of those vague stories, but a real life miracle. Something like a cripple getting up and walking or blind person seeing. Or even broken arm fixed.

Nope.

In fact I can't even think someone close to me telling of one of those "My cousin's 3rd niece once removed was cured from leukemia" stories. My first-hand experience, being surrounded by TBM family is just like yours: Blessings Do. Not. Work. Full Stop.

[RubinHighlander]

I've read studies that show that prayer has no statistical impact on the outcome of major medical events. It has been shown to sometimes help the believer experience reduced pain. This is my personal observation from all the blessings I've received or have given. Anything good is attributed to blessings, anything bad is attributed to a trial of faith. The third and best choice is not to attribute it to anything at all, which can reduce the pain of cogdis over such things.

[BriansThoughtMirror]

I haven't, but you might get more stories from a more TBM-ish forum. I bet if you ask the Latterday Saint Reddit or other forum full of believers that you'll get some examples.

That said, I think those type of stories happen in all charismatic type religions. Believers have experiences that they find very convincing. For example, on my mission, I met an ex-mormon man who said his son had a chronic disease that LDS priesthood holders failed to heal on numerous occasions. He went to some charismatic christian preacher who did the laying on of hands, and he said the guy healed his son. He left the church after that. I'm guessing you get just as many failed blessings/prophesies/etc. in those other charismatic religions, too, but they are not talked about, just like they aren't talked about in Mormonism. Tell everyone about the hits, forget about the misses.

For myself, I've seen a lot of failed blessings. That's part of why I'm here!

[Corsair]

No. I still attend a ward where several unfortunate deaths have occurred in the last several years. Blessings of health and safety have not prevented cancer (three times), tragic car accident, or drug overdose. It's just a state of affairs that does not get mentioned. My ward is full of devout people, but if someone had a lesson on dealing with adversity or on priesthood blessings, the recent painful examples are quietly ignored. Hope springs eternal, however, and priesthood blessing continue to get administered.

[LaMachina]

Nope...

When my father was diagnosed with cancer there were multiple blessings, fasts and prayers offered. He was the most faithful and good man I've ever known. He quickly lost his ability to communicate effectively and 9 months later was dead. One of the real kicks in the gut for me was at a certain point, when it became clear he was not going to get better and was at death's door, all of us sons gathered around and gave him a priesthood blessing releasing him from this life so that he could be relieved of the pain and suffering. He continued with us for another excruciating 2 months of pointless agony.

At the time I blamed myself as I was struggling with my testimony and thought this was clearly the result of me not being faithful enough.

[Red Ryder]

I'm living proof.... (according to my dad).

I was born a few months shy of my due date. I was given a priesthood blessing and my under developed lungs healed over the 20 plus days I was in the NICU.

Yup, you could say I was a priesthood blessing success story!

Jefferey R. Holland once told my story at a fireside. You may remember it. A young man left home and lost his spiritual way. He found himself in New York City. Drunk, broke, and with a bad rash on his left testicle he decided to leave NYC. He drove his motorcycle west before the testicle rash caused extreme pain somewhere near Salt Lake City. He found the nearest emergency room and was treated for pain. He was so impressed with the hospital nurse that he asked her out for dinner and drinks. She declined having to tell him she didn't drink. She explained the word of wisdom to him and he felt the spirit. She invited him to take the missionary discussions and he got baptized, went back to college, married a friend of the nurse, lived in WhyMount Terrace, and studied biology. He eventually became a Doctor specializing in delivering premature babies. He delivered me.

[Emower]

Yeah, I wouldnt say that I have either. I had a broken arm once that refused to heal, needed surgery and I had no money to pay for that and no insurance. The family fasted, Grandpa gave me a blessing and a week later the x-ray showed that it had healed. This could be, but I doubt it.

The other stories I have heard tend to be like Hollands tales.

[StarbucksMom]

Yes. I witnessed a miracle that left trained, seasoned doctors, ultrasound techs, and nurses almost speechless. They just said stuff like "I don't know what miracle happened to you" and "I have seen a couple of miracles in my careeer and this is one of them."

[moksha]

I think faith can help kick your body's natural defenses into high gear. That is not always sufficient to overcome an infection or illness.

[BriansThoughtMirror]

Yes. I witnessed a miracle that left trained, seasoned doctors, ultrasound techs, and nurses almost speechless. They just said stuff like "I don't know what miracle happened to you" and "I have seen a couple of miracles in my careeer and this is one of them."

So, what do you think of it now? Also, I'd love to hear more about that!

[Mad Jax]

I think the first question covers all of what's being thrown around in this thread.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDHJ4ztnldQ

[Stig]

Nothing that can't just as easily be explained by the intersection of modern medicine with dumb luck. I have a whole bunch of stories where blessings didn't do a damn thing and the amount of mental gymnastics necessary to explain them away is staggering.

[deacon blues]

Yes, but the details are a little fuzzy. On my mission, at the request of an LDS friend, we blessed a non-member who had apparently been diagnosed with cancer. I left the area shortly after. A few months later a missionary called from the area, saying the lady, went in for more tests, and the cancer had disappeared. She and her family, except for the husband had all been baptized. I never got more details. When I go home tonight I am going to check my missionary journal to see if it has any more details. I do not remember the words that were said in the blessing. I just figured the lady must have had great faith.

[FiveFingerMnemonic]

When I was a briefs wearing 18 year-old freshly ordained as an elder I was invited to bless my aunt who had brain cancer. She died. When I was on my mission we were invited to bless a member dying of congenital heart failure, he died. Later on in life I participated in a blessing of a paralyzed relative. No good result there either. I would like to invite any faith filled member telling healing stories to heal my paralyzed relative.

[ulmite]

I have not seen anything beyond what the spontaneous remission rate would predict (many people have died of cancer and one person recovered without treatment after an initial diagnosis for stage 3). As with other things that sometimes come in answer to a prayer and sometimes don't (miraculous healing, miraculous finding of keys, good ideas, success on a project, ...) it is hard to tell what to ascribe to God and what to ascribe to the Universe working the way it does.

I do have one experience : I cracked my head open when I was 6 (27 stitches at the ER later that night!), and my dad gave me a blessing which made me stop screaming all of a sudden. My very vivid memories of the time involve a LOT of pain, everything going black (I was never unconscious), then red, and I was carried into the kitchen, and then I could see again (did I finally open my eyes?), and talk, and go get a few books and then we drove to the ER. I don't know exactly how much of it was me being scared and how much was me being hurt, but I calmed down really quickly. So, not a full miracle because I still spent hours at the ER getting 27 stitches in two separate layers (fun fun fun fun fun!) and the next two weeks going places in a stroller just so I didn't overexert myself (mortifying), but I also avoided a concussion, any brain damage, and any permanent damage besides a Harry Potter scar on my forehead.

[1smartdodog]

Perhaps there is a cosmic rule that only healing that can masquerade as a coincidence can be performed. That way no one is going to get to much more than a little motivation to keep the faith angle going.

I don't believe that for a second but my neighbor loves that idea and uses it for all sorts of explanations of why we get so little for God.

[1smartdodog]

I haven't, but you might get more stories from a more TBM-ish forum. I bet if you ask the Latterday Saint Reddit or other forum full of believers that you'll get some examples.

I am sure I would but their reliability would be in question I think. Looking for more rational people to come up with the real deal. Still searching for someone who has witnessed anything akin to biblical miracles. Maybe an amputee going an arm back or something.

[Corsair]

I haven't, but you might get more stories from a more TBM-ish forum. I bet if you ask the Latterday Saint Reddit or other forum full of believers that you'll get some examples.

John Dehlin interviewed Greg Prince last year and this topic came up. Brother Prince admitted that most priesthood blessings probably don't change very much. But he was confident (ie., "had a testimon") that real healing power in priesthood blessings does occur in a few cases. No elaboration was offered.

[BriansThoughtMirror]

I am sure I would but their reliability would be in question I think. Looking for more rational people to come up with the real deal. Still searching for someone who has witnessed anything akin to biblical miracles. Maybe an amputee going an arm back or something.

I'm just saying that you'll get selection bias by asking only in this forum. I'm thinking this forum gathers people who have seen blessings fail more often than not. People who believe they have seen real miracles probably won't end up in this forum. If you discount believers' experiences completely, you'll probably eliminate most possible miracles, even if they do exist.

Granted, there are probably a few here who believe they have seen miracles, but they interpret their significance differently than a TBM would. My guess is that they are in the minority.

Some friends of mine claim to have seen miracles and supernatural phenomena. I tend to think there is a materialistic explanation for all of them, but I can't guarantee that my explanation is true. If their experiences had happened to me, my beliefs might be different!