Healing prayers exist across virtually every faith tradition, from Christianity and Judaism to Buddhism and beyond. Whether you’re praying for yourself or someone you love, there are prayers rooted in centuries of spiritual practice that speak directly to illness, suffering, and the desire for restoration. Below you’ll find specific prayers you can use, along with what’s known about how prayer affects the body and mind.
Christian Prayers for Healing
The most widely cited biblical foundation for healing prayer comes from the book of James: “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.” This passage from James 5:14-16 goes on to say that “the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working,” and it connects healing with confession and community, not just individual petition.
Psalm 103 offers language many Christians turn to when they need words: “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.” This psalm frames healing as part of a broader relationship with God rather than a standalone request.
The early church in Acts 4 prayed collectively: “Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” This prayer ties healing to purpose and mission, not just personal relief.
The Jewish Mi Shebeirach Prayer
In Jewish liturgy, the Mi Shebeirach is the central prayer for those who are ill. It is recited during Torah services in synagogues and can also be said privately. The prayer names the person who is sick and asks God for a complete renewal of body and spirit:
“May the one who blessed our ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, bless and heal those who are ill. May the Blessed Holy One be filled with compassion for their health to be restored and their strength to be revived. May God swiftly send them a complete renewal of body and spirit, and let us say, Amen.”
The Mi Shebeirach is notable for how it connects the person who is sick to a lineage of ancestors, placing individual suffering within a larger story. Many Jewish communities invite congregants to speak the names of loved ones aloud before the prayer is recited, making it a communal act.
Catholic Prayers and Patron Saints
Catholic tradition includes both formal prayers for the sick and a deeply specific system of patron saints associated with particular illnesses. St. Peregrine is the patron saint for those with cancer. St. Bernadette Soubirous is associated with asthma. St. Agatha is invoked for breast cancer, St. Alphonsus Liguori for arthritis, and St. Lidwina of Schiedam for chronic illness and prolonged suffering. For childhood illness, Catholics may pray to St. Alypius the Stylite, and for pandemics, to St. Edmund the Martyr or St. Corona.
One traditional Catholic prayer for caregivers invokes the Angel of Gethsemane: “O Angel of Gethsemane, chosen by the Father to bring strength and consolation to Jesus during His agony, I ask you to be with me now as I keep watch over my loved one who is sick and suffering. Help me to offer my best care, love and protection to this child of God. May my words and my touch be filled with gentleness, my presence bring comfort, and my prayers bring rest and healing sleep.” This prayer is distinctive because it’s written not for the person who is ill, but for the person sitting beside them.
Prayers for Anxiety and Mental Health
Not all healing prayers address physical illness. Many traditions offer prayers specifically for anxiety, stress, and emotional pain. One widely used Christian prayer reads: “Lord, please put Your peace in my heart. I’m worried and anxious. My mind races and obsesses. I can’t help thinking about my problems. And the more I think about them, the more depressed I become. I feel like I’m sinking down in quicksand and can’t get out. Calm me, Lord. Slow me down, put Your peace in my heart.”
Another prayer focused on letting go of anxiety acknowledges the difficulty directly: “Dear God, it’s difficult to fully let go of our anxiety, or the world around us when we can’t see evidence of all that you’re doing. Today, we pause and remind ourselves of our dependency on you, for we know in our hearts that our circumstances and futures are touched by your hands.”
A more contemplative approach comes from the hymn writer John Greenleaf Whittier: “Drop Thy still dews of quietness, till all our strivings cease; take from our souls the strain and stress, and let our ordered lives confess the beauty of Thy peace.” These prayers share a common structure: they name the emotional reality honestly, then ask for something to replace it.
Interfaith and Non-Denominational Options
Hospital chaplains often use prayers that can speak to patients of any background. One such prayer, used at St. Joseph’s Health in Syracuse, New York, addresses the patient by name: “Please know that you are God’s beloved daughter/son. You are precious in God’s eyes. Although you may feel overwhelmed, perhaps even frightened, please remember that you are a very special person and deeply loved by God and all your family members and the people who are here with you.”
A Buddhist prayer used in some clinical settings takes a different approach, focusing on the one who prays becoming a source of healing for others: “May I become at all times, both now and forever, a protector for those without protection, a guide for those who have lost their way, a ship for those with oceans to cross, a sanctuary for those in danger, a lamp for those without light, a place of refuge for those who lack shelter, and a servant to all in need.”
For family members keeping vigil, there’s this simple blessing: “May God bless you with faith to quiet the fears of your hearts. May God bless you with courage to face the struggle of this time. May God bless you with strength as you keep vigil with your loved one. Amen.”
What Prayer Does for the Body
Whether or not prayer produces miraculous physical cures, the act of praying creates measurable changes in the body. Research has found that prayer leads to a lower heart rate, reduced muscle tension, and slower breathing. Prayer also appears to decrease the body’s fight-or-flight response and increase activity in the calming branch of the nervous system. Clinical studies suggest it may alter brain chemistry and structure in ways that promote feelings of tranquility.
Contemplative prayer in particular seems to function similarly to meditation, inducing a state of relaxation and lower arousal. These aren’t trivial effects for someone dealing with illness. Chronic stress suppresses immune function and slows wound healing, so anything that reliably activates the body’s relaxation response has practical value during recovery.
The evidence on intercessory prayer, where someone else prays for a patient without the patient’s knowledge, tells a different story. A 2023 randomized controlled trial studied hospitalized COVID-19 patients in São Paulo, Brazil. Spiritual leaders prayed for half the patients while the other half received no prayer. Mortality was nearly identical: 8% in both groups. There were no significant differences in ICU time, length of hospital stay, or need for mechanical ventilation. Multiple earlier trials have produced similar results. Prayer’s measurable benefits appear to flow through the person doing the praying, through the calming, focusing, and connecting that the act itself produces.
When Healing Doesn’t Come
One of the hardest aspects of prayer for healing is what happens when the illness persists or worsens. This is a question every major faith tradition has grappled with. If prayer doesn’t achieve the desired results, disappointment and disillusionment can follow, sometimes making the coping process harder rather than easier.
Most theological perspectives distinguish between cure and healing. A cure is the elimination of disease. Healing is broader: it can mean peace with one’s situation, reconciliation with loved ones, release from fear, or a sense of meaning in suffering. Many people who pray through serious illness report that what changed wasn’t their diagnosis but their relationship to it. The prayers listed above reflect this range. Some ask directly for physical restoration. Others ask for peace, strength, courage, or the ability to be present with someone who is suffering. Both are legitimate forms of healing prayer, and choosing which to reach for often depends on where you are in the process.