The laying on of hands is a religious practice. In Judaismsemikhah (Hebrew: סמיכה, "leaning [of the hands]")[1] accompanies the conferring of a blessing or authority.
Catholic ordination ceremony with laying on of hands
The laying on of hands was an action referred to on numerous occasions in the Hebrew Bible to accompany the conferring of a blessing or authority. Moses ordained Joshua through semikhah—i.e. by the laying on of hands: Num 27:15–23, Deut 34:9. The Bible adds that Joshua was thereby "filled with the spirit of wisdom". Moses also ordained the 70 elders (Num 11:16–25). The elders later ordained their successors in this way. Their successors in turn ordained others. This chain of hands-on semikhah continued through the time of the Second Temple, to an undetermined time. The exact date that the original semikhah succession ended is not certain. Many medieval authorities believed that this occurred during the reign of Hillel II, circa 360 CE.[4] However, it seems to have continued at least until 425 CE when Theodosius II executed Gamaliel VI and suppressed the Patriarchate and Sanhedrin.[5]
Laying on of hands can also refer to the practice of laying hands over one's sacrificial animal (sin-offering), before it was slaughtered,[6] based on a teaching in Leviticus 4:24: "And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat." In Pseudo Jonathan's Aramaic translation of the Pentateuch, the translator of the verse explains its sense: "And he shall lay his right hand with force on the head of the goat." According to Philo of Alexandria, the custom of laying on of hands was done in conjunction with a declaration, where the owner of the animal would say: "These hands have not taken a bribe to distort justice, neither have they divided the spoil, etc."[7] According to Jewish tradition, the first dispute in Israel concerned whether or not it was permissible to lay hands upon one's sacrificial animal by applying one's full body weight on a Festival Day.[8]
Christian traditions
Laying on of hands during a Finnish Lutheran ordination in Oulu, Finland
Laying on of hands during a Catholic priestly ordination in Germany
In the New Testament the laying on of hands was associated with the receiving of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 8:14–19). Initially the Apostles laid hands on new believers as well as believers (see Acts 6:5–6).
The New Testament also associates the laying on of hands with the conferral of authority or designation of a person to a position of responsibility. (See Acts 6:6, Acts 13:3; and 1 Timothy 4:14. Also possibly Acts 14:23, where "ordained"—Greek: χειροτονήσαντες—may be translated "extended the hand".) The use of the laying on of hands for the ordination of church officers has continued in many branches of Christianity.
Anglicanism
Laying on of hands is part of Anglican confirmation,[9]anointing of the sick,[10] and other parts of liturgy and pastoral offices. The rubric in the confirmation service requires the bishop to lay only one hand, symbolising that he has less spiritual authority than an apostle who laid both hands.
Catholicism
In the Roman Catholic Church, the practice continued and is still used in a wide variety of church ceremonies, such as during confirmation.
Eastern Christianity
In Eastern Christianity, laying on of hands is used for the ordination (called cheirotonia) of the higher clergy (bishops, priests and deacons), and is also performed at the end of the sacrament of unction.
Evangelicalism
Laying on of hands for healing in Living Streams International Church, Accra, Ghana, 2018
In few Baptist churches, the laying on of hands rarely takes place after a believer's baptism although this is traditional to some sects and not practiced as a Biblical command nor example.[12] This is one of the two points which was added in the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in 1742.[13][14]Southern Baptist Christians employ the laying on of hands during the ordination of clergymen (such as deacons, assistant, and senior pastors) as well as situations of calling for divine healing.
Pentecostalism
Pentecostal Christians practice the laying on of hands as part of prayer for divine healing (faith healing) and the anointing of the sick.[15] Former Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison practises the laying on of hands.
Latter-day Saints
An 1850s depiction of a Latter Day Saint confirmation featuring the laying on of hands
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe the restoration of Christ's priesthood came about by the laying on of hands by the resurrected John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in 1829,[16] and laying on of hands is seen as a necessary part of Confirmation.[17] Latter-day Saints lay on hands when ordaining members to[18] to the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods and when setting members apart to serve in other positions in the church.[19] When asked by a member who is ill, two elders of the Church anoint the sick member's head with consecrated olive oil and then lay hands upon their head and as guided by the Holy Spirit, bless them.[20]
African traditional medicine
The San peoples of Southern Africa use the laying on of hands as a healing practice. As described by professor Richard Katz, the healers of the !Kung people lay their hands on a sick person to draw the sickness out of them and into the healer in a "difficult, painful" process.[21]
The laying on of hands, known as the royal touch, was performed by kings in England and France, and was believed to cure scrofula (also called "King's Evil" at the time), a name given to a number of skin diseases. The rite of the king's touch began in France with Robert II the Pious, but legend later attributed the practice to Clovis as Merovingian founder of the Holy Roman kingdom, and Edward the Confessor in England. The belief continued to be common throughout the Middle Ages but began to die out with the Enlightenment. Queen Anne was the last British monarch to claim to possess this divine ability, though the Jacobitepretenders also claimed to do so. The French monarchy maintained the practice up until the 19th century. The act was usually performed at large ceremonies, often at Easter or other holy days.
^"Chirotony", Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol. II (1st ed.), Edinburgh: Colin Macfarquhar, 1771.
^Lewton, Elizabeth L.; Bydone, Victoria (1 December 2000). "Identity and Healing in Three Navajo Religious Traditions: Sa'ah Naagháí Bik'eh Hózho". Medical Anthropology Quarterly. 14 (4): 476–497. doi:10.1525/maq.2000.14.4.476. ISSN 1548-1387. PMID 11224977.
^Nachmanides, Sefer Hazekhut, Gittin ch 4; Rabbenu Nissim, ibid; Sefer Haterumot, Gate 45; R Levi ibn Haviv, Kuntras Hasemikhah.
^Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Baker Academic, USA, 2001, p. 678
^John H. Y. Briggs, A Dictionary of European Baptist Life and Thought, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2009, p. 296
^William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p.525-526
^Bill J. Leonard, Baptists in America, Columbia University Press, USA, 2005, p. 76
^Christopher A. Stephenson, Types of Pentecostal Theology: Method, System, Spirit, OUP USA, USA, 2012, p. 64
^The Doctrine and Covenants (1981 ed.). Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1981. p. 24, section 13 verses 1-2. ISBN978-1-59297-503-7. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^"General Handbook of Instruction". churchofjesuschrist.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^"General Handbook of Instructions". churchofjesuschrist.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^"General Handbook of Instructions". churchofjesuschrist.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^"Performing Priesthood Ordinances and Blessings, section 18.13.2". churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved 18 July 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
^Katz, Richard (Winter 1982). "Accepting "Boiling Energy": The Experience of !Kia-Healing among the !Kung". Ethos. 10 (4): 344–368. doi:10.1525/eth.1982.10.4.02a00050. ISSN 0091-2131 – via JSTOR.
Scott, Gini Graham (2002). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Shamanism. Alpha Books. ISBN978-0-02-864364-9.
March 25, 2023
laying, hands, laying, hands, religious, practice, judaism, semikhah, hebrew, סמיכה, leaning, hands, accompanies, conferring, blessing, authority, catholic, ordination, ceremony, with, laying, hands, christian, churches, chirotony, used, both, symbolic, formal. The laying on of hands is a religious practice In Judaism semikhah Hebrew סמיכה leaning of the hands 1 accompanies the conferring of a blessing or authority Catholic ordination ceremony with laying on of hands In Christian churches chirotony 2 is used as both a symbolic and formal method of invoking the Holy Spirit primarily during baptisms and confirmations healing services blessings and ordination of priests ministers elders deacons and other church officers along with a variety of other church sacraments and holy ceremonies A similar practice of laying on of hands is also used in Navajo religious ceremonies 3 Contents 1 Jewish tradition 2 Christian traditions 2 1 Anglicanism 2 2 Catholicism 2 3 Eastern Christianity 2 4 Evangelicalism 2 4 1 Baptists 2 4 2 Pentecostalism 2 5 Latter day Saints 3 African traditional medicine 4 State use 5 See also 6 Notes 7 ReferencesJewish tradition EditMain article Semikhah The laying on of hands was an action referred to on numerous occasions in the Hebrew Bible to accompany the conferring of a blessing or authority Moses ordained Joshua through semikhah i e by the laying on of hands Num 27 15 23 Deut 34 9 The Bible adds that Joshua was thereby filled with the spirit of wisdom Moses also ordained the 70 elders Num 11 16 25 The elders later ordained their successors in this way Their successors in turn ordained others This chain of hands on semikhah continued through the time of the Second Temple to an undetermined time The exact date that the original semikhah succession ended is not certain Many medieval authorities believed that this occurred during the reign of Hillel II circa 360 CE 4 However it seems to have continued at least until 425 CE when Theodosius II executed Gamaliel VI and suppressed the Patriarchate and Sanhedrin 5 Laying on of hands can also refer to the practice of laying hands over one s sacrificial animal sin offering before it was slaughtered 6 based on a teaching in Leviticus 4 24 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat In Pseudo Jonathan s Aramaic translation of the Pentateuch the translator of the verse explains its sense And he shall lay his right hand with force on the head of the goat According to Philo of Alexandria the custom of laying on of hands was done in conjunction with a declaration where the owner of the animal would say These hands have not taken a bribe to distort justice neither have they divided the spoil etc 7 According to Jewish tradition the first dispute in Israel concerned whether or not it was permissible to lay hands upon one s sacrificial animal by applying one s full body weight on a Festival Day 8 Christian traditions Edit Laying on of hands during a Finnish Lutheran ordination in Oulu Finland Laying on of hands during a Catholic priestly ordination in Germany Main article Christian laying on of hands In the New Testament the laying on of hands was associated with the receiving of the Holy Spirit see Acts 8 14 19 Initially the Apostles laid hands on new believers as well as believers see Acts 6 5 6 The New Testament also associates the laying on of hands with the conferral of authority or designation of a person to a position of responsibility See Acts 6 6 Acts 13 3 and 1 Timothy 4 14 Also possibly Acts 14 23 where ordained Greek xeirotonhsantes may be translated extended the hand The use of the laying on of hands for the ordination of church officers has continued in many branches of Christianity Anglicanism Edit Laying on of hands is part of Anglican confirmation 9 anointing of the sick 10 and other parts of liturgy and pastoral offices The rubric in the confirmation service requires the bishop to lay only one hand symbolising that he has less spiritual authority than an apostle who laid both hands Catholicism Edit In the Roman Catholic Church the practice continued and is still used in a wide variety of church ceremonies such as during confirmation Eastern Christianity Edit In Eastern Christianity laying on of hands is used for the ordination called cheirotonia of the higher clergy bishops priests and deacons and is also performed at the end of the sacrament of unction Evangelicalism Edit Laying on of hands for healing in Living Streams International Church Accra Ghana 2018 In Evangelical Christianity the laying on of hands takes place for pastoral ordination 11 Baptists Edit In few Baptist churches the laying on of hands rarely takes place after a believer s baptism although this is traditional to some sects and not practiced as a Biblical command nor example 12 This is one of the two points which was added in the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in 1742 13 14 Southern Baptist Christians employ the laying on of hands during the ordination of clergymen such as deacons assistant and senior pastors as well as situations of calling for divine healing Pentecostalism Edit Pentecostal Christians practice the laying on of hands as part of prayer for divine healing faith healing and the anointing of the sick 15 Former Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison practises the laying on of hands Latter day Saints Edit An 1850s depiction of a Latter Day Saint confirmation featuring the laying on of hands Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints believe the restoration of Christ s priesthood came about by the laying on of hands by the resurrected John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in 1829 16 and laying on of hands is seen as a necessary part of Confirmation 17 Latter day Saints lay on hands when ordaining members to 18 to the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods and when setting members apart to serve in other positions in the church 19 When asked by a member who is ill two elders of the Church anoint the sick member s head with consecrated olive oil and then lay hands upon their head and as guided by the Holy Spirit bless them 20 African traditional medicine EditThe San peoples of Southern Africa use the laying on of hands as a healing practice As described by professor Richard Katz the healers of the Kung people lay their hands on a sick person to draw the sickness out of them and into the healer in a difficult painful process 21 State use EditMain article Royal touch This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed May 2014 Learn how and when to remove this template message The laying on of hands known as the royal touch was performed by kings in England and France and was believed to cure scrofula also called King s Evil at the time a name given to a number of skin diseases The rite of the king s touch began in France with Robert II the Pious but legend later attributed the practice to Clovis as Merovingian founder of the Holy Roman kingdom and Edward the Confessor in England The belief continued to be common throughout the Middle Ages but began to die out with the Enlightenment Queen Anne was the last British monarch to claim to possess this divine ability though the Jacobite pretenders also claimed to do so The French monarchy maintained the practice up until the 19th century The act was usually performed at large ceremonies often at Easter or other holy days See also EditAnointing Exorcism Faith healing Gifts of healing Gift of miracles Holy anointing oil Hypnosis Manual therapy Ordination Pneumatology Priesthood blessing Reiki Right hand of Christian fellowship Snake handling Speaking in tongues Spiritual gift Spirituality Superstition Thaumaturgy Scott MorrisonNotes Edit Strong s Hebrew 5564 ס מ ך Samak to lean lay rest support Chirotony Encyclopaedia Britannica vol II 1st ed Edinburgh Colin Macfarquhar 1771 Lewton Elizabeth L Bydone Victoria 1 December 2000 Identity and Healing in Three Navajo Religious Traditions Sa ah Naaghai Bik eh Hozho Medical Anthropology Quarterly 14 4 476 497 doi 10 1525 maq 2000 14 4 476 ISSN 1548 1387 PMID 11224977 Nachmanides Sefer Hazekhut Gittin ch 4 Rabbenu Nissim ibid Sefer Haterumot Gate 45 R Levi ibn Haviv Kuntras Hasemikhah ROMAN IMPERIAL LAWS concerning Jews 329 553 Jerusalem Talmud Hagigah 2 2 10b Philo De Specialibus Legibus The Special Laws book i chapter 37 vs 204 Jerusalem Talmud Hagigah 2 2 10b for example Book of Alternative Services Anglican Church of Canada p 628 http stmarks byethost9 com for example Book of Alternative Services Anglican Church of Canada p 555 Walter A Elwell Evangelical Dictionary of Theology Baker Academic USA 2001 p 678 John H Y Briggs A Dictionary of European Baptist Life and Thought Wipf and Stock Publishers USA 2009 p 296 William H Brackney Historical Dictionary of the Baptists Scarecrow Press USA 2009 p 525 526 Bill J Leonard Baptists in America Columbia University Press USA 2005 p 76 Christopher A Stephenson Types of Pentecostal Theology Method System Spirit OUP USA USA 2012 p 64 The Doctrine and Covenants 1981 ed Salt Lake City Utah The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints 1981 p 24 section 13 verses 1 2 ISBN 978 1 59297 503 7 Retrieved 18 July 2022 General Handbook of Instruction churchofjesuschrist org The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints Retrieved 18 July 2022 General Handbook of Instructions churchofjesuschrist org The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints Retrieved 18 July 2022 General Handbook of Instructions churchofjesuschrist org The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints Retrieved 18 July 2022 Performing Priesthood Ordinances and Blessings section 18 13 2 churchofjesuschrist org Retrieved 18 July 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Katz Richard Winter 1982 Accepting Boiling Energy The Experience of Kia Healing among the Kung Ethos 10 4 344 368 doi 10 1525 eth 1982 10 4 02a00050 ISSN 0091 2131 via JSTOR References EditNew Bible Dictionary ISBN 0 85110 630 7 Parry Ken Melling David eds 1999 The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity Malden MA Blackwell Publishing ISBN 978 0 631 23203 2 Swete H B Laying on of hands Archived from the original on 2010 09 03 Retrieved 2007 10 15 Imposition of Hands Catholic Encyclopedia Ordination Jewish Encyclopedia Scott Gini Graham 2002 The Complete Idiot s Guide to Shamanism Alpha Books ISBN 978 0 02 864364 9 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Laying on of hands amp oldid 1131323459, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
