Many people, when they are in the hospital, find that their minds turn quite naturally to such questions as, "Why is there sickness?" "Why did this happen to me?" "Am I being punished?" "What is the meaning of life?" These questions are religious questions. Should such questions come to your mind, you might find comfort in these words.
This is another day, O Lord. I know not what it will bring forth, but make me ready, Lord, for whatever it may be. If I am to stand up, help me to stand bravely. If I am to sit still, help me to sit quietly; If I am to lie low, help me to do it patiently. If I am to do nothing, help me to do it gallantly. Make these words more than words, and give me the spirit of your love. Amen.
O Lord, support us all the day long, until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then in your mercy grant us a safe lodging, and a holy rest, and peace at the last. Amen.
Strengthen me, O God, to do what I have to do and bear what I have to bear; that, accepting your healing gifts through the skill of surgeons and nurses, I may be restored to usefulness in your world with a thankful heart; and this I pray. Amen.
O Lord, your compassions never fail and your mercies are new every morning; I give you thanks for relief from pain and for the hope of health renewed. Continue, we pray, the good work you have begun in me; that I, daily increasing in bodily strength, and rejoicing in your goodness, may so order my life and conduct that I may always think and do those things that please you; through the mercy of your love I pray. Amen.
Sanctify, O Lord, those whom you have called to the study and practice of the arts of healing, and to the prevention of disease and pain. Strengthen them by your life-giving spirit, that by their ministries the health of the community may be promoted and your creation glorified. Amen.
Buddhist
May all beings cross over to the other shore, from suffering to liberation, from forgetfulness to mindfulness, from ignorance to enlightenment. Enlightenment! Sadhu! Sadhu! Sadhu! (Amen)
Christian (Prayer of St Francis)
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that I may seek not so much to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
Hindu
In the darkness that encircles us all around, and shuts our vision, do Thou, Lord, rise like the sun, and dispel the darkness with Thy Light Divine. May all be freed from dangers. May all realize what is good. May all be motivated by noble thoughts. May all rejoice everywhere. May all be happy. May all be free from diseases. May all realize what is good and healthy. May none be subject to misery. O Lord, lead us from the unreal to the Real. Lead us from darkness to Light. Lead us from death to Immortality! Peace, peace, peace be unto all! Almighty God! Lord of humankind: remove the hardship and release the sick of their sickness. Ease the suffering and heal them as you are the Healer. There is no cure except through Your healing. Help us to be steadfast and make our faith well established. Grant us a healthy heart and a truthful tongue. Set right our affairs and forgive us our sins, our wrongs, our mistakes, and shortcomings. Amen.
Islam
Almighty God! Lord of humankind: remove the hardship and release the sick of their sickness. Ease the suffering and heal them as you are the Healer. There is no cure except through Your healing. Help us to be steadfast and make our faith well established. Grant us a healthy heart and a truthful tongue. Set right our affairs and forgive us our sins, our wrongs, our mistakes, and shortcomings. Amen.
Jewish (Psalm 23)
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me. Your rod and staff support me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. A prayer for all The Lord bless us and keep us. The Lord keep all those whom we love, whether here or in some other place. May God be our companion and friend, as we walk together through all the days of our lives; and at the journey's end, may we find the welcome of God's love. It keeps us all. Amen.
Secular/Humanist
In all parts of ourselves, we are all connected. With every breath, we share this world. May we always feel our connection to those suffering, and to all in our world. May they find resilience in memories of the suffering they’ve faced before and in the power offered by their connection to others. We trust in the love and support of those near us. We trust in the sciences that guide the hands of the nurses and doctors here in this hospital. But, we still trust in the power of the story of our own lives, however long and winding it may be, to be enveloped by the greater story of life itself. Life is a passage through which we all travel but we are never alone in that journey, even when far away from those we love. May those suffering feel the presence of their partners in memory, always and forever, through this challenge and the next. May it be so, in light and love.
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