Are lay people permitted to lay hands in prayer ministry?
The gesture of laying on of hands is not limited to a bishop ordaining a priest or a priest when anointing someone with the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. Scripture itself teaches that one of the signs that will follow disciples of Jesus is that they will “lay their hands on the sick and they will recover” (Mk 16:18). While touching someone is not at all a requirement of any prayer ministry, we have found that when used prudently with the permission of the prayee, God can communicate graces into people’s lives through the humble and loving gesture of laying on of hands.