Orthodox prayers before surgery

These prayers are for the patient, for the family who wait, and for the surgeon.

Picture: John Bridges, Christ Healing the Mother of Simon Peter’s Wife, 1839

5 prayers and 3 to the saints

For the one having the operation

Prayer before medical treatment

Plain English only: no traditional English wording is given for this prayer

Lord our God, You created the doctorand the many kinds of treatment, as Scripture says,and You gave them to heal disease and to ease illness.

Look with mercy on me, a sinner.Forgive my wrongs and my sins.Heal my soul,and give my body health through this treatment,so that, when I have received Your merciful help,I may serve You with all thankfulness.

For You are the Source of healing,and to You we give glory, to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,now and always, and for ever and ever. Amen.

Say this one yourself before you go in. It asks God, Who made the doctor and every kind of treatment, to heal your soul and to make your body well through this operation.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Church Slavonic; no English translation was found. How the wording is made.

Where it comes from, and the Church Slavonic

For someone you love going into surgery

Prayer for someone having surgery

Plain English only: no traditional English wording is given for this prayer

Lord our God, good Lover of mankind,Physician of our souls and bodies,You carry our weaknesses without painand take our illnesses on Yourself.You show mercy gently,You pass over our sins and take away our wrongdoing,You are quick to help and slow to anger.

As the Good Shepherd You came to look for the lost sheep.You give comfort to the fainthearted and life to the broken.You healed the woman whose bleeding had lasted twelve years,You opened the eyes of the man born blind,You freed the Canaanite woman’s daughter from a cruel demon,and You gave the paralysed man healing and the forgiveness of his sins.With a word You justified the tax collector,You received the thief at his dying confession,and You took away the sin of the world and nailed it to the Cross.

To You we pray, and of You we ask,Father of compassion and God of all comfort,Who gave the holy bishop Luke the gift of healing by surgery,strengthen the hand of the doctorto carry out the surgery that is neededand to give good treatment to Your servant (name),who looks to You for healing,so that the illness and grave sickness may be turned away.

Yes, tender-hearted and most merciful Lord,heal Your servant (name).Raise them from the bed of sickness and the couch of sufferingwhole and entirely well.Visit them with Your kindness,drive every illness and every weakness away from them,and give them to Your Church as one who pleases You and does Your will,so that, raised up by Your strong hand,they may serve You with all thankfulness.

For it is Yours to have mercy on us and to save us, our God,and to You we give glory, to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,now and always, and for ever and ever. Amen.

Show the whole prayer

Pray it with the name of someone you love who is going into surgery. It asks God to heal them and to raise them from their sickbed whole and well.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Church Slavonic; no English translation was found. How the wording is made.

Where it comes from, and the Church Slavonic

For the surgeon

Prayer for the surgeon

Plain English only: no traditional English wording is given for this prayer

Lord Jesus Christ our God,in Your mercy, with Your almighty right hand,strengthen the hand of the doctorto carry out the operation and give good treatment,to the glory of Your holy name.

We pray You, hear us and have mercy.

Pray this short plea for the surgeon while the operation goes on. It asks Christ to strengthen the surgeon’s hand with His own almighty hand.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Church Slavonic; no English translation was found. How the wording is made.

Where it comes from, and the Church Slavonic

As you hand yourself over to the doctors

St Barsanuphius on going to the doctors

Plain English only: no traditional English wording is given for this prayer

In the name of the Lordwe entrust ourselves to the doctors,so that through them God may give us healing.

These words hand you over to the doctors in the Lord’s name and look to God to heal you through them. St Barsanuphius, a monk of Gaza in the 6th century, gave them as the words of believers going to the doctors.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from a Russian translation of Barsanuphius’s Greek; the Greek of this answer was not found online in a form we could use. How the wording is made.

Where it comes from, and the Russian

For those who wait

Prayer for the sick in danger

O God, by Whose willthe moments of our life run their course,receive the prayers and offerings for Your servants, men and women,for whom we ask Your mercy in their sickness,so that we who fear for them in their dangermay rejoice in their recovery.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Traditional wording, 1864

O God, by Whose command the moments of our life run their course;receive our prayers for Thy servants lying sick,on whose behalf we implore Thy mercy;that our fears on account of their dangermay be turned into joy at their recovery;through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Pray this while you wait for news, so that your fear for the one in danger may turn to joy at their recovery. It comes from a Mass for the sick in a Latin book copied about AD 750.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Latin, with William Bright’s 1864 translation beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: William Bright, Ancient Collects and Other Prayers, 1864.

The Latin asks God to receive prayers and offerings for the sick. Bright’s English leaves out the offerings.

Where it comes from, and the Latin

To a saint · St Luke the Surgeon

Troparion of St Luke the Surgeon

Herald of the way of salvation,confessor of the faith and chief shepherd of the land of Crimea,true keeper of what the Fathers handed down,pillar that cannot be shaken, teacher of the Orthodox faith,doctor wise in God, holy bishop Luke,pray without ceasing to Christ the Saviourto give the Orthodox a faith that cannot be shaken,and salvation, and great mercy.

The kontakionLike a star full of light, holy bishop,you shone with virtuesand made your soul like an angel’s.So you were honoured with the rank of bishop.In exile you suffered much from the godless,yet you stood firm in the faith,and with a doctor’s wisdom you healed many.And so the Lord has now wonderfully glorified your honoured body,found deep in the earth,so that all of us who believe cry out to you:Rejoice, father and holy bishop Luke,praise and strength of the land of Crimea!

Traditional wording

Herald of the path of salvation, Confessor and Archpastor of the Crimean Land,True Guardian of Patristic Tradition, unshakable pillar, teacher of Orthodoxy,divinely-wise physician, and Hierarch Luke,pray unceasingly to Christ the Savior to grant unshakable faith to the Orthodox, salvation, and great mercy.

Like a star shining with light, O Hierarch, you shone with virtues,and you led a blameless life, like the Angels;therefore, you were honored with the rank of a Bishop,but suffered much persecution from the atheists,yet you remained unshakable in your faith,healing many with your medical wisdom.Therefore, your revered relics were found in the bowels of the earth,and the Lord has glorified you, so that all the faithful may cry out to you:"Rejoice, Father and Hierarch Luke,the boast and bulwark of the Crimean land."

St Luke of Crimea was a surgeon who became an archbishop and went on operating through years of exile. The Russian Church’s prayer before an operation recalls the gift of surgery God gave him.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Church Slavonic, with the Orthodox Church in America’s English beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: Orthodox Church in America, Troparia and kontakia for 11 June, on its website.

The Slavonic kontakion says he suffered in exile. The OCA’s English leaves out the exile.

Where it comes from, and the Church Slavonic

To a saint · St Panteleimon, the healer

Troparion of St Panteleimon

Holy victor and healer Panteleimon,pray to the merciful Godthat He may grant our soulsforgiveness of sins.

Traditional wording, 1894

Thou holy pain-enduring one, physician too,O Pantelimon, mediate with God the merciful,that He may grant our souls remission of iniquities.

The doctor St Panteleimon healed the sick in the name of Christ and died a martyr. His short hymn is sung at Holy Unction, the service of anointing the sick.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Greek, with Shann’s 1894 translation beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: G. V. Shann, Book of Needs of the Holy Orthodox Church, 1894.

Shann has “pain-enduring one” where the Greek has “victor”.

Where it comes from, and the Greek

To a saint · Sts Cyrus and John

Kontakion of Sts Cyrus and John

Holy ones, you received the gift of miracles from God’s grace,and you work wonders without ceasing.By unseen surgery you cut away all our passions,Cyrus, wise in God, together with holy John,for you are physicians of God.

Traditional wording

Having received the gift of miracles through divine grace, O saints,you work wonders in the world unceasingly.You remove all of our passions through your invisible surgery,divinely-wise Cyrus and glorious John,for you are truly divine physicians.

The doctor Cyrus and the soldier John were put to death together for their faith. Their hymn praises them for cutting away our passions by a surgery no one can see.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Greek, with the Orthodox Church in America’s English beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: Orthodox Church in America, Troparia and kontakia for 31 January, on its website.

The Greek says they cut away our passions, as a surgeon cuts. The OCA’s English says they remove them.

Where it comes from, and the Greek

Scripture for this

¹In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame. ²In Your justice, rescue and deliver me; incline Your ear and save me. ³Be my Rock of refuge, where I can always go. Give the command to save me, for You are my Rock and my fortress.

Psalm 71:1-3 The Russian Church’s service before an operation reads this psalm. It asks God to hear, to rescue and to be a Rock of refuge.

I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.

Psalm 3:5 David lay down and slept, then woke again because the Lord sustained him. His words fit going under and waking up.

¹⁴“Because he loves Me, I will deliver him; because he knows My name, I will protect him. ¹⁵When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.”

Psalm 91:14-15 God promises to answer the one who calls on Him, and to be with him in trouble.

“The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 Moses told Joshua that the Lord would go before him and never leave him, so he need not be afraid.

¹⁴When Jesus arrived at Peter’s house, He saw Peter’s mother-in-law sick in bed with a fever. ¹⁵So He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve Him.

Matthew 8:14-15 Jesus touched the hand of Peter’s mother-in-law, and the fever left her. The Russian Church reads it at its service before an operation.

“Abba, Father,” He said, “all things are possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will.”

Mark 14:36 Before His suffering, Jesus asked the Father to take the cup from Him. In the same breath He left the outcome to the Father’s will.

Bible text: Berean Standard Bible, public domain.

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