Prayer for a Sick Loved One

When someone we love is sick, it can be hard to know what to pray. The Church's own rites for the sick give us simple, trustworthy words. This short prayer comes from the traditional Roman Ritual for the visitation of the sick, prayed by priests at the bedside for centuries. It asks God to look upon the sick person, refresh the soul He created, and bring healing through His own remedy.

Say it for a spouse, parent, child, or friend who is ill at home or in the hospital, inserting their name, and pray it with them if they are able. When someone is seriously ill, remember to ask a priest for the Anointing of the Sick. It pairs well with our Prayer for the Sick and the Prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes.

The Prayer

Look down, O Lord, upon Thy servant N., who is laboring under bodily infirmity, and refresh the soul which Thou hast created; that, being bettered by Thy chastisements, he (she) may know that he (she) has been saved by Thy healing. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. Health of the Sick, pray for him (her). St. Joseph, pray for him (her).

Sources: Prayer Respice, Domine, from the Visitation of the Sick in the traditional Roman Ritual (English), public domain.