By The Very Rev. Gabe Sinisi, M.D.
By The Very Rev. Gabe Sinisi, M.D.
"A Privacy Act that took effect December 21, 2002, in Australia restricts churches from placing names on prayer lists in bulletins unless they are given specific permission..." - ENS, Jan. 8. 2003
OK, so physicians have been dealing with malpractice lawsuits for quite some time. Frivolous suits, the occasional unscrupulous lawyer, and insurance premiums are just part of the cost of doing business for many professionals and others serving the public in our society.
But now clergy, and church groups who practice intercessory prayer, better watch out. At least in Australia a new law prohibits the publishing of a person's name on a prayer list without their express permission. It is considered an invasion of privacy.
What about here in the good old U.S. of A.? There may not be a law but we Americans are known to be a litigious bunch. Picture kindly Mother Victoria - moved by compassion, during the main Sunday morning Mass she announces that dear old Bill needs prayers for an uncomplicated course of healing after his hemorrhoid surgery tomorrow morning. When Bill gets over being overwhelmed by gifts from the congregation (including Tucks pads and donut pillows), will he be able to call his attorney and institute invasion of privacy proceedings against everyone he knows at church?
I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. But I do know that we all have a moral and ethical responsibility to protect each other's privacy. Maybe, unlike Australia, it isn't against the law here - yet. And maybe under most circumstances even some of the most jaded lawyers and judges might find it distasteful to sue people who are actually praying for you. It still seems like a good idea to ask a person if they would like to be prayed for publicly in church.
By the way, there is generally no need to expose a person's detailed medical history on a prayer list. Generalities like "for healing" do very well unless an individual requests that their specific need be mentioned. It never hurts to ask people what their wants are before doing it "the way we've always done it."
For me the bottom (no pun relating to my earlier example is intended here) line in this and in all dealings with our brothers and sisters in Christ is to do what is right. Consideration and sensitivity for the persons - and their families - who are the focus of our ministry should always be hallmarks of a Christian community anyway.
Dean Gabe Sinisi is rector of St. Christopher's-by-the-Sea, Key Biscayne, and dean of the South Dade Deanery. He is also a medical doctor, who practiced internal medicine for 20 years before being called to the priesthood.
"..... mindful of confidentiality, permission must be
given by the individual prayed for to use his or her name in the public prayer
of the Church." - from "Prayer Lists" in "The Grapevine" (monthly newsletter of
Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford, CT) [September 2004, p. 3]
See
http://www.philosophy-religion.org/criticism/lawsuits.htm and
http://www.philosophy-religion.org/criticism/privacy.htm
.