The Healing Priest

For the past years people from all over the world have been flocking to the town of Lucban, in the province of Quezon, Philippines. Guided by faith, they hope to find healing from various physical illnesses, spiritual renewal and guidance.

The Kamay ni Hesus Healing Center (Hand of Jesus) and Church, in Baranggay Tinamnan, is shadowed by mystical Mt. Banahaw. Many consider this place "sacred". Here accounts of numerous miraculous healings thrive. At its heart is its charismatic physical healer, spiritual adviser and founder Fr. Joey Faller.

Born on June 19, 1964, he was considered the "black sheep" in a family of medical practitioners. His father was a doctor, his mother was a nurse and he has two other brothers who are also doctors. Their family owns a local hospital. With the intention of learning better basketball (he towers at six feet), he entered the St. Francis Seminary in Lipa, Batangas. He was surrounded by a series of tragic deaths, both his parents and a sister, leading to and after his ordination on September 9, 1989. In 1991, he became the director of the Catholic Charismatic Community in the diocese of Lucena, Quezon. It was during this time that many would reveal to him how his prayers had healed them. He shrugged off the accounts and considered the prayers as part of his priestly obligations. He asked himself why God would choose a weak, wounded and broken priest to be a healer. He was given numerous signs that he doubted and repeatedly ignored.
Signs

January 19, 1993
In a mass co-celebrated with Fr. Barham, a renowned international healer from the USA, a woman in a wheel chair was able to walk after being prayed over. Fr. Barham confirmed to him that indeed he has the gift of healing.

February 6, 1993
While unintentionally substituting as a mass celebrant at the Lipa Carmel Monastery, Batangas for the nationwide Marian Pilgrimage, he experienced a vision of a woman in red from Manila who had cancer. He also smelled the scent of roses and the gift of tongues. After the mass he asked the crowd if there was a woman from Manila who has cancer. To his surprise, a woman stood up wearing a red t-shirt and said she has cancer of the bone. He prayed over her and she was healed. A man suffering from osteoarthritis was also healed and was able to walk without pain.

March 1993
On his first trip to the Holy Land in Jerusalem, he asked for a sign while in the Pentecost area. Two doves descended upon him.

May 1993
On his second trip to the Holy Land while in pilgrimage, he cured a foreigner who was unable to walk without a cane. Another foreigner suffering from severe arthritis, who was part of the pilgrimage, was also healed. She was able to walk the stony road to Betseda and was even able to teach them a dance.

August 1993
He prayed for his first cousin who had psoriasis and a heart problem. Her heart valve had a hole and she was scheduled for an operation. When she went back to the USA, doctors told her that there was no need for an operation.

1994
He was invited to a series of healing masses and prayers throughout the USA to serve the different charismatic communities. Many provided testimonies of healing and spiritual deliverance. Although intrigued, he was still in doubt.

The Hand of Jesus

In April 8, 1994, a car accident almost took his life. The accident caused damage to the ulnar nerve of his right hand that paralyzed his index and small finger. He underwent an operation to correct it but the fingers remained pointed downward. Upon closer inspection he noticed that it resembled the hand of the Santo Nino (Little Jesus) and the risen Christ. Finally, he acknowledged it as a sign for him to fully embrace the healing ministry.

Kamay ni Hesus Ministry Foundation

In 1998 he went to Rome for the International Charismatic Congress. He and Charles Whitehead, the President of the International Catholic Charismatic Service (ICCRS), experienced a vision. In it he was amidst many sick people congregating inside a large building. He understood what God wanted him to do.

On his return he proposed the building of a healing center to Bishop Ruben Profugo (Diocese of Lucena) who supported him by providing land. The Kamay ni Hesus Ministry Foundation (KHMF) was formed to raise the necessary funds for the construction of the healing center and church.

Benny Brizuela, a businessman and philanthropist tackled the difficult task of landscaping the hilly terrain by securing the help of Ifugaos. (Natives) He built all the structures and improvements on the hill that he then later donated to the foundation. He credits his involvement in the ministry for his survival and recovery from two heart attacks and a stroke.

The Center

The entire complex is built on a hilly one-hectare land. At the base of a nearby hill stands the Church that holds regular masses. The Via Dolorosa (Way of the Cross) is spread out along the 292-step path leading up the hill. Midway up is nestled the Grotto of Healing and Purification from which water springs. At the summit, a 50-foot concrete image of the resurrected Christ marks the site. With arms outstretched as if in welcome, it consecrates the devotees and structures located below.

The KHMF funds the maintenance, upkeep and future expansion of the center through donations and pledges. The "Footprints at the Park" reserves a one-square meter spot for each donor as a record of their generosity. Plans are underway to build a retreat center and an infirmary. The infirmary is intended for the occupancy of the sick from far away places for up to three days during which Fr. Faller will shower them with prayers.

As the center's reputation grows long lines of vehicles has become a common sight. Parking now even occupies both sides of the national highway especially during the Lenten season. Healings and prayers for the sick are performed following the regular mass held by Fr. Joey Faller after which he makes the rounds of the cars in the parking area to comfort and pray for the sick that are physically unable to attend the mass. Many are witness to his gift of healing as attested by the numerous testimonies of those who recovered from various illnesses ranging from impotence to terminal cancer

Testimonies

·Mitzi Villanueva already had cancerous lymph nodes but was healed.
·Joey Carandang, a former seminarian, was unable to conceive a child because of his low sperm count. His wife's doctor was in disbelief when she got pregnant.
·Siony Yap asked for healing the night before her ovarian operation. She was told to request for a last check-up which she forgot. Her husband, a doctor who was part of the operation, was surprised to see that nothing was wrong with her ovaries. The doctors including the anesthesiologist also asked to be healed.
·Teresa Go was healed of myoma and thyroid problems.
·Evelyn del Rosario had breast cancer that was scheduled for operation and received the sacrament of confession. In her final check-up the doctor found no cancerous growth.
·Rusty Valencia was diagnosed with three cases of cancer and was told that it was terminal. The cancer even reached her brain. More than ten years later she is still alive.
·A man from Boston, in a healing mass in New Jersey on August 2001, was healed of his brain cancer.

It is through the outpouring of love that the Kamay ni Hesus Healing Center continues to be built. It is a place of hope, healing and peace. Fr. Joey Faller is quick to emphasize that he is just an instrument. It is through him that the power of God's love flows to heal the body, mind and spirit.