News Excerpt and photo from NBC News.com
A Catholic priest who was paralyzed from the chest down in a fall four years ago says he has proof that prayer can heal.
Doctors had told Father John Murray of Brooklyn, New York that he would never walk again after bone chips from his neck sliced into his spinal cord.
"'You should expect no voluntary movement,'" said Murray. "That's a quote. 'No voluntary movement for the rest of your life.'"
Watch Part Two of Cynthia McFadden's Two-Part Report on the Power of Prayer Tuesday on "Nightly News"
But within a year and a half after he tripped on a Jersey Shore boardwalk, the priest was able to rise from his wheelchair and walk.
"I think it's a result of prayer," said Murray. "Other people's prayers and my prayers, without a doubt."
Father Murray has a lot of company. Half of all Americans believe that prayer can heal. But medical studies increasingly show the same thing, says the medical professor who runs Duke University's Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health.
"People who are more religious just live longer; that's kind of the bottom line," said Dr. Harold Koenig.
Read More: Fr. John Murray
