Florence Nightingale

This photo accompanied her testimony of healing.
The photo that accompanied Florence Nightingale's prayer request

Followers of William Branham will often tell the story of the miraculous healing of Florence Nightingale.

Testimony by Rev. Gwilam Francis

Brother Branham and myself visited Miss Florence Nightingale Shirlaw at her mother’s home at 11, Clarendon Road, London W II…We were only four persons in the room that Sunday afternoon, Miss Shirlaw, her mother, Brother Branham and myself, and you [Gordon Lindsay] will probably recall that we were probably there for over an hour. When the atmosphere seemed to be charged with the presence and power of God, Brother Branham took Miss Shirlaw’s hand, and offered a very short prayer, after which he requested her to eat. That is all that happened in that room…Miss Shirlaw’s recovery took a few weeks, I was in constant touch with her during this period.” (Originally published The Voice of Healing, Magazine, 1954)

Testimony by William Branham

October 27, 1952, Sermon: Jesus Christ the Same Yesterday, Today and Forever

How many seen the picture of Florence Nightingale? It was yonder in London, England, when she only weighed about thirty-seven pounds. She couldn't even move her hand or nothing: cancer on the duodenum of the stomach. And while standing there praying for her, a little dove flew in, set down on the window, and begin to go back and forth, cooing. When I raised up, the--the ministers begin to say, "Did you see the dove?" I said... I started to say, "I see the dove," and the Spirit of the Lord spoke and said, "THUS SAITH THE LORD, she'll live and not die." And she weighs a hundred and fifty-five pounds, in perfect health. See. See. Now, the God that saved Florence Nightingale, the great-granddaughter of the late Florence Nightingale, the founder of the Red Cross, can save your life tonight; can save your life tonight

November 6, 1953, Sermon: Do you Now Believe?

When I went in to London, the day that we arrived on the International Airport in London, on our road to the Scandinavian country and to pray for the king... I heard them page me. And Mr. Baxter, Mr. Lindsay, many of these men that you people know, was with me. And they went in, and it was the Anglican minister. They brought Miss Florence Nightingale from South Africa, how she knowed, less it was through the crown, I couldn't know yet. But she knew we was going to land there that day. And she come in about fifteen minutes before we did, and I couldn't even get the woman... They couldn't get the woman out of the plane, they thought she was dead then. And I said, "Well, there's thousands of people between here and the plane. I couldn't get to it. I'm going down to Buckingham Palace, then to Westminster Abbey, and then I'll--I'll be at the Piccadilly Hotel, you come get me, we'll go have prayer for her."

Fact Correction

Reverend Francis had his testimony of the events in England published in the Voice of Healing Magazine because many of the facts story published in Julius Stadsklev's book, "A Prophet Visits South Africa" about the event were wrong. Reverend Francis also concluded that Miss Shirlaw's healing was real.

Some of the facts that that changed include:

  • No THUS SAITH THE LORD
  • No dove in the window
  • There were four people in the room: William Branham, Gordon Lindsay, Rev. Francis, and Miss Shirlaw (no nurses).
  • Miss Shirlaw was at her home, and not on the airplane.
  • Reverend Francis arranged the meeting, not the Crown.

Other corrections to statements made by William Branham:

  • Florence Nightingale (the famous nurse) never married and never had children.
  • The Red Cross was founded by Henry Dunant.
  • Florence's last name was "Shirlaw", not "Nightingale".
  • William Branham took credit for the healing, yet there were other people and ministers present that prayed for her, as well as the medical attention she continued receiving.

It has also been noted that the Picadilly Hotel, where William Branham was staying, is a very expensive and prestigious hotel.

References


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