[Faith-talk] Blind Theology

[dave!~]

*Paul,*
**
*I am not sure what is out there for scholarly works on Blindness and the
Bible... however I would suggest Henry Nuanan as a possible more general
reference. *
**
*You had mention John 9, one of my favorite texts. If you read the text
literally you will see Jesus had a unique response to the man born blind in
contrast to the people, including the religious leaders. They refer to him
as the "blind man" while Jesus refers to him as the "man born blind." At
the heart of the issue for him and all people who are born or become blind
is our humanity in contrast to our blindness. The Greek make an even great
dichotomy between the two views. *
**
*An other possible issue may be the me bibles usage of blindness as a
metaphor for sin. How do we retain the integrity of scripture while
preserving our own intrinsic worth.  Finding this new language has benn a
theological struggle and passion for me.  During my time at seminary (it
sounds rather ominous doesn't it?) I begged all the professors about this e
endeavor, with little sucess. I would welcome a new alley. *
**
*I have a question of a personal nature, are you now or have you served a
congregation? *
**
*If there is anything I could do to help you please contact me directly.
Thank you *
**
*Humbly,*
**
*David *
* *

On 8/22/07, cg2183 at columbia.edu <cg2183 at columbia.edu> wrote:
>
> Hey Everyone,
>
> My name is Paul Grenier and I'm about to start my final year at
> Union Theological Seminary in New York.  During this year I am
> required to write a senior thesis, and I have decided to write on
> Blindness and Theology.  There are already some books that discuss
> Blindness and religion such as "In the Beginning there was
> Darkness" which is a Bible commentary written from a blind
> perspective.  And of course there are the religious writings of
> Helen Keller, and a great book called "Scattered Shadows," which
> are personal reflections on blindness and religion.  But none of
> these books approach theology or even the bible in a systematic and
> scholarly way.  On the other hand there are books such as "The
> Disabled God," or "Dancing with Disability," which begin to outline
> a specific form of theology for disabled people.  But these books
> seem to be catered to those with mobility disabilities, which do
> not necessarily affect the blind.  I am hoping to write a thesis
> which uses the theological frame work of current disabled
> theologies while focusing on the specific experiences of blind and
> visually impaired people in America.
>
> So I'm writing to the Communities of faith list to ask if anyone
> knows of any books or articles that might help me in my research.
> And I am interested in your opinions on specific issues.  I'm still
> developing some of the questions I wish to ask all of you, and I'm
> looking forward to reading some of the articles in the Harold.  But
> for now let me just test the waters with this theological bomb
> shell, by asking the question asked by Jesus' disciples and many
> others in John 9:1
> "1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples
> asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was
> born blind?"  Or in other words, why did God, make us, or allow us,
> to be born blind or become blind?  Is it a curse because of our
> sin? or maybe because of the sin of Adam and Eve?  Or maybe it is a
> test of our own personal faith?  But what can we make of Jesus'
> answer to  this very question in John 9:3 whe he said, "this
> happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life."
> Does this mean that this man suffered a life time of blindness so
> God could show off his power?  Maybe blindness isn't even a curse
> or suffering at all and there are some other answers to this
> question.  What do you think?
> I would be happy to receive anything you care to write up.  You can
> just reply on this mailing list, or send it to me directly so that
> we don't end up flooding peoples' inboxes.  My email is
> cg2183 at columbia.edu.
>
> Thanks for reading and God Bless
> Paul
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk
>
-------------- next part --------------
Paul,
 
I am not sure what is out there for scholarly works on Blindness and the Bible... however I would suggest Henry Nuanan as a possible more general reference.
 
You had mention John 9, one of my favorite texts. If you read the text literally you will see Jesus had a unique response to the man born blind in contrast to the people, including the religious leaders. They refer to him as the "blind man" while Jesus refers to him as the "man born blind." At the heart of the issue for him and all people who are born or become blind is our humanity in contrast to our blindness. The Greek make an even great dichotomy between the two views. 
 
An other possible issue may be the me bibles usage of blindness as a metaphor for sin. How do we retain the integrity of scripture while preserving our own intrinsic worth.  Finding this new language has benn a theological struggle and passion for me.  During my time at seminary (it sounds rather ominous doesn't it?) I begged all the professors about this e endeavor, with little sucess. I would welcome a new alley.
 
I have a question of a personal nature, are you now or have you served a congregation?
 
If there is anything I could do to help you please contact me directly. Thank you
 
Humbly,
 
David
 
 
On 8/22/07,
mailto:cg2183 at columbia.edu cg2183 at columbia.edu
< mailto:cg2183 at columbia.edu cg2183 at columbia.edu
> wrote:
Hey Everyone,
My name is Paul Grenier and I'm about to start my final year at
Union Theological Seminary in New York.  During this year I am
required to write a senior thesis, and I have decided to write on
Blindness and Theology.  There are already some books that discuss
Blindness and religion such as "In the Beginning there was
Darkness" which is a Bible commentary written from a blind
perspective.  And of course there are the religious writings of
Helen Keller, and a great book called "Scattered Shadows," which
are personal reflections on blindness and religion.  But none of
these books approach theology or even the bible in a systematic and
scholarly way.  On the other hand there are books such as "The
Disabled God," or "Dancing with Disability," which begin to outline
a specific form of theology for disabled people.  But these books
seem to be catered to those with mobility disabilities, which do
not necessarily affect the blind.  I am hoping to write a thesis
which uses the theological frame work of current disabled
theologies while focusing on the specific experiences of blind and
visually impaired people in America.
So I'm writing to the Communities of faith list to ask if anyone
knows of any books or articles that might help me in my research.
And I am interested in your opinions on specific issues.  I'm still
developing some of the questions I wish to ask all of you, and I'm
looking forward to reading some of the articles in the Harold.  But
for now let me just test the waters with this theological bomb
shell, by asking the question asked by Jesus' disciples and many
others in John 9:1
"1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples
asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was
born blind?"  Or in other words, why did God, make us, or allow us,
to be born blind or become blind?  Is it a curse because of our
sin? or maybe because of the sin of Adam and Eve?  Or maybe it is a
test of our own personal faith?  But what can we make of Jesus'
answer to  this very question in John 9:3 whe he said, "this
happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life."
Does this mean that this man suffered a life time of blindness so
God could show off his power?  Maybe blindness isn't even a curse
or suffering at all and there are some other answers to this
question.  What do you think?
I would be happy to receive anything you care to write up.  You can
just reply on this mailing list, or send it to me directly so that
we don't end up flooding peoples' inboxes.  My email is
mailto:cg2183 at columbia.edu cg2183 at columbia.edu
.
Thanks for reading and God Bless
Paul
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