Healing in the New Testament: Insights from Medical and Mediterranean Anthropology

by John J. Pilch

Overview

How are we to read and understand stories of Jesus healing the lame, deaf, blind, and those with a variety of other maladies? Pilch takes us beyond the historical and literary questions to examine the social questions of how the earliest followers of Jesus and ancient Judeans understood healing, what roles healers played, and the different emphases on healing among the gospels. In his comparative analysis, the author draws on the anthropology of the Mediterranean as well as the models employed by medical anthropologists to understand peasant societies and their health-care systems.

Utilizes social-science models

Features a complementary web-site with additional resources

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781451411324
Publisher:	Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
Publication date:	01/28/2000
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

John J. Pilchteaches at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Among his numerous publications are The Cultural World of Jesus: Sunday by Sunday (1995-97), The Cultural Dictionary of the Bible (1999), and Healing in the New Testament (2000). Malina and Pilch have co-authored the Social Science Commentary on the Book of Acts (2008) and the Social-Science Commentary on the Letters of Paul (2005), both from Fortress Press.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Basic Perspectives: Healing and Curing

Medical Anthropology: Sickness and Disease

Selecting an Appropriate Model: Leprosy-A Test Case

Healing in Mark

Healing in Matthew

Healing in Luke-Acts

Healing in John

Conclusion

Discussion Questions

Glossary

General Bibliography

Scripture Index