What do you think?
Rate this book
Disability in the Christian Tradition: A Reader
For two millennia Christians have thought about what human impairment is and how faith communities and society should respond to people with perceived impairments. But never has one volume collected the most significant Christian writings on disability. This book fills that gap.
Brian Brock and John Swinton's Disability in the Christian Tradition brings together for the first time key writings by thinkers from all periods of Christian history - including Augustine, Aquinas, Julian of Norwich, Luther, Calvin, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Bonhoeffer, Barth, Hauerwas, and more. Fourteen contemporary experts in theology and disability studies guide readers through each era or group of thinkers, offering clear commentary and highlighting important themes.
Brian Brock and John Swinton's Disability in the Christian Tradition brings together for the first time key writings by thinkers from all periods of Christian history - including Augustine, Aquinas, Julian of Norwich, Luther, Calvin, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Bonhoeffer, Barth, Hauerwas, and more. Fourteen contemporary experts in theology and disability studies guide readers through each era or group of thinkers, offering clear commentary and highlighting important themes.
- GenresDisabilityTheology
576 pages, Paperback
First published November 25, 2011
28 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 1, 2026
Disability in the Christian Tradition: A Reader didn’t land for me the way I expected. I went into this looking for a meaningful exploration of how Christian belief systems engage with disability, but what stood out most was the disconnect between the people being discussed and the way they were being talked about.
I don’t have an issue with the historical texts themselves. Writers from earlier periods weren’t expecting disabled readers, and their perspectives reflect the limitations of their time. What I struggled with were the modern scholars writing the introductions and framing each section. These are people who do have the benefit of contemporary awareness, and yet their tone often felt just as distant.
A lot of those introductions came across like they were talking about disabled people without really understanding them. At times, it felt like being in the room while people discuss you as an idea rather than as a person. That disconnect made it hard to stay engaged, even when the subject itself is important.
I also noticed a stronger focus on intellectual or mental disability than on physical disability, which made the perspective feel somewhat narrow. The writing can be dense and assumes a scholarly background, but that wasn’t my main issue—it was the lack of a grounded, lived perspective.
That said, the final few chapters were the most engaging. The more modern perspectives, especially those moving into the mid-to-late 20th century, felt more human and closer to the kind of discussion I was hoping for.
Overall, this book felt less like a conversation with disabled people and more like a conversation about them, without fully including the voices it’s trying to define.
I don’t have an issue with the historical texts themselves. Writers from earlier periods weren’t expecting disabled readers, and their perspectives reflect the limitations of their time. What I struggled with were the modern scholars writing the introductions and framing each section. These are people who do have the benefit of contemporary awareness, and yet their tone often felt just as distant.
A lot of those introductions came across like they were talking about disabled people without really understanding them. At times, it felt like being in the room while people discuss you as an idea rather than as a person. That disconnect made it hard to stay engaged, even when the subject itself is important.
I also noticed a stronger focus on intellectual or mental disability than on physical disability, which made the perspective feel somewhat narrow. The writing can be dense and assumes a scholarly background, but that wasn’t my main issue—it was the lack of a grounded, lived perspective.
That said, the final few chapters were the most engaging. The more modern perspectives, especially those moving into the mid-to-late 20th century, felt more human and closer to the kind of discussion I was hoping for.
Overall, this book felt less like a conversation with disabled people and more like a conversation about them, without fully including the voices it’s trying to define.
October 5, 2023
The quality of the contributions is excellent throughout, with much scope for reflection and utility beyond disability theology as a unique discipline. The Editors are to be commended for gathering a diverse selection of texts, and letting them both speak for themselves, and enable the contributors to comment carefully. Given the (in terms of the Christian tradition, at least!) relatively young nature of the discipline of Disability theology, this is an invaluable resource for those thinking about how to engage the area, and to give some depth for pastoral and personal reflection on the topic.
https://www.thomascreedy.co.uk/book-r...
https://www.thomascreedy.co.uk/book-r...
November 17, 2022
If you are going to be a teacher, pastor, or even a church member, this is a must-read. It seems a shame to campaign for diversity in our culture but ignore the massive group of people experiencing disability. If you want to reach the whole classroom, community, and church, take the time to acknowledge the group who may not have access to these spaces. Each chapter provides a look at different theologians who shaped the theology of disability over the years. So hard to read the harmful history and try to form my theology as I wrestle through the different perspectives.
August 23, 2021
I found this a mixed blessing but really appreciated the idea of getting many and varied perspectives. There is a lot to reflect on here and that needs to be done. The Christian tradition has a lot to reflect on and repent of when it comes to the perception and treatment of disability and people who live with disabilities. Reading this book brings about some very uncomfortable moments but also hope. We need more reflecting and a lot more listening to the voices of people living with disability.
May 16, 2019
A must-read for any serious student of disability theology.
March 27, 2013
Too serious for me but I had to review it for PNACL, so I spent several days with it...
my review follows..
This $45 book is more of a compendium of all religious writings from all periods of Christian history on “Disability” 14 contributors have sifted through all the writings which have reflected on the value of people with disability and their place in the church. Many churches when asked about disabilities in their congregations say, they don't have any, so the term must be defined, without resorting to single- word labels to describe people with a condition, physical or mental and even carried by some to cover sinners and criminals. This book is rich in footnotes, indexes, scriptures and quotations. Obviously since I am not a serious scholar, I did not read it word for word, and neither will your congregations.
Early Christian writings attributed “Disabilities” to disfigured person and those whose behavior caused them to be removed so as to not cause a distraction from the soul. Other theologians focused on mental disabilities and about how God wanted us to treat them. Even some classes women to be a problem, so you can see the broad scope of the books. Modern Christian tend to lean toward Martin Luther, Calvin, Bonhoeffer and Barth and Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard concerned himself with the “Sufferer” who was wronged from birth by being poor, sick, lepers, mentally ill or sinners and criminals. I particularly enjoyed the discussion by Jean Vanier, with his introduction to L'Arche, where the communities live together and with all the disabled and those who feel called to share their lives with them. I am not a scholar of this depth but I can recognize the very best of writing from all of history in one volume. It is a reference tool to study all issues of the subject of disabilities.
Three types of questions you might ask yourself are.
1. For whom are we to care and what kind of care ought Christian provide---activist discourse
2. What is sickness and disability in relation to human wholeness and health – definition discourse.
3. Concerns self-awareness and the demands placed on it by people who don't conform to our expectations - existential.
Where do you see yourself on the spectrum?
my review follows..
This $45 book is more of a compendium of all religious writings from all periods of Christian history on “Disability” 14 contributors have sifted through all the writings which have reflected on the value of people with disability and their place in the church. Many churches when asked about disabilities in their congregations say, they don't have any, so the term must be defined, without resorting to single- word labels to describe people with a condition, physical or mental and even carried by some to cover sinners and criminals. This book is rich in footnotes, indexes, scriptures and quotations. Obviously since I am not a serious scholar, I did not read it word for word, and neither will your congregations.
Early Christian writings attributed “Disabilities” to disfigured person and those whose behavior caused them to be removed so as to not cause a distraction from the soul. Other theologians focused on mental disabilities and about how God wanted us to treat them. Even some classes women to be a problem, so you can see the broad scope of the books. Modern Christian tend to lean toward Martin Luther, Calvin, Bonhoeffer and Barth and Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard concerned himself with the “Sufferer” who was wronged from birth by being poor, sick, lepers, mentally ill or sinners and criminals. I particularly enjoyed the discussion by Jean Vanier, with his introduction to L'Arche, where the communities live together and with all the disabled and those who feel called to share their lives with them. I am not a scholar of this depth but I can recognize the very best of writing from all of history in one volume. It is a reference tool to study all issues of the subject of disabilities.
Three types of questions you might ask yourself are.
1. For whom are we to care and what kind of care ought Christian provide---activist discourse
2. What is sickness and disability in relation to human wholeness and health – definition discourse.
3. Concerns self-awareness and the demands placed on it by people who don't conform to our expectations - existential.
Where do you see yourself on the spectrum?
December 21, 2016
This is a wonderful reader, deeply illuminating for theologians interested in disability. It's a welcome investigation and a nice step toward locating disability theology historically. This is a very important book.
July 23, 2013
This is a very helpful resources for those interested in disability and Christianity. Each chapter contains an essay about the theologian's views of disability and then a selection of their works that are relevant. To be honest, many of the texts are not directly related to disability. However, they are often connected to issues relevant or include principles that may be helpful for disability studies. I must say that I especially enjoyed the chapter on Bonhoeffer. Overall, a good resource that I would recommend.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews