Introduction: Definitions and contexts for healing

Summary

In every age and in every social setting, a primary concern of human beings is health. This concern manifests itself in two distinct modes: (1) the eagerness to maintain the health of the body, and the negative corollary, which is the overcoming of sickness; (2) the basic human need to discern some framework of meaning by which the cause of sickness, suffering, and disability can be understood, and by which these universal experiences of frailty and vulnerability can be incorporated into a view of the world and humanity's place within it. The importance of these issues for the New Testament is broad and deep, as is apparent from the gospels, the Acts, and the various letters. Of the approximately 250 literary units into which the first three gospels are divided in a typical synopsis, one fifth either describe or allude to the healing and exorcistic activities of Jesus and the disciples. Of the seven “signs” reported in John to have been done by Jesus, four involve healing or restoration. Of the seventy literary units in John, twelve either describe his healing activity or refer to the signs which he performed.

Often overlooked is the importance Paul attached to healing. He lists healing and working miracles among the charismatic gifts (I Cor 12:9–10).