III. Miracles and medicine

In the course of the centuries many a man of medicine has reflected on the nature of the diseases and the healings recounted in the Old and the New Testament, and the theologian may not ignore these medical voices, even though he will consider various explanations to be in conflict with the message of the Bible, or at least in conflict with his theological views. The attitude of the early Christians is thus ambivalent: on the one hand they regard Christ as the only physician who can help them without medicines, and on the other hand various priests devote themselves to medicine and often acquire for themselves an excellent reputation. This chapter discusses the healings of Jesus. Even when reading the miraculous healings for the first time we are struck by the fact that the syndrome is nowhere described accurately.Keywords: Bible; Christ; early Christians; medicine; miraculous healings; New Testament; theologian