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Belief in a Liminal State of Health: A Christological Review of In the Name of Jesus! Healing in the Age of HIV
Author(s) -
Sokode Jong Thandi
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the ecumenical review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.104
H-Index - 7
eISSN - 1758-6623
pISSN - 0013-0796
DOI - 10.1111/erev.12378
Subject(s) - liminality , incarnation , faith , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , doctrine , state (computer science) , space (punctuation) , aesthetics , medicine , sociology , gender studies , theology , philosophy , immunology , linguistics , algorithm , computer science
This article examines the Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiative in Africa publication In the Name of Jesus! Healing in the Age of HIV by discussing some of the issues of faith that are at the core of healing in relation to HIV. This publication challenges Christian beliefs and faith‐healing practices that deter people from adhering to anti‐retroviral therapy (ART). However, it does not adequately address the contextual “Jesus as Healer Christologies” that are among the reasons such beliefs and practices remain attractive and popular, even among those who have been adhering to ART for many years. This article argues that treatable but incurable health conditions such as HIV raise questions about what it means to be in the liminal space where one’s health is dependent on treatment. The article calls for more engagement with Jesus as Healer Christologies alongside activism in this liminal space and suggests that the doctrine of incarnation may provide some helpful ways of addressing some of the theological questions posed by liminality.