Original Research: Boston Papers
Healthy economics or cautionary tales? The narrative microeconomics of four Matthean healing stories
Laura Anderson
HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies; Vol 65, No 1 (2009), 16 pages. doi: 10.4102/hts.v65i1.320
Submitted: 15 July 2009
Published: 11 November 2009
Abstract
This article explores the four Matthean stories wherein an individual supplicant requests a healing on behalf of someone else: the centurion for his paralyzed servant, the ruler for his dead daughter, the Canaanite woman for her demon-possessed daughter, and the man for his epileptic son. The paper proposes a methodology of narrative microeconomic analysis. By applying the method to the stories, a pattern of three primary exchanges is observed: the locational, healing and conflict exchanges. By examining how the stories conform to and deviate from this pattern, a complex picture of the textual microeconomies emerges, one that contradicts the unitary macro-narrative of healing. The microeconomic analysis reveals Jesus to be a complex, ambivalent figure: He creates conflicts that hinder the healing process and invariably excludes someone or some group before completing any healing. The pedagogical, formational and theological implications of these omplexities are briefly considered in local and global contexts.
Full Text: |
PDF (939KB)
Author affiliations
Laura Anderson, Graduate Theological Union, United States Metrics
Total abstract views: 938 Total article views: 941
Cited-By
No related citations found
Comments on this article
Before posting your comment, please read our policy. Post a Comment
(Login required) All articles published in this journal are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
©2014 AOSIS (Pty) Ltd. All rights reserved. No unauthorised duplication allowed.
AOSIS OpenJournals | Perfecting Scholarship Online
Postnet Suite #110, Private Bag X19, Durbanville, South Africa, 7551
Tel: 086 1000 381
Tel: +27 21 975 2602
Fax: 086 5004 974
Please read the privacy statement.