The virtual body of Christ and embrace of the seriously ill
Since the time of the Apostle Paul, the body of Christ has always been a virtual body, made up of members who were not always physically present to one another but were nevertheless part of the same catholic community. Virtual presence in today’s society comes most often via digital technology, a re...
| Published in: | Theology & sexuality |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group
[2020]
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| In: |
Theology & sexuality
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Bodiliness
/ Body of Christ
/ Healing
/ New media
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| RelBib Classification: | NBE Anthropology NBN Ecclesiology ZG Media studies; Digital media; Communication studies |
| Further subjects: | B
virtual body of Christ
B Illness B ecclesial practices B Digital technology B Embodiment B incarnational B Attentiveness |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) |
| Summary: | Since the time of the Apostle Paul, the body of Christ has always been a virtual body, made up of members who were not always physically present to one another but were nevertheless part of the same catholic community. Virtual presence in today’s society comes most often via digital technology, a reality that prompts many Christian leaders and theologians to warn of the dangers of disembodied existence. This paper challenges the claim that virtual presence via digital technology is necessarily an inferior form of presence. Using autoethnographic research of living with advanced-stage cancer, the author explores how virtual connection via technology can sometimes be a superior form of presence for those undone by illness and other traumas. The article concludes with a call to churches to draw on biblical, theological, and liturgical resources to help imagine how digital devices can be used to practice healing forms of attentiveness to those who need it most. |
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| ISSN: | 1745-5170 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Theology & sexuality
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/13558358.2019.1684069 |