Vulnerable Communion

By Thomas Reynolds

 
Reviewed by David McLachlan

This is quite a substantial book to read, but it is also very accessible. Reynolds writes from his experience as both a theologian and having a son with Tourette’s syndrome and other challenges. The book sets out very clearly the questions that disability raises for Christian faith and theology. It looks at how God identifies with humanity and what it means for people to be made in the image of God. For Reynolds, the image of God is relational. One of the book’s strong themes is that the pressure to be 'normal' can become a sort of tyranny to anyone who does not fit into a 'typical' pattern of body or brain.
 
Overall, Reynolds argues that through disability we can discover that all human beings are vulnerable. The model is Jesus’ own embracing of vulnerability through the incarnation and the cross. Vulnerability allows true communion with God and if we embrace our vulnerability, the community of the church can become one that offers true hospitality to all. This is an excellent, thought-provoking read.
 

Details: 

Author: Reynolds, Thomas E
Title: Vulnerable Communion: A Theology of Disability and Hospitality
Publisher: Grand Rapids: Brazos Press (2008)