Midterm Concept Audit #2

Literal

The direct meaning of the words and events in the text.

Moral

The lesson or ethical behavior that readers should learn from the text.

Allegorical

The symbolic meaning of the text, often connecting events to Christ or Christian beliefs.

Anagogical

The spiritual meaning of the text that points toward eternal life, heaven, or the ultimate destiny of humanity.

Disability in Scripture

Disability is mentioned in Scripture for different reasons, often depending on the context and purpose of the story. The absence of a disability description does not automatically mean a person is non-disabled.

Coding disabilities in scripture

Interpreting biblical characters as potentially having disabilities based on their behaviors or descriptions. It can increase disability representation and offer new perspectives, but risks include making inaccurate assumptions, applying modern diagnoses to ancient people, and stereotyping disabilities. For example, suggesting Peter has ADHD is speculative because he cannot be formally diagnosed based on biblical descriptions alone.

Ecclesiology

The study of the Church, its purpose, identity, structure, and role in the Christian community.

Theology of access

The belief that everyone, including people with disabilities, should have equal access to participate fully in the life of the Church. Accessibility is a responsibility of the entire community, not just an individual accommodation.

Copious host

The idea that the Church should practice generous hospitality by welcoming people with disabilities as valued members of the community, recognizing their gifts and contributions rather than treating them as guests or burdens.

Holy Spirit as Advocate

The Holy Spirit supports, guides, and speaks on behalf of those who are marginalized or excluded, helping create a community based on justice, inclusion, and equality.

Church as a model of accessible community

The Church should demonstrate what an inclusive community looks like by removing physical, social, and spiritual barriers so everyone can participate and belong.

Disability etiquette examples

• Ask before offering assistance.

• Speak directly to the person rather than their companion.

• Do not touch someone's wheelchair or mobility equipment without permission.

• Use respectful language and avoid making assumptions about someone's abilities.

• Be patient and allow people to communicate at their own pace.

Spirituality of friendship

The belief that genuine relationships should be based on mutual respect, equality, and shared experiences rather than pity or charity.

Access

Having the opportunity and accommodations needed to enter and participate in a community.

Belonging

Being genuinely accepted, valued, included, and recognized as an important member of that community.

Hypercognitive culture

A society that values intelligence, productivity, speed, efficiency, and mental ability. People who think or process information differently may be viewed as less valuable or productive.

Benedictine time

A way of understanding time based on the rhythms of prayer, community, relationships, and daily life rather than productivity or efficiency. It allows people to live at different speeds.

Standard average european time (SAET)

The modern cultural understanding of time that emphasizes schedules, deadlines, speed, punctuality, and productivity. It expects everyone to function at the same pace.

Relationship between time and disability

Disability can affect how people experience and move through time. Society often views people who need more time or function at different speeds as disordered because they do not fit standard expectations.

Temporarily able-bodied (TAB)

The idea that everyone is only temporarily able-bodied because aging, illness, or injury can cause anyone to experience disability during their lifetime.

God as Timeful vs Timeless

• Timeless: Viewing God as existing outside of time and unaffected by human experiences of time.

• Timeful: Viewing God as present within human time, sharing in people's experiences, relationships, struggles, and different rhythms of life

“love has a speed”

Love cannot be rushed because genuine relationships require patience, attention, and time. We should adjust our pace to others rather than expecting everyone to keep up with society's standards.

How to live in God’s time

Live with patience, compassion, and presence instead of prioritizing productivity and efficiency. Make time for relationships, recognize different abilities and rhythms, and value people regardless of how quickly they accomplish things.

Neurodiversity

The idea that differences in how people's brains function are natural variations of human diversity rather than problems that need to be fixed.

Neurodiverse

Describes a group of people whose brains function in different ways, including both neurotypical and neurodivergent individuals.

Neurotypical

Describes someone whose brain functions and processes information in ways that align with what society considers typical.

Theory of mind

The ability to recognize that other people have thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and perspectives that may differ from your own.

Double empathy problem

The idea that communication difficulties between autistic and non-autistic people are mutual, meaning both groups may struggle to understand each other's experiences and perspectives.

Eschatology

The study of the end times, death, resurrection, judgment, and the afterlife in Christian theology.

Identity-conferring disabilities

Disabilities that are an important part of a person's identity and shape how they experience and understand the world. This matters when thinking about the afterlife because it raises the question of whether people will retain their disability-related identities in heaven or whether those identities will be erased.

Autisitic prayer tendencies

Autistic people may experience and express prayer differently, such as through repetition, routines, focused attention, or sensory experiences. These differences should be recognized as meaningful forms of spirituality rather than judged against neurotypical expectations.

Stimming

Repetitive movements or behaviors, such as rocking, hand-flapping, or repeating sounds, that help someone regulate emotions, sensory experiences, or concentration.

Logic

A way of thinking that emphasizes reasoning, consistency, and clear patterns. In discussions of neurodiversity, logical thinking can be an important way some autistic people process and understand the world.

Mania

A state associated with bipolar disorder involving unusually elevated or irritable mood, increased energy, racing thoughts, and changes in behavior or sleep.

Depression

A mental health condition involving persistent sadness, loss of interest, low energy, and difficulty functioning. Greene-McCreight explores how depression affects a person's experience of God, faith, and spirituality.

Voluntary institutionalization

Choosing to enter a psychiatric hospital or treatment facility to receive care and support for mental health challenges. It can provide structure, safety, treatment, and community.

Companionship and healing

The idea that healing does not happen only through medical treatment but also through relationships, friendship, and the presence of others. Supporting someone through suffering is often more important than trying to fix their situation.

Scripture and traditions role in personal spirituality

Scripture and Christian traditions provide comfort, language, and guidance for understanding suffering and faith.

• Job: Demonstrates that suffering does not necessarily result from wrongdoing and that questioning God is part of faith.

• Psalms: Provide words for expressing sadness, fear, anger, hope, and trust in God.

• Ambrose of Milan: An early Christian theologian whose writings and teachings offer guidance for understanding suffering, faith, and spiritual life

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

A medical treatment for certain severe mental health conditions that uses controlled electrical stimulation to produce a brief seizure under anesthesia. It can help improve symptoms when other treatments have not worked.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

A form of psychotherapy that helps people recognize and change unhelpful patterns of thinking and behavior. It focuses on the connection between thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Stigma and mental health

Negative attitudes, stereotypes, and discrimination toward people experiencing mental health conditions. Stigma can cause people to feel ashamed, isolated, or afraid to seek treatment and support.

Deaf culture

A cultural community centered around shared language (especially sign language), history, values, traditions, and experiences. Deafness is viewed as a cultural and linguistic identity, not simply a medical condition.

Visible traits of deaf culture

Sign language, facial expressions, gestures, visual communication, and Deaf community events.

Invisible traits of deaf culture

Shared values, history, identity, traditions, experiences, and a sense of belonging.

World-creating conditions

The idea that people create and experience their own worlds through shared language, relationships, culture, and ways of understanding reality. Deaf culture creates a world through shared visual communication and experiences.

Deaf cosmology

The way Deaf people understand and experience the world through a visual and cultural perspective rather than assuming hearing is the standard way of experiencing life.

DEAF-WORLD

The cultural and social community of Deaf people who share sign language, values, traditions, history, and a common identity.

Oralist

Believes Deaf people should be taught to communicate through spoken language and lip-reading rather than sign language.

Manualist

Believes sign language and manual communication should be used to educate Deaf people.

Theological justifications for oralism

Some Christians supported oralism because they believed spoken language was necessary for hearing God's Word, participating in worship, and receiving religious teachings. This is problematic because it assumes spoken language is superior to sign language and excludes Deaf people from full participation in religious life.

1880 Milan Conference

An international conference in Milan, Italy, where educators voted to prioritize oral education over sign language in Deaf schools. This led to widespread suppression of sign language in education and the removal of many Deaf teachers.

Phonocentrism

The belief that spoken language and speech are superior to other forms of communication, especially sign language. It treats hearing and speaking as the standard for communication.

Deaf christianity

The expression of Christian faith within Deaf culture and community, often using sign language, visual worship, and Deaf perspectives to understand Scripture and God.

A “hearing” God

Some Deaf people imagine or interact with God as hearing because religious traditions often describe God using human characteristics and hearing-related language. This can reflect the influence of hearing-centered Christian culture, where hearing is treated as the expected way to communicate with God.

Deaf ontology

The ways Deaf people understand their existence, identity, and the world through visual communication, sign language, relationships, and shared cultural experiences.

Deaf diaspora experience

The experience of Deaf people living across different countries and cultures while maintaining connections through shared Deaf identity and sign language. Deaf communities may experience both cultural belonging and separation from hearing society.

Mark 7:31–37 (Healing of the Deaf Man)

The biblical story of Jesus healing a deaf man who also has a speech difficulty. It can be interpreted as a story of healing and inclusion, but also raises concerns about viewing deafness as something that must be fixed rather than recognizing Deaf identity and culture.

Liturgical Accommodation

Making adjustments to an existing religious service so Deaf people can participate. Example: providing a sign language interpreter during Mass

Inculturation

Allowing Deaf culture and traditions to shape how worship is expressed and practiced. Example: celebrating Mass using sign language, visual expressions, and Deaf cultural practices as central parts of worship.

Characteristics of deaf theology

A theological approach shaped by Deaf people's experiences, sign languages, visual communication, culture, and perspectives. It challenges hearing-centered interpretations of Christianity and recognizes Deaf people as active contributors to theology.

“folk” theologies

Religious beliefs and understandings of God that develop through everyday experiences, cultural practices, traditions, and communities rather than formal academic theology.

Importance of dialogue

Communication and conversation between Deaf and hearing communities allow different experiences and perspectives to be understood. Dialogue helps create mutual respect and prevents hearing people from speaking for Deaf people without listening to them.

Sign language

A complete, natural language that uses hand movements, facial expressions, and body movements to communicate. It has its own grammar and structure and is not simply a visual version of spoken language.

Liberation

Freedom from oppression, discrimination, and exclusion. In Deaf theology, liberation means challenging hearing-centered systems and recognizing Deaf people's dignity, rights, culture, and leadership.

Transnational understanding

Recognizing that Deaf culture and identity extend across national borders while also acknowledging that Deaf communities have different languages, traditions, and experiences depending on their location.

Material culture

Physical objects and materials that express a community's identity, beliefs, and traditions. For Deaf Catholics, this matters because religious objects, visual symbols, signed materials, and accessible worship spaces help express and preserve Deaf religious identity.

Shared-signing communities

Communities where Deaf and hearing people communicate through a shared sign language, allowing people with different hearing abilities to participate in social and community life.

Deaf sociality

The ways Deaf people build relationships, communicate, interact, and create a sense of community through shared visual communication and cultural experiences.

Western deaf churches

Often have organized Deaf-specific congregations, formal religious leadership, and established sign language worship practices.

Adamorobe deaf churches

Reflect a more integrated community in which Deaf and hearing people share local sign language and participate in religious and social life together.