Cleansed Lepers, Cleansed Hearts Charles Patrick Neimeyer Drawn from an international field

Drawn from an international field of excellence

and comparative psychology

Melkan Gursel

Engaging the Passion is unique in its breadth and rare in the diverse voices of its contributors

Cleansed Lepers, Cleansed Hearts Charles Patrick Neimeyer Drawn from an international fieldIllnesses are perceived and understood differently across cultures and over time. Traditional interpretations of New Testament texts frame the affliction lepra ("leprosy") as addressed either by ritual cleansing or miraculous healing. But as Pamela Shellberg shows, these interpretations are limited because they shift modern ideas of "leprosy" to a first century context without regard for how the ancients themselves thought about lepra. Reading ancient