Cancer and Wisdom Theology

As a cancer patient and Old Testament scholar, I will offer my thoughts on how the Old Testament speaks theologically and practically to the human condition in relation to deadly disease. This essay follows (in broad strokes) my lifelong formative theological and ecclesiastical experiences with healing in Scripture and among believers. Episodes in my personal experience will be followed by theological exegesis related to perspectives and passages in the Old Testament that I find pertinent for the topic of cancer or any life-threatening illness or injury in the life of Christians whose faith is connected to the Bible as divine revelation. In particular, and mainly, texts related to wisdom in the Old Testament (Ecclesiastes to be exact) are considered. This is followed by reflections on passages that appear to offer guarantees of healing and then a conclusion that draws personal but also, hopefully, appropriate universal lessons about sickness and mortality from the Hebrew Bible.