장애인의 제사장직 제외 규정에 대한 재해석 : 레위기 21장 16-24절에 대한 장애(인)신학적 변증

Abstract

Leviticus 21:16-24 is a text in the Bible which deals with the exclusion of the person with disability from the priesthood, and it is one of the biggest stumbling blocks for a person with disability. This text has discouraged disabled people who wanted to become a clergy and hindered the disabled people from approaching the church. How should we understand the text?The reason this text has had such effects is because of the hermeneutics based on extreme literalism. Disability is just a disability. Disability is not evil or good. Disability is a state of existence that could happen to anybody. The problems are the socio-cultural frame of understanding that interprets disability and the metaphor and imagery that express and transmit that understanding. First, the reason this text cannot be literally applied to priesthood is that to follow all the verses of Leviticus literally, all the Christian clergy today should be the descendants of Aaron from the tribe of Judah. It is a serious error to interpret only the disability literally while taking the lineage and all other requirements as exceptions. Secondly, the list of physical “defects” in the text is not identical to the list of disabilities today. The text’s list is the list of disabilities in the ancient Israelite society, but even as that, it is not a complete list prescribed by the society. It is just a sample, and compared to today’s list of disabilities, there is a considerable difference. Thirdly, in Leviticus, the word “defect” from the text has negative nuances like guilt, sin, and uncleanness, but unlike these, the word “defect” has a relatively neutral connotation. Guilt, sin and uncleanness can be cleansed by a sacrifice, but a defect is only a state of existence that can never be cleansed. Therefore, the priests who had physical defects were allowed to eat the holy things of God. Fourthly, what is important from the text is the fact that the priests with physical defects were allowed to eat the holy things of God. Though their right to offer sacrifice is being limited because of physical disabilities, their rights to live and to own property are being guaranteed. The duty of a priest is being prohibited, but the position of a priest is being preserved. Fifthly, it is true, none the less, that the text gives a negative image to a person with disability. It is because of the underlying distinction between the holy and unholy and between pure and impure in not only the Leviticus but the whole Bible. The distinction between pure and impure is the essence of religion. The problems here are its expression and imagery. In the ancient Israel, the physical wholeness was used as an outward expression of ritualistic holiness. In today’s world, where society and culture have changed, it needs to be reinterpreted and reapplied. Sixthly, through Jesus Christ, sacrifice has been replaced by worship. The qualifications of a priest should also be changed to the qualifications of a worshipper. According to the Reformers, everyone became priests through Jesus Christ. Whatever it may be, an extrinsic feature can no longer be a qualification of a worshipper. Seventhly, the physical defect in the text, therefore, should not be interpreted literally now but should be elevated, through Jesus Christ, as having more mental, ethical and spiritual aspects. It is not the physical disabilities but ethical, mental, and spiritual impurities that must be eliminated from the church leadership. In conclusion, today’s Christian church should not expel those with physical disability from priesthood but instead, elect to the church leadership those who love the people with disability and are able to embrace them. The qualifications for a church leader should not be about physical wholeness but about having the love of Christ,ethical living, and spiritual gifts that understand and embrace disability.