John 9 Counters Disability Bias In Christian Nationalism

The story of Jesus and the man with blindness in John 9:1-41 can counter the disability discrimination of Christian Nationalism.

Jesus Healing the Blind Man, Václav Mánes, 1820. John 9. Public Domain.

Aktion T4: “Unfit for life”

In a sinister program benignly title Aktion T4, the Nazis carried out the systematic murders of 100,000 Germans they deemed “unworthy” or “unfit” for life. According to Dean G. Stroud, editor of Preaching in Hitler’s Shadow, Nazis believed people who depended on the care of others did not deserve to live because they took advantage of the strong.

“In a world where love had no meaning, the notion of caring for the helpless and those with special needs carried no worth or merit; the mentally and physically challenged were viewed as only a drain on society,” Stroud explains (136). As a result, the Aktion T4 program secretly carried out forced euthanasia against targeted patients who were transported to killing facilities where they were gassed, starved, or killed through lethal injection.

Disability discrimination in Christian nationalism

Christian Nationalism today carries forward the belief that those with disabilities are worthy of nothing but mockery, disdain, and contempt. We see one example in Donald Trump’s infamous ridicule of a disabled reporter as well as his disparaging rhetoric against those who are “weak.”

But the “banality of evil,” to use Hannah Arendt’s phrase, is most evident in policies and practices that discriminate against those with mental and physical disabilities. These policies include rolling back key protections for people with disabilities and weakening enforcement of civil rights laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The administration even threatened support for children with disabilities by planning to fire staff responsible for distributing federal funding and ensuring state compliance with disability-related education.

Project 2025’s discrimination against those with disabilities

I define Christian Nationalism “a political ideology that distorts and weaponizes Christian teachings to legitimize and advance an aggressively patriarchal, racist, ethnocentric agenda.” [See: Resist Christian Nationalism in Lent, Matthew 4:1-11.]

The current U.S. administration is undergirded by Christian nationalist ideology through the plans first introduced in Project 2025, a political initiative created by conservative think tanks to reshape the U.S. federal government. This blueprint contains several potential harms to people with disabilities through its policy priorities and ideological framework. While not as blatant as Aktion T4, Project 2025 erodes legal protections, reduces access to essential services, and increases social exclusion for those with disabilities.

John 9:1-41, the man born with blindness

The story of the man born with blindness in the John 9:1-41 offers an opportunity for preachers to address disability discrimination. In this extended narrative for the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Year A), Jesus heals a man who cannot see. This sparks a fury among the religious leaders. They demonize the man by saying that his blindness was a result of sin.

Yet the man holds his own against their accusations and flips the script on them with wry humor and forthright testimony about Jesus. The man is neither weak nor a “drain on society” in this story. Jesus sees him as a human being whose healing can give glory to God. Later, Jesus confides in him the purpose of his mission, trusting him with divine knowledge, wisdom, and purpose.

A word of caution

When preaching and teaching about John 9, it’s important not to inadvertently perpetuate ableist stereotypes about blindness. This can happen by using “blindness” as a metaphor for sinfulness. Admittedly, it seems that Jesus does this in v. 41 (“If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.”).

three people in wheelchairs — Countering disability discrimination. Photo by Cottonbro Studio on Pexels.

However, Jesus is, in fact, turning the tables on those who have controlled the narrative about who is sinful and who is not, who is worthy of life and who is not. Gerhard Ebeling was a German pastor who preached a sermon for a victim of Aktion T4 in 1940. He said, “Jesus stands up for the life of the weak, the sick, and the vulnerable. Not only with words and expressions of sympathy but with action. He healed the sick, he gave love and companionship to the despised and rejected sinners” (140, Preaching in Hitler’s Shadow).

Our congregations can help counter the disability discrimination of Christian Nationalism by coming alongside those who have disabilities, listening to them, and advocating with them. Our message needs to assert that accommodating the needs of people across the spectrum of abilities and honoring their stories is a way to recognize both their gifts and challenges as beloved ones of God.

Central Question, Central Claim, Central Purpose

(The Central Question, Central Claim, and Central Purpose statements are a way to organize and provide direction for a sermon that I developed in the book Introduction to Preaching: Scripture, Theology, and Sermon Preparation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2013). Here are possible Central Statements for a sermon countering the disability discrimination of Christian Nationalism based on John 9:1-41.)

Central Question.

What are ways the church can recognize the value, worth, dignity, and contributions of those who have disabilities, thus countering the Christian nationalist assumption that they are “sinful” or a “drain on society”?

Central Claim.

Jesus turned the tables on those who controlled the narrative about who is sinful and who is valued by God, thus affirming that those with disabilities are worthy of respect, healing, and justice.

Central Purpose.

This sermon invites the congregation to counter the disability discrimination of Christian Nationalism by coming alongside those who have disabilities, listening and advocating with them, accommodating their needs, honoring their stories, and recognizing their gifts and challenges as beloved ones of God.

[This essay is based on a piece that appeared in March 2023. It has been revised and updated.]

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