Attending to Aging and Decline: Insights from Disability Theology

Abstract

Abstract This article reflects on the relationship between disability and aging. In particular, I explore how insights from disability studies and disability theology can contribute to a richer account of and response to aging and its associated complexities. In the first section, I set the context by overviewing the modern emergence and consolidation of the category of “disability”. Second, I undertake a close reading of two prominent disability theologians, Deborah Creamer and Thomas Reynolds, whose work provides rich insights into the relationship between limits, vulnerability, and relationality. Finally, I return to and reflect on how these insights can assist with attending and responding to lived experiences of aging and decline.