John Swinton's theological reflection on time is simultaneously a powerful statement on a perennial topic and the mature thoughts of a scholar who has spent years considering the theological significance of disability. In this book, Swinton aims to integrate the abstract considerations of a systematic approach with a practical theologian's concern for experiential knowledge. His constructive proposal hinges on the distinction between ‘clock time’ and ‘God's time’. Clock time denotes the Western representation of time as linear, dynamic and inexorably moving forward, while also being measurable and, for that reason, controllable. Within modernity, it takes on the valence of a morally neutral arena in which self-constituting subjects forge their own histories. Under industrialisation, ‘time is money’, and the human being increasingly struggles to match the clock's relentless pace and make sufficiently competitive use of this finite commodity.
Swinton is most concerned with the dehumanising impact clock time has on persons with various cognitive impairments. This conceptual framework justifies prejudicial attitudes towards individuals with profound or complex intellectual disabilities insofar as they are incapable of thinking or otherwise functioning at ‘normal’ speeds. In the minds of many, even caring for these persons is a waste of time and resources. Likewise, under clock time, witnessing someone in the advanced stages of dementia evokes a sense of tragedy. In the wake of significant memory loss, the present person appears but a shell of a former self. Lastly, persons with an acquired brain injury often understand the attending changes in their personality as a horrifying change of identity. The self from the time before the injury is irretrievably lost, while one's current self often seems like a stranger.
Swinton's understanding of God's time offers a theological challenge to the ableism of a world governed by clock time, as well as conceptual foundations for providing care and hope in the midst of the perceived tyranny of the clock. Briefly stated, God's time is an aspect of creation and so fundamentally a divine gift. As the incarnation testifies, the eternal God engages in the linearity of human time but is not determined by that linearity. For humanity, time remains mysterious and beyond its mastery but, unlike in clock time, the elusiveness of control should inspire humility and trust, not exasperation. Because God is love, God gives time as a means for realising love within creation. To live into God's time then requires believers to reshape their lives to enable the faithful participation of the entire body of Christ in Jesus's redemptive work.
Such participation involves giving time to those dehumanised by clock time, uncovering universal truths about humanness in the process. When relationships with the profoundly disabled eschew efficiency for gentleness, the speed of love proves to be Sabbath rest. Similarly, true discipleship is a mode of belonging to Christ's body that runs deeper than mere inclusion. Regarding dementia, Swinton emphasises a memory of the heart that is holistic, expanding beyond the strictly neurological and linear account of memory that funds tragic valuations. The eschatological dimension of God's time becomes especially relevant with regard to acquired brain injury. Because the Christian's true identity is hidden in Christ, not dependent upon a single organ, the difficult transition from ‘before’ injury to ‘after’ is not definitive. God's time includes ‘after after’. The horror stemming from personality changes encounters hope that one's identity is always secure in Christ.
A tremendous strength of Swinton's work is how his treatment of the empirical details of embodiment consistently resists materialistic interpretations while also modelling an empathetic openness to the concrete frustrations even destigmatised impairments may cause. If I have an abiding concern about Swinton's constructive proposal, it is my uneasiness with his insistence (most conspicuously in chapter 5) that only those baptised into Christian communities fully experience God's time. This insistence appears rooted in a postliberal understanding of Christian identity. Admittedly, attending to the contextual character of humanness requires discussion about Christian storytelling. Yet the claim that only people of the Christian story participate in God's time arguably reinstantiates the sort of rationalistic interpretation of faith Swinton critiques, essentially tying a community's knowledge of God to certain cognitive, i.e. narrative, abilities.
In the final analysis, Swinton's theology of time has exciting implications for reconstructing several doctrines, including creation, ecclesiology and theological anthropology. While he focuses explicitly on disability issues, this book would be a valuable resource for anyone interested in themes of embodiment, interdependence and conceptualisations of the ‘normal’. Because of Swinton's clear prose and relatable case studies, most seminarians and many laypeople should find it accessible.
