Then Jesus said to him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk."
Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."
The New Testament includes some pretty significant healing stories. Lame men getting up and walking for the first time, blind men rubbing scales off their eyes and seeing for the first time. Even the odd resurection. It's all very wonderful, at least for those fortunate few souls who happened to be around Jesus and his followers at the time and could cash in on the medical miracles being handed out.
But, as is usually the case in the Bible, while initially the stories seem loving, peacful, and happy, the real story is a bit more gruesome and immoral. The story of Noah and the flood, on the surface is all about new beginnings, but in reality is all about death and destruction from an obsessive and vindictive deity. The story of Moses leading his people out of Egypt is, on the surface, a story of peaceful victim slaves overcoming oppression and finding their deserved freedom, but in reality is about innocent Egyptians suffering for simply doing what everyone of the day did. And, the story of medical miracles in the New Testament are, under the flowery surface, equally horrific.
I've known a few paralyzed and chronically ill people in my time. Most of them amaze me with their positive outook on life and their desire to achieve the most they can with their limited mobility. None of them have ever sat around waiting for a miracle. But, think of what the Bible stories of healing really say, deep underneath the fluffy surface. What they really say is this: If only you had more faith, you could be healed. They say that medical miracles are possible, that paralyzed people can simply stand up and walk around and be healed on faith alone.
What a horrific, evil message.
Paralysis cannot be healed. At least not yet. There is much medical research going on in the field of central nervous system neuron regneration. But, to date full healing is not possible. If it ever does become possible, it will be through medical research not through revelation and faith.
