Note: I regret that the full text of my dissertation cannot easily be put on line,
since it contains so many footnotes and so many Hebrew and Greek texts.
However, the Abstract, Acknowledgements and Bibliography are available here,
and the full text can be ordered through University Microfilms Incorporated (order #9816895).

Please also refer to my "Ancient Blindness" webpage for more information.

TABLE OF CONTENTS	Page
ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENTS  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS DEDICATION	i v ix xi
CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTORY COMMENTS	1
A. Understanding Ancient Stories Involving "Blindness"  B. Previous Research on Blindness  C. The Plan of This Study  D. "From Tobit to Bartimaeus, From Qumran to Siloam"	1 3 11 15
CHAPTER 2 - TERMINOLOGICAL ISSUES	17
A. Modern Definitions and Ancient Equivalents  1. Literal Meanings of Blindness  2. Related Vocabulary and Types of Blindness  3. Non-Literal Uses of Blindness Language  4. Language, Discrimination, and Translation	19 19 23 26 28
B. Hebrew Terminology  1. Blindness in the Hebrew Bible  2. Other Serious Visual Impairments  3. Temporary Loss of Vision  4. Post-Biblical Hebrew Terms	29 30 35 40 42
C. Greek Terminology  1. TUFLOS and Its Derivatives and Synonyms  2. Temporary and Partial Sightlessness  3. The Exact Meaning of TUFLOS	44 46 50 55
D. Latin Terminology  1. Blindness  2. Related Vocabulary	65 65 68
CHAPTER 3 - THE SOCIAL ROLE OF BLIND PEOPLE	71
A. The Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East  1. The Prevalence of Blindness in Ancient Israel  2. Visually Impaired Biblical Characters  3. Causes of Blindness and Severe Visual Impairment  4. Biblical Legislation Concerning Blind Persons  5. The Lack of Therapeutic Concerns in the HB	74 74 77 80 83 85
B. Hellenistic Judaism  1. The Septuagint  2. Qumran  3. Philo  4. Josephus  5. Other Hellenistic Jewish Writings  6. Early Rabbinic Literature	87 87 98 103 106 109 114
C. The Greco-Roman World  1. Congenitally Blind Persons  2. Blind Persons as Beggars  3. Blind Persons as Positive Role Models 4. Healings of Blind Persons  5. Access of Blind Persons to Greco-Roman Temples	122 123 126 129 133 141
D. The New Testament  1. Who is "Blind" in the New Testament?  2. Social Status, Activities and Mobility of Blind Persons  3. How Jesus Heals Blind Persons  4. The Temple of Jerusalem	142 143 146 149 150
CHAPTER 4 - ATTITUDES TOWARD THE BLIND	154
A. The Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East  1. Blindness, Sin, and Punishment  2. Laws Affecting Physically Impaired Persons  3. Blindness, Impurity, and Death	156 156 160 164
B. Hellenistic Judaism  1. The Septuagint  2. Qumran  3. Philo  4. Josephus  5. Other Hellenistic Jewish Writings  6. Early Rabbinic Literature	165 166 173 182 186 189 191
C. The Greco-Roman World  1. The Satirist Lucian  2. The Physician Galen  3. The Philosopher Seneca	201 202 206 212
D. The New Testament  1. Mark  2. Matthew  3. Luke and Acts  4. The Johannine Literature  5. Paul and the Deutero-Pauline Letters  6. Other New Testament Writings	215 216 221 225 230 236 237
CHAPTER 5 - THE CONGENITALLY BLIND PERSON OF JOHN 9	239
A. The Text, Context, and Structure of John 9  B. "As he walked along." - The Geographical & Temporal Setting of John 9  C. ".he saw a person blind from birth" - The Youth's Congenital Blindness  D. "Rabbi, who sinned, he or his parents.?" - Blindness and Sin in John 9  E. "He spat on the ground and made mud." - Therapeutic Methods in John  9  F. "You are his disciple." - Positive and Negative Role Models  G. John & the Synoptics Revisited	242 250 258 270 279 292 303
BIBLIOGRAPHY	311

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