CHAPTER 9 Disability, Agency, and Engagement: Three Wisdom Traditions’ Call to Be Radically Available Lynne M. Bejoian, Molly Quinn, and Maysaa S. Bazna Introduction We have come together as colleagues, educators whose spiritual per- spectives are essential and enduring determinants and lenses from which we engage in the world, personally and professionally. We use the term “wisdom traditions” in referencing our three distinc- tive spiritual traditions— Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam— in line with Huston Smith’s (1991) interpretation that emphasizes the value and practices of these religions, among others, as essential to the human pursuit and attainment of wisdom, along with this asser- tion that these wisdom traditions powerfully influence thought and practice. Why Consider Availability to “The Other”? Our purpose in raising the issue of availability is to explore the concept within our specific tradition, not for comparison, per se, but rather for our own critical inquiry and self-reflection. Through our examina- tion, we endeavor to deepen our understanding of our own tradition’s conception of the other and to expand dialogue around a common call to the other through practice—social and spiritual. Thomas Merton D. Schumm et al. (eds.), Disability and Religious Diversity © Darla Schumm and Michael Stoltzfus 2011