Kacie Hogdson, 国产无码 Youth, Equality and Diversity Rep, is encouraging congregations across the UK to think about inclusion by holding a service to highlight Disability Awareness Sunday.
Although often held on 22 September, any Sunday in September can be used to mark the awareness day.
Kacie explains:
According to the Equality Act, a disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that has a 鈥渟ubstantial鈥� and 鈥渓ong-term鈥� negative effect on a person’s ability to do normal daily activities. This can vary from learning disabilities to physical disabilities or from visible to invisible disabilities.
Disability inclusion has become an increasingly visible aspect of modern-day society. Yet we ask, has the Christian denomination as a whole made enough changes to support and welcome disabled people into our churches?
Interestingly, in Census surveys by the government in 2021, around 42% of all disabled people in the UK identified themselves as being Christian. Forty-two per cent of all disabled people is around 7 million, with around 25 million Christians in the UK, this seems to be a significant proportion.
The Bible has many instances of disabled people being an integral part of the Gospels and of Jesus welcoming disabled people.
For example, in Mark, four men carried their paralysed friend on a stretcher and lowered them through the roof to see Jesus. The stretcher was dropped by Jesus鈥檚 feet, and Jesus spoke to the man.
The story of the four men who carried their paralysed friend to Jesus demonstrates their willingness to break barriers, even the roof of a house. Today, there are still many barriers that prevent disabled individuals from accessing our churches. This shows an urgent need to break down these barriers within our church communities actively.
Most churches cover the basics of disability inclusion: having ramps to provide access into the building or a disabled toilet. But, is that enough? Most people would perhaps agree that it isn鈥檛, as we only often consider the practical, physical measures that can be implemented. The question that then presents itself is 鈥渉ow do we include disabled people in our churches practically?鈥�
The answer is simple. Suppose we show our love of Jesus to disabled people who come into our churches and make a conscious decision to consider their needs and how best to support them. In that case, we will automatically welcome disabled people into our churches.
Of course, there are practical steps churches can take to ensure they are as supportive as possible, such as PowerPoints being readable for those visually impaired and large-print hymn books, walkways being clear for wheelchair users, or even an area in the church that is quieter for individuals who are sensitive to environmental stimuli such as those with autism, these are all steps the church can make.
In Corinthians 13, Paul says 鈥渁nd now these three remain: faith, hope and love.听But the greatest of these is love.鈥� Paul aptly emphasises the need for love and uses 14 verbs to describe this love. We can have faith that disabled people come through the door each week, and we can have hope that disabled people will find church accessible. Still, most of all, we can have love in our hearts to actively welcome them and provide a safe place where we are willing to learn and eager to try new ways to be inclusive.
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