Gaining Understanding of the Issues
In some ways, disabled and nondisabled people live in two separate worlds. For churches to begin ministry with people with disabilities, they need to become aware of and to understand the needs and challenges of fellow members who live with disability. A disability awareness worship service can be helpful starting point. An excellent follow up to such a service (or a "stand-alone") would be a panel discussion featuring people with disabilities and caregivers. Panel participants can be prepared using this panel resource sheet.
Including people with disabilities in the church's life and ministry begins with accessibility. Barriers to accessibility include physical barriers, communication barriers, and attitudinal barriers. Barriers must come down and bridges built so that a church can display real warmth and hospitality to all who want to become part of its fellowship. An accessibility audit guide helps determine barriers and bridges to hospitality toward people with disabilities.
Taking a Stand as a Church
Disability Concerns has developed a Church Policy on Disabilities. We encourage church councils to wrestle with the issues presented in the church policy, to adopt it, to publicize it to the congregation, then to exercise leadership in implementing it.
Recommended Books and Videos
The better we understand one another, the better we can offer hospitality and recognize the gifts God has given to others. To develop better understanding of the issues involved with disability, Disability Concerns recommends these books and video resources.
Contact Us
We would love to hear from you! Please feel free to call Mark Stephenson at 616.224.0801, toll free at 888.463.0272, or e-mail disabilityconcerns@crcna.org.
