The resources here aim to encourage and equip us as individuals and church bodies to raise the standard of accessibility and inclusion of disabled people (people with disabilities) into equal fellowship and ministry roles.
Whatever your role, you can help to change physical and cultural situations with disabled Christians.
Disability Theology is a call for justice and there is a strong spiritual movement for change in the UK – read the Preach magazine on Disability, join the webinar on Disability and find out more about how God works powerfully and deeply in people who have to work twice as hard to be present in most churches and ministerial roles.
Watch the Disability webinar on YouTube HERE!
Top ideas from Rev Katie Tupling, Rev John Naudé and Bernice Hardie with Jess Hardie on inclusivity & God's church! Catch up on the disability webinar with 3 speaker sessions and live Q&A from participants. Now on YouTube @PreachMagazine.
Meet the webinar speakers
Rev Katie Tupling (top) is an author and Anglican priest, who has cerebral palsy. She is the Oxford Diocesan Disability Adviser and co-founder of user-led group Disability and Jesus. Twitter @DisabilityJ
www.oxford.anglican.org/environment-and-social-justice/disability-and-church/
Rev John Naudé (centre) has been an Anglican priest since 1997. He is Associate Vicar at The Point Church in Burgess Hill and an adviser on disability issues for the New Wine Disability Adviser, the Anglican Church and the World Council of Churches. He leads training and writes on disability.
Bernice Hardie (bottom) is Co-Founder of WAVE for Change, an award-winning charity that enables the creation of places where people with and without learning disabilities can actively participate in worship and social activities together. www.wave-for-change.org.uk Facebook @wavewithnotfor Twitter @WaveForChange
Preach magazine: Disability
Issue 32 complements the webinar. It includes: in-depth interview with Marsha de Cordova MP; ‘Preaching and disability’ by Rev Katie Tupling; ‘My disabled body is divine’ by Dr Amy Kenny and more filling 60 pages with excellent resources for you. Buy a £4 digital copy direct from the Preach shop HERE
Further resources on Disability
The 2022 conference on Disability and the Church was held on Saturday 15 October
Wholly, Holey, Holy is the 11th annual conference for disabled people to gather, to resource each other and the church. Try Inclusive Church or Heartedge for more info.
Disability Conference resources
Videos, transcripts and booklets to download from previous disability conferences. These have run annually since 2012 as a partnership between St Martin-in-the-Fields and Inclusive Church. See www.inclusive-church.org/disability-conference
Inclusive Church
See resources by Inclusive Church on Disability, including the above conference resources PLUS book Disability: The Inclusive Church Resource, and book reviews and blogs. www.inclusive-church.org/topics/disability
New Wine
Information for New Wine events, good examples and ideas here www.new-wine.org/teams/accessible-team
Church of England
Various resources but this is a good place to start www.churchofengland.org/resources/barrier-free-belonging
Birth Injury Center & Cerebral Palsy Advocacy
Information about different birth injuries and resources to assist families, particularly for cerebral palsy birthinjurycenter.org/cerebral-palsy/
BSL Bible Translation Project
BSL Bible Translation Project have translated Mark’s Gospel and have started work on Genesis. See www.bslbible.org.uk
Recommended books:
At The Gates: Disability, Justice and the Churches by Naomi Lawson Jacobs and Emily Richardson (Darton, Longman & Todd, 2022) HERE
My Body is Not a Prayer Request: Disability Justice in the church by Amy Kenny (Brazos Press, 2022) HERE
The Disabled God: Towards a Liberatory Theology of Disability by Nancy Eiesland (Abingdon Press, 1994) HERE
The Bible and Disability: A Commentary with foreword by John Swinton (SCM Press, 2018) HERE
Being Disabled, Being Human: Challenging Society’s Perception of Disability and Personhood by Katie Tupling (Grove booklet, 2022) HERE
Worship and Disability: A Kingdom for All by Katie Tupling and Anna de Lange (Grove booklet, 2018) HERE
Entertaining Angels: Living well with autism as a family, in society and in church by Cavan Wood (Authentic Media, 2022)
