Theology and Disability Ministry

From the word’s roots in Greek, theology is the study of God. Such a study is audacious to say the least. How can a human mind hope to understand God? As a beginning point, many people turn to St. Anselm, who wrote of “faith seeking understanding.” Theology seeks to help us understand our faith in God. The next step then is what God calls us to do in the world.

The primary concern of disability theology is humans, who are created in the image of God, but exhibit many variations. Some of these variations may seem to be limiting, but, on careful examination, are human views of different ways of understanding or doing things. Theological study reminds us that “Yahweh does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16.7, NRSV).

Theology also reflects on life as experienced in a journey with God. It asks, “where is God in this?” Therefore we place value on how people live and where they find God’s presence and direction. When we meet to worship, we express this search through our rules for living together. In the United Methodist Church, the Discipline and Book of Resolutions outline these rules. Although neither perfect nor followed perfectly, they tell us what we aspire to be.

Theology also reminds us of our call, and of the needs that we all face. As such, it also reminds us to strive to reach everyone, and that sometimes this requires knowledge of how those needs are understood and absorbed in different ways by some. It also reminds us that we all stand equally before God. People with disabilities have gifts of their own to bring to the body of Christ. These gifts may be different but they are vital to its health. Therefore, we speak of ministry with and not ministry to people with disabilities. The ultimate goal of ministry goes beyond outreach and even inclusion to full participation.

Theology also has a practical, in-life dimension. Discussions of structure, nature, norms, and possibilities must be accompanied by follow-through and action. The term “dyspraxia” is sometimes applied to a failure to turn one’s theological statements into action. We view “disability” as a positive word that makes up an important facet of the identity of many persons in the disability community. Cute phrases like “handicapable” or “differently abled” convey a message that there is something wrong with having a disability. Our message embraces disability as one aspect of diversity in the rich spectrum of humanity created in God’s image and equally welcome at God’s table.

Theology and Disability Ministry

Related reading

Disability Ministries Committee of The United Methodist Church