The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has received a $1.25-million grant from the Lilly Endowment for an initiative on inclusive children’s ministry. The grant will equip churches to be safe places inclusive of children — especially children with disabilities — and to use creative…
Bishop Barber denied disability accommodations at AMC theater in North Carolina, escorted out by police
The day after Christmas, minister, social activist and former chair of the North Carolina NAACP Bishop William J. Barber II was asked to leave an AMC movie theater in Greenville, N.C., after being told he could not sit in a…
Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?
I’ve been thinking a lot about a notion that seems to be taking up a lot of space in the collective conscience lately — that the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed Christianity because of virtual worship. I will admit, that first…
Joni Eareckson Tada keeps the faith through a lifetime of ministry
At the age of 17, Joni Eareckson Tada made what would turn out to be a life-changing decision. She dived into shallow water in the Chesapeake Bay, which resulted in paralysis throughout most of her body. Six decades later, Tada…
When will disability become a personal issue for you?
Most of us think of “the disabled” as someone other than ourselves. But that is unrealistic, according to a New Testament scholar who focuses on the issues of gender, disability, eschatology and suffering. Meghan Henning, author of Hell Hath No…
Peter’s un-healing of Petronilla’s holy ‘palsy’ in the Coptic Act of Peter has a lesson for us today about disability
The Acts of Peter is a fragmented, early Christian text made up of three parts: the “Coptic Act of Peter,” the “Acts of Peter the Apostle,” and the “Martyrdom of the Holy Apostle Peter.” These writings are not included in…
Racism from the perspective of a white man
I frequently hear white people claim we do not have a race problem in this country, and to prove their point, they say they like Black people and even have a few Black friends. Even though they are aware of…
On COVID and praying for the sick
Our family got our first television set when I was 6 or 7 years old. I clearly remember the first afternoon coming home from school; we watched cartoons. Childhood memories stick with us because they touched something unique or special…
Long-haul COVID offers a reminder to the church of the need to be more accessible to those living with disabilities
In the wake of COVID-19, some individuals who are diagnosed with “long COVID” are experiencing the reality of disability as they face symptoms that restrict their ability to move through life without limitations. President Joe Biden announced that many of…