Resource Browser Page
Date |
Average Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| March 26, 2012 |
Extending the Welcome before People Come through the DoorAccessibility We like to tell ourselves, “My church welcomes anyone.” But our failure to make our buildings and communication and programs accessible to a wide range of people sends the opposite message. |
|
| December 19, 2011 |
Understanding Disability and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990Accessibility In 1993 the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) in North America went on record to heartily recommend full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Compliance is still incomplete in or outside churches. What is the ADA really about? |
|
| June 23, 2011 |
Cultural Perspectives of Foreign-born Persons in the U.S. Regarding DisabilityCaring Many congregations have members who are immigrants from various countries, some of whom live with disabilities. The monographs linked to this article will help church leaders minister better to congregation members both by getting a better understanding of the culture and of the culture's perspective |
|
| February 8, 2011 |
Ideas for Your Church to Help a Child with Disabilities and His FamilyHospitality “A family attending our church has a child with disabilities. We want to help. What should we do? Where do we start?” This little resource is packed with great ideas to help you and your church get started. |
|
| December 16, 2010 |
Action Steps for InclusionGetting Started The Equally Able Foundation produced a short list of action steps for inclusion. We adapted this list and added some links to resources. While there are many things that can be done to make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities, the following are steps in the right direction... |
|
| December 9, 2010 |
Is This How a Deaf Person Feels?Advocacy A woman reflects on her "disability" as a hearing person who knows little sign language at a conference where most attendees are deaf and use sign language to communicate. |
|
| December 7, 2010 |
How Inclusive Is My Congregation?Accessibility This simple tool* will help you assess how well your congregation is including and engaging people with disabilities in ministry. |
|
| November 4, 2010 |
Using Computers For Inclusive WorshipWorship Without intending to, worship planners, tech crews, and secretaries create handouts and slides that are difficult to read for people with visual impairments. These guidelines will help a church make their electronic and print materials more accessible and useful for all members of the congregation. |
|
| July 27, 2010 |
Overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008Accessibility More than 54 million Americans with physical or mental impairments that substantially limit daily activities are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This brief article summarizes the titles of the 1990 ADA and the 2008 Amendment to the ADA. |
|
| July 18, 2010 |
A Baker’s Dozen Frequently Asked Questions about Hearing LoopsAccessibility Answers to common questions about hearing loop systems to help readers better understand this important technology. |
|
| July 9, 2010 |
Together, We Create DisabilityAccessibility Once we recognize and admit to our participation in other people’s disabilities, we can begin to remove the barriers to participation that we have erected. It’s those barriers that we together create that cause problems of accessibility for people with disabilities, barriers of architecture, communication, and attitude. For example ... |
|
| May 24, 2010 |
Funding for Church Building AccessibilityAccessibility For building improvements, there are two foundations of which we are aware that will give accessibility grants to churches in specific regions. |
|
| May 4, 2010 |
Getting Intentional about Inclusive Church EducationChurch Education Although many people think about people with disabilities as having needs and non-disabled people having gifts to offer, nondisabled and disabled each have gifts and needs. Each of us has green areas of our lives – things that we are good at – and pink areas – things we are not good at. Like the various members of body, so the puzzle pieces fit together because we all need each other... |
|
| February 10, 2010 |
More Help is Close ByAdvocacy Disability Concerns has a network of Regional Disability Advocates who are eager to assist the churches of their classes. If you wish to be in touch with one of them, click on the name of the Regional Advocate below. In your note, please tell us the name of your church, your city and province/state. |
|
| February 2, 2010 |
Empathy: a Key to Inclusive MinistryHospitality While leading a worship service I encouraged the congregation to think about ways to make people with disabilities feel welcome. I praised them for several things they were doing well, and I pointed out several areas for improvement such as making pew cutouts for people who use wheelchairs. After the service, one man defended his church, “If someone comes in a wheelchair, he can sit in the front.” |
|
| January 28, 2010 |
30 Ways You Can Be Hospitable to People with DisabilitiesGetting Started The Christian Reformed and Reformed Church in America collaborated to produce this resource which highlights what ordinary people are already doing in their Christian Reformed or Reformed Church in America congregations. Additional copies can be printed to hang in your church... |
|
| January 6, 2010 |
Resolution on Disabilities Adopted by the CRCAdvocacy The Christian Reformed Church made an express commitment at the 1985 meeting of the Synod to break down barriers and work for the full inclusion of people with disabilities in the life of the congregation. The following is the wording of that commitment... |
|
| January 6, 2010 |
Church Policy on DisabilityGetting Started Disability Concerns strongly recommends that churches make an intentional commitment to include people with disabilities in church life by adopting a policy on disability and making this commitment well known within the congregation. Many churches have adopted the following policy; some have adapted the wording for their specific situation. |
|
| December 30, 2009 |
Quick Wins for Inclusion of People with DisabilitiesGetting Started The idea of including people with disabilities in church life can sound overwhelming when someone doesn't know where to begin. Most of the following ideas are easily implemented and at minimal cost. |
|
| December 30, 2009 |
A Biblical Perspective on Disability and InclusionGetting Started Jesus’ first recorded sermon proclaimed that God’s kingdom was at hand. Then he spent the rest of his public ministry on earth bringing in the kingdom. Our calling as advocates for people with disabilities is to carry on Jesus’ work so that all people, especially people with disabilities, will be welcomed to the body of Christ and encouraged to use their gifts in ministry. The Scriptures provide us with a basic foundation for this work. |
|
Date |
Average Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| May 12, 2012 |
A Surprising Path to Church TransformationWorship Transformation begins in a church family when there is enough interaction to make this authenticity contagious. It is liberating to throw off pretense, to admit insufficiencies, and to become completely dependent on God. |
|
| May 3, 2012 |
How to Love a Family in NeedCaring Both before and after our triplets were born, Nathan and I felt an overwhelming sense of love from our congregation. None of it was small to us. |
|
| April 24, 2012 |
The Good Hand of FellowshipHospitality Tom Hoeksema and his wife, both white, decided they needed to visit Grace when their adopted African American son asked during a communion service at their previous church, “Do black people ever get to serve communion here?” The first time the Hoeksemas visited Grace, a member who had an intellectual disability walked up to them, reached out his hand in welcome, and said, “Hi, I like you!” |
|
| April 13, 2012 |
Warren Argues, Dogs and People with Intellectual Disabilities Will Go to HeavenDon't get me wrong. I love our dog Marley. But I do not plan to see Marley again when Christ reappears and the heavens and earth are renewed. When he dies, he'll be gone except for our memories and our pictures. |
|
| April 2, 2012 |
Preparing for the Next Stage, Your “Senior Days”Who wants to think about limitations that may come as we grow older? If you want to live your older years to the fullest, then you will want to consider changes that may come and prepare for them. Some changes that come with aging are unwelcome, but good preparation for them will |
|
| March 20, 2012 |
A Lecture on Being Human by a Man who Cannot SpeakAccessibility Chris said that when his parents gave him his first voice synthesizer, he went from not speaking to talking in complete sentences in one day. I praise God for Christian leaders like Chris who can speak so articulately. He talks about disability, of course, but more importantly, he talks about what it means to be human. |
|
| March 12, 2012 |
Grace and Truth Instead of FearAdvocacy Can you imagine the firestorm of criticism if some media outlet speculated about the state of this soldier’s marriage as a reason for his violent behavior? A firestorm would be justified. Yet no firestorm erupts when pundits speculate about his mental state. |
|
| March 6, 2012 |
Should Infanticide be Legal?Advocacy In a recent article in the Journal of Medical Ethics, the authors, Alberto Giubilini and Francesca Minerva, promote the idea that regions where abortion is legal should also allow the killing of newborn children. The Princeton University bioethicist Peter Singer put forth a similar argument a number of years ago. |
|
| February 28, 2012 |
Amazing Gifts: Stories of Faith, Disability, and InclusionHospitality Making your congregation welcoming and accessible can be done because it has been done—somewhere by people just like you. Amazing Gifts tells those stories. |
|
| February 21, 2012 |
Watch Out for StereotypesAdvocacy Jeremy Lin, a point guard with the New York Knicks, has been in the news. Thanks to his fine playing, people are taking notice of him, and with that extra attention some commentators have engaged in stereotyping resulting in racial jokes and slurs about Lin's Asian heritage. |
|
| February 10, 2012 |
Camping Out: Disability, Longing, and Romantic LoveCaring Please don't ask if I'm content in my singleness. I'm not there yet, and I don't know when I will be. I see myself as single by circumstance, not necessarily by choice. |
|
| January 31, 2012 |
Let everything, even dogs, praise the LordAccessibility When Frank Eckl and his family sat down for dinner at Don Julio’s restaurant last November, they had no idea this decision would begin a series of events that would result in the arrest of a young woman and the closing of the restaurant. |
|
| January 23, 2012 |
Focus on People Not LabelsCaring A controversy rages about the definition of autism. The American Psychiatric Association is considering a redefinition of the term for the newest edition of their Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM). Should the definition of “autism” or any other disability matter for us who are involved in churches? |
|
| January 17, 2012 |
Ministering to People with Mental IllnessesCaring Ministering to people with mental illnesses can intimidate many congregational leaders. Pathways to Promise provides outstanding free resources that will reduce the intimidation and enhance caring of congregations for their members who live with mental illnesses. |
|
| January 2, 2012 |
Cruelty or Evil, Which is Better?When my mom broke her hip this past Tuesday, the four of us had to decide whether or not she would have surgery. Because mom has late stage dementia, she could not make the decision herself. Deciding about surgery felt like deciding to be cruel or to be evil. |
|
| December 27, 2011 |
I Would Like to HelpCaring After 12 years of meeting my wife's ever more challenging mobility problems, I have found a lot of good solutions. People are available to help; I want to be one of those who will. |
|
| December 19, 2011 |
When Being Nice is Not EnoughAccessibility With a severe impairment, a person is disabled by the environment and may not be able to participate because of what we build and create. The failure to proactively provide efficient, timely, reasonable accommodation is measurable disability discrimination. As James said, show me your works. |
|
| December 12, 2011 |
A Small Step toward Greater UnityAdvocacy Steps toward greater unity will honor the Savior who came, bled, died and rose again for all of his chosen ones regardless of denomination.The CRC and RCA have engaged in mutual work together in many areas including Disability Concerns. |
|
| December 6, 2011 |
Indispensable PartsAdvocacy Though diversity brings richness to life, diversity should not be an end in itself. In fact, a very diverse groups can be unbearable. At their worst, diverse groups can break into factions that engage in gang warfare and “ethnic cleansing.” When churches consider creating diverse communities, they need to focus attention also on welcome, hospitality, and inclusion. |
|
| November 28, 2011 |
Advent is about HopeWorship When we hope, we join with God’s people throughout the ages in placing our future with him. God holds firmly in his hand the future of each Christian and the future of the church. |
|
Date |
Average Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| April 10, 2012 |
Maternal Obesity, Diabetes Linked to Autism, Other DisabilityCaring A new study discovers a strong relationship between maternal obesity and diabetes, and the likelihood of having a child with autism or another developmental disability. |
|
| April 7, 2012 |
Healthy Living with Bipolar DisorderCaring The goal of Healthy Living with Bipolar Disorder is "to provide new perspectives and helpful guides to healthy living, while recognizing the stigma and challenges of bipolar disorder." |
|
| March 22, 2012 |
Volunteer Respite Manual: Creating Valuable Options for Family CaregiversCaring Respite allows family caregivers to take a short pause from their continuous tasks as caregivers while their loved ones continue to be cared for at home or in safe, meaningful, and appropriate community settings. |
|
| February 29, 2012 |
One QuestionCaring In this seven and one-half minute video, 35 people with intellectual disabilities answer the same one question: If you can change one thing about yourself, what would you change? Their answers will surprise you. |
|
| February 28, 2012 |
Survey: the Christian Community and People with DisabilitiesAccessibility The Disability Studies Institute (DSI) of California Baptist University is interested in creating a snapshot of the current status of the Christian community's interaction with people with disabilities by means of a survey. DSI is hoping that individuals and representatives of church, parachurch organizations, or other Christian faith-based organizations will participate in this study by completing the survey. |
|
| January 23, 2012 |
Mental Illness and Families of FaithCaring This tool is designed to be used with clergy, members of congregations, family members and anyone desiring to learn more about mental illness and how to respond with compassion and care. It can be used as a small group study or as a resource to quickly find information on a specific topic when the need arises. |
|
| January 9, 2012 |
Creative Housing Solution is Win WinHospitality Seminary students and people with intellectual disabilities need housing. Why not together? In this article by Matt Floding describes the Friendship House, in which 18 seminary students and 6 adults with intellectual disabilities live together in community. |
|
| January 9, 2012 |
Ontario churches required to comply with the AODAAccessibility The deadline for complying with Phase 1 of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) for the private and non-profit sectors was January 1, 2012. Any organization in Ontario that has one or more employees must comply with the AODA standards. Is your church in compliance? |
|
| January 8, 2012 |
Being RetardedAdvocacy A mother challenges the casual use of the word "retarded." "This is Maura. Her diagnosis? Cognitively disabled. Which means retarded. When you call yourself retarded, you’re also calling my child stupid. Because you use the word as just that – another form of stupid. Let’s get something straight here. . . . Maura is not stupid." |
|
| January 6, 2012 |
Kudos to Target. Now, church, it's your turn.Hospitality This blog by Shannon Dingle invites the church to learn a lesson from Target and thereby increase the size of the church's "bucket." |
|
| December 22, 2011 |
The How-To's of AccessibilityAccessibility In this article, Mark Pinsky, author of the forthcoming book Amazing Gifts: Stories of Faith, Disability, and Inclusion, tells stories of several people with disabilities who not only became involved but also became indispensable members of their congregations. |
|
| December 5, 2011 |
Mental Illness: Coping with the HolidaysCaring This resource from Mental Health Ministries includes tips on coping with the stresses of the holidays for people living with mental illnesses, for their family and friends, and for their community of faith. |
|
| October 25, 2011 |
Disability Benefits CalculatorCaring This website has a calculator to help people receiving public disability benefits determine how their income, benefits, and health coverage could be affected if they go to work. |
|
| September 27, 2011 |
Broadcast: Mental Illness and the ChurchCaring Freelance writer and Vice President of Christianity Today, Amy Simpson, talks about her own experience interfacing with a family member with mental illness as well as talking about how the Church responds. |
|
| September 26, 2011 |
Justice: People Living with DisabilitiesAdvocacy This page on the Diaconal Ministries Canada website provides ideas and resources for deacons in their ministry of justice with people with disabilities. |
|
| August 25, 2011 |
Choosing Joy: A Morning in the Life of the Pot FamilyCaring The Standard of St. Catherines, Ontario, not only asked the Pot family what their life is like, but also spent a morning with them and documented the experience. This article is a fine piece of journalism about a Christian family who faces intense challenge with grace and faith. |
|
| August 16, 2011 |
The Church's Response to Families with AutismHospitality I have been asked to leave church more than once because my son is autistic and can be disruptive. It is painful for our family to miss church, but we have spent more years outside of the church than inside. |
|
| August 3, 2011 |
"I Feel Right at Home at My Church"Hospitality Lucas, who has cerebral palsy, cannot walk, nor can he articulate words so that others can understand. He uses a computer to communicate. Lucas' small Pentecostal African American Church in the Mississippi Delta embraces him for who he is and encourages him to use the gifts God has given him. |
|
| July 22, 2011 |
Involving Children with Autism in the ClassroomChurch Education This 2-page guide with the heavy title, "Autism Spectrum Disorders [ASD]: Supportive Strategies for Crisis Prevention," presents a positive strategy and practical ideas for teachers and applies easily to including kids with ASD in Sunday School, GEMS, Cadets, youth group and other church activities. |
|
| July 22, 2011 |
A Theology of Disability and the ChurchCaring In this article, Fuller Seminary Graduate, Janet Morel, describes her journey in ministry and motherhood with a caughter who lives with severe disabilities. "Mothering a severely disabled child all these years has been part of the context Morel brings to her life and witness. 'Just by living our lives day to day means that my husband Rob and Dana and I are able to bear witness to a hope in the future that those who don’t have faith don’t have.'" |
|
Date |
Average Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| May 4, 2012 |
Grants for Programs for ChildrenCaring Got a good idea for programming that will minister to kids with disabilities? CVS is offering grants up to $5000 to support nonprofit organizations raise awareness in schools and communities about the importance of inclusion, build barrier-free playgrounds, and provide medical rehabilitation and related services to children with disabilities. |
|
| March 12, 2012 |
Making Church Communications More User FriendlyAccessibility Newsletters, web pages, projected slides, and bulletins can enhance or hinder communication depending on how they are formatted and the colors used. Lighthouse International has produced guidelines for print, electronic, and web communication that will help anyone who wants to make their church resources more useful. |
|
| January 19, 2012 |
National Association for Rural Mental HealthCaring Finding resources in a rural setting for people with mental illnesses can be especially challenging. The National Association for Rural Mental Health (NARMH) is a professional organization that serves the field of rural mental health. |
|
| January 19, 2012 |
Medline PlusMedline Plus, a service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, provides solid medical information about various disabilities including mental illnesses. |
|
| October 11, 2011 |
The Medicaid Reference DeskCaring This tool will help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and people who care about them find out what Medicaid (a U.S. assistance program) can offer them. |
|
| July 21, 2011 |
Disabilities and FaithGetting Started From the Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State University, this website features resources websites, and powerpoint presentations for use in training people of faith to include individuals with disabilities. |
|
| March 23, 2011 |
DisaboomAccessibility Disaboom describes itself like this: "Living with a disability is easier when you’ve got the right information and resources. Disaboom provides people with disabilities the answers, solutions, and connections you need for living your life to the fullest." |
|
| January 10, 2011 |
Signing SavvyChurch Education This website includes an English to sign language video dictionary, and many other tools for learning single signs, fingerspelling, practicing sentences, and more. Simple tools are free including the video dictionary. Advanced tools require registration and a monthly fee. |
|
| November 19, 2010 |
The Abilities ChurchWorship This church looks like a new model for a church plant. Not a church for people with disabilities, nor a church that ministers to people with disabilities, nor even a church that includes people with disabilities, but a church whose organizing principle is engagement of people of varying abilities in all aspects of ministry. |
|
| November 19, 2010 |
UN International Day of Persons with DisabilitiesAdvocacy This year's theme for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December 2010 is "Keeping the Promise: Mainstreaming Disability in the Millennium Development Goals towards 2015 and Beyond." |
|
| September 29, 2010 |
Disability is NaturalAccessibility Kathie Snow's website has a host of great resources. Don't miss the newsletter sign-up, her articles on people-first language, and that list at the bottom of her homepage, "The World Would Be a Better Place If . . . " |
|
| July 21, 2010 |
Aspergian PrideCaring Not only does this site contain articles that present positive views of autistic identity, but also it maintains an extensive list of resource and advocacy sites. |
|
| July 5, 2010 |
National Complete Streets CoalitionAdvocacy This coalition works in the US for "complete streets." The streets of our cities and towns are an important part of the livability of our communities. They ought to be for everyone, whether young or old, motorist or bicyclist, walker or wheelchair user, bus rider or shopkeeper. Now, in communities across the country, a movement is growing to complete the streets. States, cities and towns are asking their planners and engineers to build road networks that are safer, more livable, and welcoming to everyone. |
|
| June 8, 2010 |
The AgrAbility ProjectAccessibility The AgrAbility Project was created to assist people with disabilities employed in agriculture. |
|
| June 4, 2010 |
The Wounds of War: The Church as a Healing CommunityCaring The Presbyterian Church (USA) produced a variety of litanies, information sheets, and even a Ceremony for Restoration for churches to assist returning veterans in their transition to civilian life and in their healing from the psychological wounds of war. |
|
| May 24, 2010 |
KnowbilityAccessibility Knowbility's mission is to ensure barrier-free I.T. - supporting the independence of people with disabilities by promoting the use and improving the availability of accessible information technology. |
|
| May 17, 2010 |
Media and DisabilityAdvocacy Unlike many sites devoted to this topic, Media and Disability does not discuss how to make various media accessible to people with sensory impairments. Instead, it helps authors, producers, and directors think about all aspects of including people with disabilities in the media from how they are portrayed to whom to employ. |
|
| May 17, 2010 |
Mental Health First Aid CanadaCaring Mental Health First Aid is a 12-hour certification course to help people better understand mental illness and respond to psychiatric emergencies. In addition, it has been proven to reduce stigma and to improve the mental health of those who take this training. |
|
| May 17, 2010 |
Mental Health First Aid USACaring Mental Health First Aid is a 12-hour certification course to help people better understand mental illness and respond to psychiatric emergencies. In addition, it has been proven to reduce stigma and to improve the mental health of those who take this training. |
|
| May 4, 2010 |
Ministry with the Deaf: DOOR InternationalChurch Education "DOOR International’s vision is to bring God’s Word and biblical Christian fellowship to Deaf communities worldwide." The website is separated for Deaf users and hearing users. Not only does the site give a good introduction to Deaf culture for ministry leadership, DOOR produces materials for Deaf ministry. |
