I have been re-reading Brett Webb-Mitchell’s book titled Beyond Accessibility: Toward Full Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Faith Communities lately. I am struck by his argument that congregation’s must experience an evolution in their conversations about accessibility and move toward a vision of the community of God that includes all people. One thing that is compelling about the vision that he lays out in the book is that it calls houses of worship beyond where they are to where they need to be. I would be happy to discuss the book more if that is helpful, but I want to move from a discussion of the text to a specific conversation that Webb-Mitchell cites at the beginning of the book.

The conversation is with a man named Rich who says, “people react weird to people with disabilities like me. They act like disability is something they can catch, like it’s infectious” I read the quote from Rich and I am struck by the ways that knowledge of the “other” casts out fear and creates opportunities for empathy.

I was having a conversation with an Episcopal Priest a couple of weeks ago when he said, “All of the significant opportunities for growth that I have experienced in my life have been opportunities that came about in encounters wit difference. I learn the most when I encounter people who are not like me.” This conversation offers me a great deal of hope about what is possible as we educate people in faith communities about people with disabilities. Please notice that I did not say as we educate people in faith communities about disabilities. The education we do must engage congregations in hearing and learning about PEOPLE who happen to have disabilities. IDN’s ongoing efforts at education and continued engagement must tell the stories of PEOPLE.

The reason I am so disheartened when I read and hear quotes like the one from Rich above is because quotes like that reveal that by and large people in communities just don’t know what they need to know in order to be able to engage people with disabilities as people who are created in the image of the Divine. These are people who have been granted gifts by the Creator. These gifts need to be shared in communities. The sharing of these gifts can and does lead to the healing and transformation of the world (Tikkun Olam)

If what I have written above is true, where do we begin in our efforts to educate our communities? I believe we begin with our religious leaders. I have seen over the years that the support or buy-in form a religious leader can go a long way in opening the door in a congregation’s efforts to engage this vital conversation. I have also seen too many instances to recount, where a religious leader who fails to grasp the power of inclusion makes a family feel unwelcome in a congregation.

IDN and our advocates have so much knowledge, so many resources, so many stories and so much expertise to share with clergy and lay people in congregations. I guess what I would love to know from people with disabilities and the people who love them is this:

What does your faith leader do (or say) that says to you (and others) that your gifts, skills and abilities are welcome in your congregation?

or

What do you wish your faith leader would do (or say) to you (and others) that would communicate that he/she welcomes your gifts, skills and abilities?

The Summer edition of Making A Difference Magazine from the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities features five articles about the power congregations have to be places of inclusion and opportunity for people with disabilities and their families.

Making A Difference Magazine Summer 2009

Thank you to Reverend Bill Gaventa, Ginny Thornburgh, Imam Furqan Muhammad, Pastor Devin Strong, Rabbi Harvey Winokur, Reverend Denny and Varion Spear, Pat Nobbie and many others for their work in lifting the profile of this important issue.

Thank you to The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities for shining a light on religious leaders and congregations who actively engaging people with disabilities in worship, study, service and leadershi.

Episode #3 of the Interfaith Disability Connection Podcast features Mrs. Betty Hasan-Amin and Reverend Alan Roof. Mrs. Hasan-Amin is the Founder of You-Ni-Verse Greeting Cards and a member at Masjid Al-Muâ??Minun. Reverend Roof serves as a Chaplain at Shepherd Center. Alan is an Ordained Minister in the United Church of Christ.

Betty and Alan are two individuals who helped plan and deliver the 2008 That All May Worship: Beyond The Ramp Conference. They discuss the impact that attending the 2008 event has had on them and help us preview what is most exciting to them as the prepare to participate in the 2009 Interfaith Disability Connection Summit on Sunday, August 9, 2009.

They also discuss why the think YOU Should plan to attend!

You can listen to the podcast by clicking the play button below:

Download this episode (right click and save)

I am a frequent reader of “Or Am I?” a blog by Rabbi Paul Kipnes. Rabbi Kipnes. Rabbi Kipnes in the Senior Rabbi at Congregation Or Ami in Calabasas, CA. I have read many posts about the congregation’s commitment to welcome people with disabilities and their families. This post was a opportunity for me to read more about Rabbi Kipnes and the congregation’s commitment to the full-inclusion of people with disabilities in the Jewish community there.

The congregation’s web site includes a number of wonderful resources for understanding the foundation of the congregation’s commitment to people with disabilities and their families.

Congratulations to Rabbi Kipnes and the Congregation Or Ami Family on their much deserved EP Maxwell J. Schleifer Distinguished Service Award.

I am inspired by the congregation’s efforts and I hope you are too.

Do you know about a congregation or a leader that is doing wonderful things like this?

Interfaith Disability Connection Podcast Episode #1:

In this first podcast of the Interfaith Disability Connection Director Mark Crenshaw interviews Ginny Thornburgh, Director of the Interfaith Initiative at the American Association of People with Disabilities in Washington, DC, Thornburgh will serve as an event facilitator at the 2nd annual IDC Summit this Sunday, August 9, 2009 in Atlanta, Georgia. Click the play button on the player below to listen to the podcast.

Click below to download the podcast to your computer:

Download this episode (right click and save)

Linda Zimmerman, Executive Director of The Amit Program shared a wonderful article from Exceptional Parent Magazine. The article shares wisdom from an amazing group of leaders in Jewish Special Education.

The article titled: Programs of Acceptance and Inclusion In The Jewish Faith begins with a quote from a Jewish teacher who lived during the 1st century B.C.E., Hillel. The quote says:

If I am not for myself, who is for me?

If I am for myself, what am I?

If not now, when?

Pirkei Avot (Ethics of Our Fathers)

The authors of the article go on to look at the need to provide inclusive Jewish education through the lens of the quote. The article is a wonderful resource for parents who have questions about including their children with disabilities.

The article is Co-written by:

Shelley Christensen
Dr. Sara Rubinow Simon
Debbie Gettes
Linda Zimmerman
and Arlene Remz (Check out the links!)

The article offers the perspectives of five women who are in the forefront as leaders in the field of Jewish Special Education. The collected wisdom in the article is invaluable,

A big THANK YOU to Linda for sharing the article! I hope readers gain insight and food for the journey.

As stress increases more and more people in our congregation are likely experiencing the effects of depression. I have found that too often we have difficulty speaking the truth about depression because we feel we should be better able to control our moods. We become convinced that depression is a sign of weakness.

May faith groups have put together resources to assist congregations in talking about and responding to depression and other form of mental illness in our midsr. Here are links to a few of them:

United Methodist General Board of Church & Society

Department of Jewish Family Concerns- Union For Reform Judaism-Mental Health information

Presbyterian Church (USA)- National Health Ministries- Serious Mental Illness Information

Mental Health: Ministries: To Erase The Stigma of Mental Illness

I was reminded of these issues and the importance of providing space for this important conversation by a recent interview I saw with Quaker teacher and Scholar Parker Palmer.

Please take a few minutes minutes to view the clip below:

I would love to hear your reflections on our times and the rise of depression. I would also love to hear from readers concerning your reflections on the Parker Palmer clip.

I spent some time yesterday with Rabbi Steven Rau, The Director of Life long Learning here at The Temple in Atlanta. I came to meet Rabbi Rau because I heard a wonderful review of a presentation he had givenat the Reform Movement’s Southeast Regional Biennial Convention in Savannah, GA in the fall.

Rabbi Rau was gracious enough to take a few minutes to share with me about the inclusive educational model he, Stacy Levy, and The Temple Education Department have worked to implement.

Here is a link to a story about the program.

The commitment of The Temple to provide an inclusive religious school program for children of all abilities is commendable.

I was excited about my conversation with Rabbi Rau for 3 reasons:

1. We discussed his efforts to share the model they have developed with other congregations both inside and outside the Jewish community.

2. It is my sense that the model is replicable and scalable to the size of the congregation.

3. The Temple Education Staff uses volunteering to support children with disabilities (different learning abilities) as part of a multi-pronged approach to getting and keeping youth connected to Jewish education post Bar/Bat mitvah.

I am grateful to Rabbi Rau, Ms. Levy and the rest of the folks at the Temple for the work they do building and sustaining a community where all people can find and maintain connection in religious school and the larger community.

I am also grateful for the part that programs like this play in raising disability awareness. Children and youth educated in inclusive environments will lead the way in making the world a more just place for people with disabilities in the years to come.

Jewish Family & Career Services will host The Larry Bregman Educational Conference on February 28th & March 1st, 2009. The keynote speaker for the event is Reverend Al Mead and if you heard Al at the 2008 Interfaith Disability Connection Conference you know he will be GREAT!

I have volunteered at the Bregman Conference in the past and it is a wonderful conference. The conference offers a track for self-advocates (people with disabilities) and a track for family members. Both tracks offer education and fun to participants. The workshop lineup looks great!

You can download the Registration form for 2009 Larry Bregman Conference and you can view the website for the conference here.