The gifts that those with autism are bringing to the Church

Read the Church Times' article "Once we connect on to something, that’s it" on autism and Church, which features the Disability Advisory Group at St Martin-in-the-Fields with words from Fiona MacMillan.

The article says:

"There are estimated to be nearly a million people with a form of autism in the UK. It is likely that there are 80 in the average parish. Not all will be in church, but, like everyone else, they will be attending weddings, funerals, and other offices. Autism is not a mental-health condition, but a physical brain-wiring difference that, in the context of church worship, means, “Our brain wiring can literally overheat as it tries to handle too much input at once. We try very hard to avoid an overload of sensory or social situations.”

That explanation comes from the words of the C of E’s guidelines on autism, “Welcoming Those on the Autistic Spectrum”, which were created for Oxford diocese and formed part of the report Opening Doors, affirmed by the Synod in February.

[...]

Good practice can address all these things with what the guidelines say requires “nothing other than a bit of time and thought” — always in partnership with the people concerned. Fiona MacMillan chairs the Disability Advisory Group that works at St Martin-in-the-Fields, in London, which, in partnership with Inclusive Church, puts on an annual conference on disability and church. It is an opportunity to share learning and resources more widely, particularly evident in the booklet Calling From the Edge, launched at the General Synod in February.

“St Martin’s is a learning organisation,” she emphasises. “All our work is centred on lived experience: the experts are people who know, who encounter barriers and discrimination in daily life and in this place. We create change by understanding our different perspectives and working together to make things better.”

Whether characteristics associated with people with autism are perceived as positive or negative depends on context. “Understanding language literally is a challenge for those who don’t, but may encourage a clarity of thought which benefits all,” she reflects. “Wanting to know how things work doesn’t necessarily mean not appreciating mystery, or not being transfixed with wonder and delight at how things are.”

She lists among the characteristics of people with autism: “Honesty, integrity, directness, openness, creativity, different ways of perceiving, not being part of hierarchy and bureaucracy, not able to manipulate or discriminate. . . Loyalty, trust. Many autistic people have an inbuilt faith, unquestioning knowledge of the existence or presence of God.

“Having a passion for justice, spotting patterns, and noticing gaps or anomalies — including those who are left out or facing barriers to participation — are gospel values. Every church will have autistic people: some will have found their niche; others may not be open. It’s about acceptance of each other, openness to difference, acknowledging that one size doesn’t fit all, but we are all fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God.”

Book a place to attend 'Something Worth Sharing', the 2018 conference on Disability and Church organised in partnership by Inclusive Church and St Martin-in-the-Field's, in October.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gungor - Beautiful Things.

Calling from the Edge presentation

Calling from the Edge was a fringe event held alongside the recent General Synod meeting on 9 February. This was a partnership between St Martin in the Fields and Inclusive Church. 

The text of one of the presentations that was given by Fiona MacMilllan (a Trustee of Inclusive Church and Chair of the Disability Advisory Group at St Martin in the Fields) can be downloaded from this link -.http://www.thinkinganglicans.org.uk/archives/007809.html.

Fiona says, "The church of the 21st century often fails disabled people, bringing echoes of an understanding that links sickness with sinfulness, mental health issues with possession, and disability as brokenness in need of cure..."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Staple Singers - Be What You Are.

Calling from the Edge

 

'Calling from the Edge' marks 5 years of conferences on Disability and Church, a partnership between St Martin-in-the-Fields and Inclusive Church. As part of our commitment to share the learning and experience we have taken the booklet to General Synod this week where it is the focus of a stall in the marketplace. 

We also opened the ideas to a wider audience with a lunchtime pop-up event today at Central Hall Westminster, when several of our conference speakers brought the booklet to life. The chair was The Very Revd Dianna Gwilliams, Chair of Inclusive Church, and the speakers included: Emily Richardson, Ann Memmott, Fiona MacMillan and Revd Tim Goode.

Fiona MacMillan said, 'We are all a combination of needs and gifts. When our needs are met, our gifts can flourish.' Emily Richardson told us how twitter has helped her find her voice; finding new and creative ways to communicate can be the role of prophets calling from the edge. For Emily, “Being a Twitter prophet means 'making every character matter'.” 

Tim Goode told us that God has a plan for all human flourishing. The disability conference, he thought, enables the Church to hear prophetic voices that haven't been heard in 2,000 years. Ann Memmott told us about her varied experience of being autistic in churches; sadly she has sometimes experienced ignorance, myth, praying away the autism etc. She has 'tried to respond with love,' but it is hard.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

U2 - Song For Someone.