An in-depth look at the first movement of ecclesial integration of disability communities: not just welcome, but missionary-welcome. The season of preparing and welcoming will be here very soon. As Thanksgiving and Christmas draw closer, those who will be hosting family and friends for these annual celebrations will prepare their home to warmly receive the…
For Church Leaders
Is Netflix’s “Atypical” A Good Resource? My Review
You might have heard that Netflix released an original series called Atypical, especially if you are a subscriber or have any social media accounts. The show is about an autistic 18-year-old in his senior year of high school on a quest to find a relationship and all the physical “benefits” our society equates with it….
Popes, Bishops, & Laity Speak About Disability Integration in the Church
You may have noticed I’ve been a little inconsistent with my posts the last several weeks. I’ve been pushing hard to finish my master’s thesis on ecclesial integration of the autism community and have finally finished a 75-page draft for my reading team. To celebrate, I want to share with you a portion of my…
One Simple Tool for Better Parish Inclusion
July is one of my favorite months. It has always felt like the heart of summer to me, maybe because of Independence Day celebrations and the fact that it’s my birthday month. Having worked at Catholic Parishes for over a decade, July is also transition and change month. It’s the month we start over with…
“Amazing Things Happen” With Awareness
The first step to autism inclusion is autism awareness, understanding, and acceptance. What is autism and how might it affect parishioners and those who we are trying to reach out to and welcome into our parishes? The classic analogy is that autism is like having a different operating system. Some brains are like PC’s running…
Expectations or the “Why” in Ministry
In a random twist of events for the awesome, I get to have a conversation with Jen on the Jennifer Fulwiler Show (Sirius XM Channel 129 – The Catholic Channel) on Friday, June 23rd during the last quarter of her show. We’ll be talking about parental expectations and how our Catholic faith might be able…
