Opening the Doors Wider in the Church

Almost a year ago, I registered for a program called Partners in Policy-making through the Oklahoma Developmental Disabilities Council. I guessed from the name that it had to do with children who have disabilities. That’s it. I have a passion for children’s ministry and couldn’t think of a reason I wouldn’t want to be involved in it. I really thought this would be a helpful thing because I could to do some type of brochure for Sunday School teachers to help them understand children with disabilities. I was accepted and last April, attended my first meeting. The group expects a commitment 1 Saturday from 9 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. and 1 Sunday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. a month. They do the rest. You attend. You hear the best speakers from throughout the country who work in some field of disability world . You learn about the issues of all of those in Oklahoma who have disabilities, the struggles from the family members to get services, and learn about those who are on the waiting list. You hear from individuals who had children who lived in what was supposed to be the “state of the art” facility of their time, only to learn how the parents had to sign over their rights of their precious loved one. And then, to learn that maybe that wasn’t the best idea of all. I have spent time learning about laws in Oklahoma, how to obtain information to speak for or against a pending bill, and even had a “Mock” session with 4 of our own State Representatives. This event was life-changing. There were two individuals in this class whose families are/were Episcopalian but they no longer attended a place of worship. They had been made to feel guilty about the way their child acted. They were encouraged to take their children to the nursery. Or, their child was not asked to participate in any of the events that other children were. These two (and I am sure there are many more, I just didn’t get to put a name and a face together from others) broke my heart. How could we do this? We, these parishes, those priests, those people – me. This is where the idea for the brochure Opening the Door Wider came from. I want people to see we are missing so many individuals. We are not respecting the dignity of every human being – just those who look and act like us. It is not meant to be a “be all – end all” discussion of hospitality, just a start. But I hope it will get you to thinking. I will graduate from the Partners class this Sunday. It has been a reality check for me in so many ways. I don’t know how I will be used to continue sharing the resources I have been and still get. But I hope by sharing this with you, we can all help in Opening the Door Wider. Click here for the Opening the Door Wider   Sabrina Evans is the Christian Director of Christian Formation for the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma.  

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