Naomi Lawson Jacobs and Emily Richardson share their vision for disabled Christians

Stories of disabled people have been gathered together in a new book, At the Gates; hear more about why the book was written from the authors Naomi Lawson Jacobs and Emily Richardson.

Naomi writes:
I have spent years feeling like a conditional guest among the Body of Christ. Seen as a burden, more than a blessing. As a problem to be solved, rather than as part of the glorious diversity of God’s creation.

I am not the only disabled Christian who has been left waiting at the church gates.

Over a decade ago, I began to ask why disabled people so often see Christianity not ‘as part of the answer but part of the problem’ (as John M. Hull writes in The Tactile Heart: Blindness and Faith). In research with more than 50 disabled Christians, I have heard a lament that the church talks about disabled people more than it listens to us. That’s why I asked research participant Emily to help me share these disabled Christians’ experiences.

Our subsequent book, At the Gates, tells their stories.

Storytellers tell us about churches that they cannot access, and where they cannot participate. Wheelchair users remember being forgotten in communities that use accessible toilets as storage cupboards. Blind people tell us about churches where song words are projected onto screens they cannot see, as their simple request for lyrics to be emailed goes unheard. Storytellers speak of being ‘pounced on’ for prayer for cure, and share stories of their rejection from ministry.

But their story doesn’t end there. These storytellers share a vision of justice for disabled people, in churches transformed by the Holy Spirit. They are longing for communities that see disabled people as more than opportunities for charity, where we can be full, participating members and leaders. They are modelling that change, as they minister to each other, often online. They are praying for a church that remembers a Christ resurrected in a disabled body, and recognises the image of God in disabled people.

These prophetic stories challenge a church that has come to value the powerful and the ‘perfect’ over those who are different. Churches need to listen to stories like these, if they are ever to open the church gates for – and with – disabled Christians.

Emily writes:
As co-author I sometimes say I came late to the formation of this book, when Naomi’s research was almost ready to be shared. But I then remember sitting around a table with other research participants, as I shared my experiences and listened to theirs, and I realise that this book has been a lifetime’s work. As I have wrestled to work out my place within a church that sometimes dismisses or devalues me, I have met so many other pilgrims along the way. In writing this book, I have been reminded that I am writing not only my story, not only Naomi’s story, but weaving together so many unheard stories.

By Naomi Lawson Jacobs and Emily Richardson

Naomi Lawson Jacobs is a disabled, neurodivergent social researcher and disability equality trainer. They can be found at http://naomilawsonjacobs.com/   Twitter @naomi_jacobs and Facebook.

Emily Richardson is a disabled writer with interests in popular culture, church/theology, communication and celebrating life on the edges. She tweets as @emjric.

Images below from left: Naomi Lawson Jacobs; Emily Richardson; the cover of At the Gates, published July 2022 by Darton, Longman & Todd, see HERE