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What Can Christians Do About Autism?
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 18. 08. 2024
- Today I want to give three pieces of advice in becoming better prepared to reach individuals on the spectrum and their families with the Gospel. In doing so I recommend a book - On the Spectrum: Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity by Daniel Bowman Jr.
On the Spectrum:
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#Autism #Faith #Church
Iâm 100% in the camp that kids should be in the service and be loud as kids need to be. Itâs so much more important that they see their parents worshiping Jesus than some person to hear every single word in a sermon. In our community group we always have the kids playing around us so they see their parents digging in!
Yeah, I completely agree. It's a beautiful thing for families to worship together.
Thank you so much for posting this awesome video! I'm Autistic and ADHD myself and this is so important. God Bless You and Your Family! So many people within the church think Autism is a discipline issue just because a meltdown looks like a tantrum to the untrainied eye. My stimming and echolalia has been rebuked before in church and many of our well intentioned brothers and sisters still give me verses to make my Autistic Quirks go away. Though I have many struggles in my life because of being Neurodiverse loving God is not one of them as He is my #1 Autistic Special Interest.
Great job on the video!
My youngest sister is a special needs teacher. Taking her job so seriously that she ( on her own dime ) became a certified sign language interpreter. You echoed everything the has said for the past 20+ years working with these exceptional students. You are so right in making room for those that need it . Not a location but a space in worship where we ALL can gather before the throne and praise our God !
Nice one Dean !
Blessings
Thanks Bill. Hope you had a good Christmas. Been praying for ya bud.
As a retired campus minister I had the blessing of having several Autistic students. And they were a wonderful addition to the group. One of them who I am still in contact with has a masters in library science. It was not easy but he did it. He has become a highly effective advocate for neuro- diverse. Autism is another expression of Godâs creation. Your son, as he is, is a gift to the world.
Church is so hard from my special needs kids! I think we've found a solution for Sunday morning of going to Sunday School, where the kids get lessons at their own comprehension levels with teachers who are very patient and loving, then we go home after that hour. We listen to the pastor's service in our bedroom with the lights dimmed. The kids can ask questions immediately when they think of them so they're paying better attention to what's been said. We're counting out the sermon points on our fingers and listening for when the pastor hits each point. Sometimes a kid or two takes a short nap. It's a much more refreshing way to start our week than dealing with overstimulated and frustrated kids.
As a Christian adult with Autism and ADHD, we as a Christian Community need to be educated on what Autism is, and how to help someone who struggles with their neurodivergence. It's Autism Awareness Month in April, so we should be talking about "stimming" and Sensory Issues. Thank you for being a voice for this.
Absolutely agree, Collin!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
@@Underdogtheology After reading On the Spectrum, I got a little concerned with the "Antler" (I think...? Sounded different) part and obviously the Richard Rohr story. Makes me want to write a Memoir about myself called: "Young, Autistic, and Reformed"...lol
That said, the content is definitely a good window into the Autistic life. Thank you again for the Recommendation!
@@TheCeejay95 hahaha I totally agree. I would definitely not recommend his theology as a framework for anyone, but he shines on this particular issue. Hey if you write that memoir, Iâll buy one!
Very good video.
I am not Neuro-divergent. I
have chronic migraines and I have CPTSD and anxiety. I had to leave a church bc their worship was super loud. This was a big, new sanctuary. I think the sound and light people wanted to show off their âtoysâ bc during EVERY SERVICE they would chose one song to run a bright đł spotlight through the congregation.
There were many times I felt overwhelmed and had to leave. I guess itâs fine for other folks. It just wasnât a good fit for me. I have often wondered if people with autism or who have seizures would be bothered by these loud flashy worship services.
Thanks for sharing. I doubt youâre the only one who has that reaction.
My daughter is on the spectrum and Iâve always been very guarded when it comes to her. I donât want anyone to try to harm her or put a theory (like Greg) onto her. I donât want people to âpray for her autism to go awayâ. Sheâs more than her autism BUT sheâs also autistic and that makes her her! And she is the sweetest smart as heck funny little girl. She doesnât need to be saved from her autism. She needs support for the things she struggles with and love and patience with those things. Iâm lucky to have a group around me now who love my daughter and she doesnât talk but she does make sounds like she is talking to people and no one treats her different from the other children. The children accept her as well. It warms my heart because she deserves every bit of it.
When people put out this idea that we need to pray the autism away it give these adults and children the idea that a thing they canât help is bad or evil. And that makes me so incredibly mad. My daughters stims are not âdemonsâ itâs crazy that we are in 2022 and people still know nothing about it. Itâs just scary when parents buy into this idea. It only harms children in the end. Just love your kids and learn about autism and neurodivergents, better your knowledge so you donât believe that everything is demonic đł because itâs literally not.
@@kelly-ellie3543 I can't agree more. Thanks for sharing your story on here.
I have Autism and my Churches I went to were welcoming to me when I was a kid and still are to this day. The Pastors at my Churches really cared for kids and kids with disabilities. Christianity is to love one another.
I also really want to say Thank You for posting a video of this. I remember having to sit in Church and even to this day when Iâm 22 years old I can also struggle sitting still in Church or Sunday School. God knows itâs extremely hard for a person with Autism when they are sitting in Church.
As a late diagnosed adult who was raised in a setting where mental illness and neurodivergence seemed to be considered fake or demonic, I learned church is where you mask the most. Sadly now even though I'm in a good church it isn't terribly neurodivergent friendly, however I have a few friends there thankfully that encourage me to wear my ear plugs and crochet during service which really helps with the sitting still.
I found a book entitled: Autism and the Church, by Grant Macaskill
Also, I love the story you shared. Itâs beautiful and gives so much hope.
Thank you for sharing your heart! You mentioned resources. You may find it wonderfully helpful to connect with the University of Aberdeenâs Centre for Autism and Theology.
Thank you for this! My son was just diagnosed with ASD as a 14 year old. That example that little girl set was humbling, convicting, and encouraging. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for sharing, Sarah. Yes, that little girl was pure compassion!
Im 100% getting that book about autism. I think this would be a great resource especially as a youth pastor it's always good to read up on stuff like this. Thanks Dean!
That's awesome Burton's Beard Bonanza???? Is that it? Did I crack the alliteration code?!? hahahah
Thank you for talking about this, Dean! Iâm finding out at 25 that Iâm a low needs autistic woman! Iâve been autistic the whole time but masking to the point that I lost who I am.
The best thing I could say we as the church can do going forward is to LEARN and be willing to be a bit uncomfortable sometimes and remember the love of Jesus that moved Him to love people that others didnât understand.
Thanks for sharing Shelby.
Thank you for this video. I always appreciate your content, but especially appreciate the fact that you talk about these things. I know I mentioned in the comments on your âGregâ video that my son is on the spectrum, but I just wanted to comment on this one as well to say thanks.
Thanks, Megan. I appreciate the encouragement!!!
Thank you for your encouragement! We have been blessed to attend a church with special needs ministry (we have multiple special needs with our children). It makes a difference, and I thank God for it!
That's awesome!
As an Autistic Christian, I felt ostracized in the church. I found church extremely stressful and subsequently became a hermit.
Yes, I have experienced the thought that I'm not really a Christian and/or I needed dwliverence.
Like, I'm a child of some lesser God. Like, I'm not fearfully and wonderfully made.
Churches want stars, not scars.
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone is great poetry and lousy theology.
Please don't try to force us to be "normal". Also, special interests are not the same as idols. God made my brain different, but it's just His creativity.
@@thetickedoffpianoplayer4193 special interests are our way of appreciating God's universe! They just make me love Him and more amazed with Him!
@@AliciaGuitar I feel the exact same way. I use my special interests as a way to connect with God because I'm appreciating the beauty that He made. Even though my main ones are music and teddy bears, which are made by people, it's still God that made those people's beautiful brains to do cool stuff like that, and He gave me a beautiful brain to be able to appreciate something that most people blaze right by and don't notice.
I have autism. I'm 23 now but growing up I can tell you pastors were hit and miss if they understood what I was dealing with or not. There was one pastor that literally called me out during a service. He never asked me for forgiveness for doing that. Sadly that was the church I got baptized at too so that hurt me a lot. A lot of times if the church I was attending got a different pastor I had to switch churches.
Iâm sure that must have been very difficult. Thanks for sharing your perspective on this!!!
My now grown up son has ADHD as to a degree do I and the way some churches treated us was well not good and now I have opportunities in my church on how to deal with all children I will ensure NO child will be treated the way we were they are WELCOME and told not to worry if their child makes a noise yes you have to be wise but it helps to if possible provide a place that parents can go to when their child is being their precious child
Love that youâre changing things!!
@@Underdogtheology we can all try and then encourage others to xx
Hi Dean, thanks for this video. Are there any other books youâve found helpful on autism/disability more generally in the church?
Unfortunately as Iâm sure you know through your dissertation, thereâs not a lot out there from a Christian perspective yet, but I was recently made aware of Lemar Hardwick and his work on it. Iâll be checking out his books soon.
@@Underdogtheology Great, I have never heard of him. I drew heavily on Same Lake, Different Boat by Stephanie Hubach and Wondrously Wounded by Brian Brock. Brock's book touches a bit on his own personal experience of his son's disability too which is eyeopening.
@@geoffmurray754 Iâll have to look those up! Thanks!