Instead of desperately trying to cure all disabilities, the church should do the slow and difficult work of healing the surrounding society by tearing down spaces, practices, and mindsets that are inaccessible to disabled people, even when those spaces are inside the church itself. The church should follow Jesus by healing instead of curing.
The goal of healing isn‘t fixing, but restoring. It‘s a transformative process that seeks to make someone feel whole. Healing is not about erasing the experience of trauma (which I‘m pretty sure is impossible) but about processing it and coming to terms with it, no matter how heavy it might be to carry.
Curing is a physical process; it‘s individual, usually (fairly) rapid, and concentrates on eliminating disease. Healing is a sociocultural process. It focuses on restoring interpersonal, social, and spiritual dimensions. It‘s lengthy and ongoing because it‘s a process of becoming whole.
Any body who doesn‘t fit in a tidy box of cured or “normal” makes other people feel out of place.
pickThese are vignettes from some famous names but mostly people I didn‘t know about facing adversity. When someone said “you can‘t” because of disability, race, gender, sexuality, or other reasons, these people just went on and did it anyway. It‘s YA and definitely targeted at teens, but a good reminder for anyone about the power of determination.
When I want to read my book but am told to answer the door.
pick“We are bodies of broken bones. I guess I‘d always known but never fully considered that being broken is what makes us human. We all have our reasons. Sometimes we‘re fractured by the choices we make; sometimes we‘re shattered by things we would never have chosen. But our brokenness is also the source of our common humanity, the basis for our shared search for comfort, meaning, and healing.”
July is disability pride month. Disability rights are civil rights. All policy is disability policy. The disability community is one of the most disenfranchised groups in access to voting (many places are not ADA compliant & disabled people are essentially denied their right to vote). Many decisions/laws/polices about the lives of disabled people are made without input from disabled people. Right now the disability community is terrified. The
This one. This one made me really reexamine a lot of things I thought I knew, and started me on authors like Angela Y Davis and Patrisse Khan-Cullors.
#SundayFunday I hope you all are staying safe and healthy and happy today, and don‘t forget to tag me in your posts.
so-so“Conviction” reshaped my view of Thurgood Marshall, revealing his early NAACP work and the deep injustices he fought. W.D. Lyons‘ story is heartbreaking—a stark reminder of systemic racism. This book shook me, challenged my idealism, and reminded me why staying awake to injustice, no matter how painful, is essential. It‘s powerful, urgent, and unforgettable.
Full review: https://www.instagram.com/p/DLBXu4IybxQ/?igsh=MWF5YnFnaThteTVmMQ==
