The Autism Society Event and Education Recordings Archive

A person or family’s house of worship should be a place where they can turn for encouragement and community support, especially when life’s challenges shake the faith that can sustain one’s sense of peace and wellbeing.  However, the behavioral manifestations that are often a part of ASDs can be misunderstood and even rejected in a house of worship, denying a family or individual the support that they need as they try to cope with the challenges that autism can bring.  This can remove a valuable system of support from persons who often need it the most.  Faith communities that choose to learn how to welcome, accommodate and support those affected by ASDs will find themselves reaping many benefits from choosing the walk the talk of their faith.

In this presentation attendees will benefit from hearing how one house of worship has set about making strides in welcoming and accommodating those affected by disabilities, of which autism is a strong majority.  The presenter, who is the mother of a young man with autism, was hired as this house of worship’s very first Coordinator of Special Needs Religious Education.  She has served in this capacity for 5 years so far, and has helped other houses of worship, of other faiths, to replicate and expand upon the supports she has set up and supervises for her faith community.  Attendees will learn strategies for convincing the leadership of one’s house of worship to begin a disability ministry that strives to accommodate those within autism’s broad spectrum.  Components that will be presented are:

• setting up a sensory-friendly worship space,

• educating members of one’s faith community about the gifts and challenges that autism can bring by featuring, with permission, personal stories in the bulletin,

• recruiting and training volunteers who are committed to helping individuals and families affected by ASDs find acceptance,

• creating an inclusive music class that is designed to get children with and without autism to play together, building acceptance  from the roots on up,

• establishing ways that individuals with ASDs can volunteer in high status roles within the faith community, showcasing their abilities,

• helping established groups or ministries within a faith community to include individuals with ASD,

• creating and utilizing adaptive materials to meet diverse needs in religious education,

• training volunteer religious educators in methods that will accommodate children and adults with ASD and other disabilities,

• supporting volunteer religious educators in their efforts to accommodate,

• creating an ecumenical Bible study for adults on the autism spectrum and with other disabilities,

• establishing a parent support group that meets at one’s house of worship,

• convincing one’s house of worship to employ individuals with autism, purposefully becoming a model for encouraging business owners within that faith community to do the same.

Hearing that one house of worship has been able to accomplish all of the above in five years, hearing the steps taken and being able to ask questions about the process will hopefully help attendees to consider building similar programs in their own houses of worship.