I regret what I did…
“I regret what I did years back with my child born with a disability. People told me she was a devil child and I believed them. They told me to take her to the witch doctor to remove the devil from my child’s life. Through the process, she died. I did not know then what I have learned today, that she is a full human being made in the image of God.”
This is the stunning testimony of an elder in a church in West Africa during a recent “Theology of Disability” workshop. The hard reality in much of the developing world is that - Children. Die. Every. Day. Just because they have a disability. Not die of natural causes as a result of the disability… Die because they are killed. Or starved. Or “treated” by witch doctors.
But before you judge, follow the logic. Imagine that because of a lack of education, or a lack of Biblical teaching, or the collective belief of your entire community you TRULY believe that this child born to you in some “abnormal” state is a demon. You really believe that. Can you imagine how terrifying that would be? And think about it – would YOU want a demon living in your house?? Yeah – me neither. And so, out of desperation, not knowing how in the world this demon made it into your womb and now into your house, but knowing that above all else, it MUST leave, you do the logical thing – you get rid of it.
This is why we do what we do. This is why Biblical teaching about disability is SO important. Lives are at stake!
Through our Theology of Disability workshop, pastors and ministry leaders are invited to examine the common thinking of the society around them and their own thoughts, and hold them up to the light of Scripture, sorting through what is Truth, and what is lies. In the participatory sessions, we discuss that every human being is made in the image of God – ALL of them, regardless of what they look like or their ability or disability. We also look at the way that the Fall in Genesis broke 4 critical relationships – man and God, man and man, man and self and man and creation – but that Christ’s death on the cross was to reconcile ALL THINGS back to God. (Col. 1:19-20) More than just bringing salvation, Christ’s blood repairs ALL of these broken relationships, and that true wholistic ministry must address all of them, not just one or two, for a person to be made whole. A person with a disability must not be seen just as their disability, but as an Image-bearer who needs to be treated as a whole person. We look at various causes of disability and attitudes that are common toward people with disabilities, particularly in a Majority World context, sorting through what is true and false about various ones. And we examine Jesus’ own ministry among people with disabilities, and how His example of identification with those who were marginalized should inform our own actions. The results of this workshop are always profound, as people wrestle with what they have always been taught to believe and hold it up to the lens of Scripture.
In the same workshop referenced above, another woman said, “I have a confession to make to this group. I am a Christian, but I have not been friendly or kind to people with disabilities before hearing these lessons.” Another man said, “I never knew that we should even bother witnessing to people with disabilities, because the Bible says that anyone who limps may not preach the Gospel.” Still another man admitted that he needed to rethink how he responded to his aunt who lost a hand during the war. His aunt was a kind and thoughtful woman who liked to help people. Often when he was carrying something heavy on his head, she would offer to help him get it down from his head and set it on the ground. He would never let her help, thinking it would be too challenging for her with one hand. But through the sessions he realized that by not allowing her to help him, he was robbing her of the dignity of helping and of mutual meaningful relationship in the family.
These wrong beliefs permeate even into the Church, leaving people with disabilities without access to the Gospel. The Truth must be taught. Because knowing the Truth will set people free.