I think I have followed the Institute on Theology and Disability since quite early in their online presence. It has been a dream of mine for quite some time to attend a conference and participate actively. In 2020, I had a paper accepted and looked forward to presenting. The conference was canceled that year because […]
Author: sarah
Testimony, Interrupted
Kevin and I were friends for many years prior to our marriage in 2012. During the last few years he visited me several times in Indiana and went to worship with me at Park Place Church of God. I began uploading recordings of services to our Dropbox account so that he could hear the services […]
Blindness, Aging, and the Importance of Knowing Our History
In the blindness community, we spend a lot of time talking about our achievements. Most often this means acknowledging the development of braille 200 years ago, acknowledging the founding of whichever blindness organization we are part of, and discussing the contribution of whatever blindness organization we are part of to the passing of historic legislation. […]
Walking on the Water of Grief
In Mt. 14:22-36, Jesus comes to the disciples walking on water. This is an amazing thing; for who can actually walk on water! Peter, ever the one who wants to be just like Jesus, wants to try this out. Jesus encourages him to go on and try; and Peter does. But of course he becomes […]
What Hospital Staff Could Learn About Communicating From Blind Patients
I watched an interview with a doctor this evening in which he said that one of the most difficult things for him about all the COVID cases was that his patients could not see who was treating them. My reaction was to feel anger at all the times Kevin and I have been in the […]
COVID-19 and How We Grieve
One of the great laments I have read on social media concerns the impact of COVID-19 on funeral practices. Families will not be able to hold funerals for their deceased loved ones. In some religious traditions, the impact is deeper still than a funeral. I read a beautiful post from a nurse in Israel lamenting […]
The Land of Promise
When God called Abram, He said, “Arise and go to the land that I will show you.” No details were provided about how this journey would take place, where it would take him, how long it would take. It was simply a journey that would take him to a new land that would be his. […]
Straight talk about suicide and relationships
What I will write in this post may not come across as warm and fuzzy as I want it to, and it may be disquieting. I write from my own wounded place as well as my place of accountability in relationships. If you are in a delicate place and need nurturing, please know that I […]
Disability in heaven?
I read a post this morning at https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2019/31-may/comment/opinion/do-i-wish-to-remain-disabled-in-heaven#.XPDrp6yjJE5.twitter that is extremely thought-provoking. The post does an excellent job of summarizing the varied views of people with disabilities regarding the question of whether they want to have a disability in heaven. This is a question that people without disabilities often don’t take time to think about, […]