Loma Linda, July 22, 2019. [CD-EUDNews. C.Cozzi]. The GC Health Ministries Department, in an effort to model inclusion, invited those representing Special Needs Ministries (SNM) to join and be partners at the Global Conference on Health & Lifestyle, held in Loma Linda, California, from July 9-14.
SNM participants from around the world accepted the invitation. Every morning, during the Conference, they attended various health presentations throughout the plenary sessions. In the afternoon, they could find, among the breakouts offered by the organization, those specifically addressing Deaf and Special Needs Ministries.
“The speakers we invited covered a broad spectrum of issues! This served as a mini-training event in that we sought to enrich the understanding of those leading out in Deaf and SNM” said Larry Evans, SNM coordinator for the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists.
In the presence of approximately 70 participants, some speakers also shared their personal experiences with their disabilities. This turned out to be more effective than any other presentation on similar topics.
In his general introduction, Larry Evans shared a dilemma titled: Lord, why me! Call someone else! Basing his presentation on the experience of Moses, who refused God’s mandate to save his people and, rather, asking the Lord to call someone else because of his “disability”, Evans explained why God is calling people to this ministry. This was a perfect example of how to feel responsible before a calling to minister in favor of God’s people with disabilities.
“Not all of us can minister in the same way in favor of people with disabilities; socialization is needed, but all of us can open the arms of love and respect [thus] giving a sense of acceptance to those that experience suffering and pain, mainly for the marginalized of the society,” Evans urged.
There are 7 ministries that animate this new department of the church. For more detailed information about them, see specialneeds.adventist.org
“Of course, nobody can care for these 7 ministries at the same time, but the invitation is to care for one or two, maybe more, and especially care to the best of our ability. The goal is that, even at the local level, nobody who suffers from one of these disabilities would feel separated,” continued Evans.
The church members are invited to be aware of the existence of one or more of these disabilities, to create an environment of acceptance and to move on to the action of welcoming and ministering to those that Jesus asked his followers to care for with love and respect.
After the introduction of Larry Evans, Jeff Jordan, GC associate to Possibility Ministry, presented his personal experience. “When I was young and attended the church, nobody could talk with me, I was the only Deaf person. So, I sat apart and read all the time. It was a boring time in the church until, one day, a lady entered the church and, after recognizing my need, started to interpret,” Jordan shared; this was the starting point of a journey that led him to become a pastor. Today, Jeff Jordan, besides the task at the GC, is pastor of Southern Deaf Fellowship Church in Collegedale, Chattanooga, in the state of Tennessee, USA.
Jordan remembered that, in the world, there are more than 400 sign languages, and among 300+ million of Deaf people, only 2% are Christians.
Based on Jordan’s experience, if all churches could care for those that are Deaf, there would be a greater possibility of accomplishing the mission that Jesus entrusted to all Christians about 2000 years ago, mainly in favor of those that are struggling with a disability.
The breakouts were divided into two sectors, one specific for the Deaf and one for the Special Needs.
Experiences more than theories.
In order to be more realistic when presenting such important topics, the organisers invited some people with disabilities to present their experiences.
A very touching story was presented by Espen Johnson.
“I’m here without research or scientific results, but with my personal experience,” Espen Johnson, from Wokingham, UK, introduced himself.
Espen contracted the Morquio syndrome in his childhood, and since then he had to learn to fight against the challenge of diversity in order to be accepted as a whole person.
Espen’s presentation began with a videoclip, which he produced himself, being a videographer; in it, he performed a story about his experience fighting with his pain. You can see the video on Youtube (www.youtube.com/user/WaistHighView). In this video, Espen is the mind and Morquio is the body, giving a touching example of how disabled people live daily with their disabilities, struggling not only with their body and the pain, but also with discrimination, prejudices, and rejection.
“People are disabled because society acts disabled,” Espen said. Example? When you enter a place, you feel unwelcome because of an architectonic barrier, and this gives a “disabled” status to the place.
Following Espen’s experience was the presentation of PossAbility, a free non-profit community outreach programme operated by Loma Linda University Health. Their goal is to provide support to veterans and those with permanent physical disabilities along with resources to stay active and healthy in life.
Cotie Williams, PossAbilities Director, presented the experience of Zimri Solis, a young man who was a victim of bacteria when he was born, which forced him to lose one arm, one hand’s function, and a leg. His presentation was a lesson on life.
Zimri, an adaptive triathlete performing brilliantly in different sporting activities, said, “I do not see myself as disabled, but rather capable of what I can do.”
Determination is the approach that helped him to accept himself and to be accepted by others, who are invited to see not his body but his determination.
For more information, see Zimri’s Facebook account.
Further presentations
During the three afternoon breakouts, other presentations enlivened this special time, allowing the participants to increase their knowledge and awareness on this unique topic.
Josef Slowik, SNM Czech coordinator and University teacher on Special Needs, focused first on a question: What can we imagine under special needs – what determines our attitudes to people with special needs and what models of approach can we apply towards individuals and groups with special needs in the major population (and also in a church) today?
The core part of Slowik’s presentation was based on real life-stories of persons with special needs who not only need some support, but who are willing to serve other people (in the church and outside) using their gifts and abilities.
Slowik introduced the concept of social inclusion as a model of human coexistence based on strongly Christian values. “Our church should be really inclusive, because it is a biblical model; we are created for that by God, and we are called to build an inclusive church community as a body of Christ,” said Slowik. “Our mission cannot be exclusively for only a part of the population, as our God is ‘the Lord for all’ (Acts 10:36)," he concluded.
Shannon Tricartin, Andrews University teacher, introduced her presentation by sharing her family’s experience. Shannon and her husband Terry were very active, especially in scouting, and they were great supporters of Adventist Pathfinders. That is, until the day Terry had a bicycle accident and lost the use of his legs. And there started a journey that brought the Tricartins to live their Possibility Ministry.
Tricartin described experiences of stigma experienced by caregivers and people with disabilities. She described how people are affected biologically, psychologically, socially, and spiritually. Finally, she concluded by challenging the conference attendees to eliminate stigma in their churches by first recognizing that “we all have a tendency to pre-judge or stereotype others and we can learn to stop this by practicing empathy when our church members share their experiences”.
Special attention has been also given to children. Linda Koh and Elsa Cozzi, directors of Children's Ministries at the GC and the EUD, respectively, presented the importance of caring for children with disabilities by starting from the education that must be given to children in general so that they can be more attentive, respectful, and without prejudice.
“If adults with disabilities live on the margins of society, then we can imagine the children’s struggles,” said Cozzi.
Koh and Cozzi sensitized the audience to be actors in preparing the next generation to make a paradigm shift to focus not on disabilities but, rather, on the different skills that everyone, including disabled people, can offer.
Particular attention has been given to the Christian Record Service for the blind. A service aimed to empower people who are blind to engage their communities and embrace the blessed hope.
In her presentation, Diane Thurber, not only informed about the activities that animate Christian Record, but invited participants with passion to take into account the great possibilities offered to successfully support this ministry.
This ministry for the blind this year celebrates 120 years of service.
“These two conferences provided a unique opportunity for the global leaders of Deaf and Special Needs Ministries to learn from each other. A team spirit was evident throughout the whole experience. Indeed, when we learn to “Think Possibility” our minds and our hearts see much more than disabilities. We see opportunities! This is what feeds the global movement and that is why it is changing so many lives,” Larry Evans said, concluding: “The world has taught us that a person’s value is determined by what they can do and devalued by what they cannot do. That kind of thinking not only hinders the ‘disabled’ but has limited the kingdom of God. Should the mission of the Church be limited by the way we look at each other? I don’t think so! We must seek to understand and not be molded by the values of the world. There should be no period after ‘disability’. Life should never be summarized as a ‘disability.’ In Jesus there are possibilities that exceed any disability. This is why we call our responsibility Possibility Ministries rather than Disability Ministries.”
The topics presented at the breakouts and SNM Global Conference:
· The theological problem of pain, suffering, and disabilities
· Having faith when faced with a lifelong disability
· A revolutionary SNM model Rise and Walk that is currently serving 3,000 individuals in various compassionate ways.
· Ministry for Children with Special Needs
· Ministry for the blind, “Seeing through the eyes of Jesus”
· Historical insights for Deaf ministry
· Deaf and health ministry
· Building relationships between deaf/hearing children with deaf/hearing parents.
· Parenting with an autistic child
· Starting and maintaining a Deaf ministry
· Keys to motivating and empowering the Deaf
