A six session small group or personal study course
written by Revd John Beauchamp, Diocese of London Disability Ministry Enabler.

St Paul’s revelation in 2 Corinthians 12 is that God’s strength is made perfect in human weakness.
This course explores what this might mean for today’s church as we strive for recognition and value as an institution within a largely secular world.

Each of the six sessions has a course handout, to be used alongside the audio recordings or the leader’s script.

In six sessions you will explore

  • What disability is and how it affects people today
  • What the Old Testament says about disability and how the ‘image of God’ is reflected in our human embodiment
  • What Jesus says about disability and the Kingdom of God
  • How the early church understood disability through the teachings of St Paul
  • What the contemporary church is saying to disabled people
  • How we might establish a vision for the future as a church where all can belong on equal terms.

Your comments and reflections on this material are very welcome. Contact john.beauchamp@london.anglican.org

The resources below:

  1. Full course handouts – all six sessions in one document – for both the participant and the leader
  2. Participants handouts as six individual documents
  3. Leader’s script as six individual documents
  4. Audio recordings, to be used instead of the leader’s script

Full course handouts

Individual session participants handouts

Individual session leader’s script

Listen

Session 1: What is disability?

1.Introduction
01:39
2.Disability today
01:25
3.What is disability
04:38
4.Models of disability
06:37
5.Reflection
04:05

Session 2: Disability in the Old Testament

1.In God's Image
06:23
2.God looks at the heart
04:13
3.A disabled Messiah
02:42
4.Reflection
04:17

Session 3: Disability and the Kingdom of God

1.Jesus and healing
09:07
2.The disabled Christ
06:02
3.A new creation
07:04
4.Reflection
01:58

Session 4: Disability and the early church

1.The day of Pentecost
04:23
2.We are the Body of Christ
02:57
3.A thorn in the flesh
04:31
4.Reflection
01:59

Session 5: Disability and today's church

1.Finding grace
10:40
2.Commodity or community
05:31
3.Reflection
02:18

Session 6: An inclusive church

1.The limits model
07:10
2.The limitness paradigm
07:19
3.Conclusion
02:22