Accessibility goes well beyond ramps

By Dcn. Bill Burkel

	An Advent series on Catholic Social Teaching

In the late 1970s - a few years before I was ordained a deacon - my pastor asked me to start a weekly Communion service at a nursing home that specialized in people with cognitive disabilities. Or, as they referred to back then, "the mentally retarded" - or worse.

I was supposed to bring Jesus to them because it wouldn't seem right to have them join the community for worship. They might disrupt things and, besides, they wouldn't get anything out of it.

As time went on, I found myself drawn into this artificially-created community, making friends and finding a comfort level that I didn't believe possible. After all, people who grew up in my era didn't have much experience with people like them. They just didn't seem to be around.

The lives of people with cognitive disabilities have changed markedly in recent years. In Wisconsin, nursing homes and intermediate care facilities that cater specifically to people with cognitive disabilities have ceased to exist.

	A d v e n t
	• Other Everyday People, Everyday Faith articles
	• Other Advent articles

Rather, the people who were once separated from society now live in our communities in group homes, adult care homes and various forms of private residences. That means they are part of the community and consequently part of us, as they should be.

That also means that, even though we might not have a person with a cognitive disability in our own family, many do live and work near us, sharing transportation and community services and contributing to the community alongside people society labels as "normal."

All this raises a question. Where are these people when our parish communities gather for worship? How do we as Catholic Christians welcome them into our lives and into the lives of our parishes?

In the 1980s, the U.S. Catholic Bishops issued a statement calling for the inclusion of persons with all types of disabilities in the life of the church. The bishops told us we are a single flock with a single shepherd and that there can be no separate church for people with disabilities.

As a people who believe in the sanctity of life, we were reminded that all persons have dignity and should be allowed to contribute to the community. We were told that everyone, with or without disabilities, should be allowed to achieve the fullest measure of personal development possible and that our parishes should be accessible, a concept that goes well beyond providing ramps for our buildings.

We were challenged to see that our doors are always open and that we recognize and appreciate the contributions of people with disabilities in the church's spiritual life, seeing them first as people and enabling them to do the Lord's work in any way they can, rather than thinking they should always be the recipients of ministry - or worse, our pity.

I am blessed because of my association with people with cognitive disabilities. My office is in a building that provides jobs and day services for adults with cognitive disabilities, and I am able to associate with them every day. In recent years, I have been part of a team that also provides retreat experiences for them.

As we celebrate our time of Advent preparation, I suggest that we reflect on our willingness to allow everyone into our communities - and into our lives. Open communities are nothing if they are filled with people with closed minds and hearts.

(Dcn. Burkel serves at Prince of Peace Parish, Green Bay, and is a Katie Beckett Program Consultant with Aspiro in Green Bay.)