Disabling Leadership - by Andrew T Draper & Jody Michele & Andrea Mae (Paperback)

About the Book

Churches must both consider the theology of disability and also become places where people with disabilities lead. Moving beyond paternalistic views of disability, this book encompasses cutting-edge theological ethics as well as practical examples of how church leaders and congregants can foster genuinely inclusive leadership teams.

Book Synopsis

Churches must both consider the theology of disability and also become places where people with disabilities lead. Moving beyond paternalistic views of disability, this book encompasses cutting-edge theological ethics as well as practical examples of how church leaders and congregants can foster genuinely inclusive leadership teams.

Review Quotes

"I have had the genuine privilege of seeing the team ministry described in this book in action. For Draper, Michele, and Mae the ministry of the differently abled is not aspiration but reality, and in Disabling Leadership they accessibly show how theologically rich and interpersonally rewarding such ministry can be. This book shifts the goalpost: mere inclusion of disabled people is not what the church needs. What it needs-and needs desperately-is the leadership of differently abled members of Christ's broken and gloriously resurrected body."

"In a post-ADA world, the church should be asking, Where is the disability community and more importantly where are the leaders among them? Sadly the church at large has missed this. Andrew Draper, Jody Michele, and Andrea Mae do a superb job of together explaining why shared leadership is vital to the whole church community. Being in relationship with these three over years has been an encouragement to me as a cerebral palsy man, to be able to reimagine what is possible in my own home church. I'm so grateful that now that this story and these insights are offered in this book!"

"To what degree has the church in North America been disabling leadership due to its presumptions that people with disabilities are more followers rather than given gifts of leading? Draper, Michele, and Mae here pull back the curtain on their own experiences navigating these questions as such persons called to ministry with other temporarily enabled individuals, and they invite the rest of us into a more welcoming community that envisions and embodies more inclusive ways of following in the footsteps of Jesus the Messiah in the present time."

"While many books on disability and church focus on welcoming people with disabilities as participants, Disabling Leadership articulates a crucial and distinctively theological framework for welcoming their leadership as well. Helpfully included is concrete guidance for communities who seek to live out the richness of the diversity of the body of Christ-including diversity of abilities and disabilities-in every facet of their communal life. A welcome addition to the disability theology conversation."

About the Author

Andrea Mae is a leader at Urban Light Community Church, where she serves on the church board and chairs the pastor/parish committee. She works in special education and advocacy for the disability community, presenting at multiple organizations and universities.

Andrew T. Draper (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is founding teaching pastor at Urban Light Community Church in Muncie, Indiana, and adjunct theology faculty at Anderson School of Theology and Winebrenner Seminary. He is the author of A Theology of Race and Place, Christian Mission and Poverty, and numerous articles on race, disability, and the church.

Jody Michele (BS in sociology, Ball State University) is a locally licensed minister at Urban Light Community Church and an independent consultant on issues related to disability. She has served on numerous boards, including the Indiana Governor's Council for People with Disabilities and the Muncie Human Rights Commission.