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January/February, 2004
“Helping congregations create environments that do not exclude people with disabilities is similar to the work of the ecumenical movement; each strives to eliminate barriers to understanding and communion between different bodies,” says Carolyn Thompson.
“ Each person, each denomination, has something to contribute. The picture is not complete, the church is not whole without the full participation of everyone.”
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| Thompson, “a tireless advocate and networker” for accessibility |
For her work in this area, Thompson is being honored by the Massachusetts Council of Churches with the Forrest L. Knapp Ecumenical Award this year.
Thompson is acknowledged for her “ecumenical commitment to the accessible church.” A member of First Church in Cambridge and a graduate of Episcopal Divinity School, she is held in high esteem by friends and colleagues within and beyond the Massachusetts Conference.
“ She has helped religious communities see the connections between theology, worship, and life together...(in) an inclusive church that welcomes all people,” stated the Council’s Nominating Committee.
The Knapp Award is scheduled to be presented to Thompson at the Massachusetts Council of Churches’ annual meeting Jan. 21 in the Sudbury United Methodist Church, a wheelchair accessible building. (See below for Mass. Council’s connection to the MACUCC.)
Thompson’s contributions are numerous. She serves on the national boards of both the UCC Disabilities Ministries and Wider Church Ministries.
She was the principal behind-the-scenes drafter of “The Accessible Church: Toward Becoming the Whole Family of God, Opportunities and Responsibilities for Ministry with People with Disabilities,” adopted by the governing bodies of both Massachusetts and Rhode Island State Councils of Churches. Thompson is active in the jointly sponsored Ecumenical Disability Ministries Network.
For “The Accessible Church” Thompson served as consultant and “ghost writer.” A committee of four people met several times during the year 2000 to discuss the objectives, content, and approach the document should take and give feedback on the text she drafted. Thompson also circulated the text to a number of individuals with disabilities who are active in their respective churches for their suggestions. It was sent to several theologians of the Orthodox, Protestant and Roman Catholic traditions for comment.
“ The Accessible Church” asks us to reflect on how our attitudes, expectations, behavior, styles of communication and architecture have created barriers for people with disabilities, and calls us to create environments where all can participate fully. Leaders of municipal and regional councils of churches and most member denominations endorsed the paper. Nearly 6,000 were mailed out in Massachusetts. The Rhode Island Council also sent them out.
She played an active role in helping prepare the recently-adopted interim statement on theology and disability, “A Church of All and for All” for the World Council of Churches, through participation in Council’s Ecumenical Disabilities Advocates Network (EDAN).
Thompson has done field work at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital’s Office of Pastoral Care and Interfaith Initiative with Persons with Disabilities, and has written liturgy and sermon materials for use on Access Sunday in UCC churches. Currently she is employed as Project Coordinator for the Commission for Persons with Disabilities by the City of Cambridge, Department of Human Service Programs.
Her pastor, J. Mary Luti, affirms that “Carolyn Thompson is a much-valued member of First Church in Cambridge for reasons that go far beyond her commitment to persons with disabilities. Over the years she has been one of the key figures who have helped us keep accessibility in the forefront as a challenge for the whole congregation.”
Luti notes that “one of the things I’ve appreciated most is the gentle but persistent way Carolyn has moved me to become more alive to the issues of the disability community by placing just the right article or study in my hands, or asking just the right question at just the right time.”