We recognize and affirm that all persons are made in the image of God and that all who are Christians are members incorporate of the Body of Christ.
Although some of us pursue our spiritual journeys within bodies with distinct disabilities and, as such, have gained certain gifts and special insights which are important to the vitality of the church, nonetheless we differ with the rest in degree, never in kind. All persons share the bond of pain and suffering; all persons have some form of disability, physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual. The quality of shared pain and joy is central to what it means to be a human being.
Jesus explicitly separated sin and disability. We proclaim this biblical truth that disability has no relation to sin. Further, because we are all made new in Christ, we proclaim that disability has no relationship to imperfection. We further affirm that all persons, whether disabled, temporarily abled, or differently abled, are equal before God and in the church and, hence, are both needed and welcomed to use all of their capacities of leadership in the total ministry of the Body.
Wholeness is the deepest need we all share, and the wholeness of the Body requires the participation of all of its members.
General Conference Webmaster: Susan Brumbaugh
PETS Creator: John Brawn
Petition Text: 22296-CS-71-D
1996 United Methodist General Conference