HOME TRUTHS
Is there any room for us?
by Amy Lewis-Cooper
The Church has been known as a place to go to talk to God; for sanctuary and refuge; to meet people; to learn; or to just be. As I look into Medieval history, I learn about the need to have stained glass windows in churches and cathedrals, as well as doom paintings and other colourful icons.The Cross itself is a powerful visual symbol.
Most people were not able to read and write in Medieval times. That is why shop signs had pictures of what they sold or did, instead of names, and churches used paintings, stained glass and coloured icons to teach the majority who could not understand Latin.
Now that school education has become widely available in western Christian countries, have we forgotten the many who struggle, for whatever reason, to learn, and who do not fit into the current IQ system?
What if you have a ‘misfit’, an adult with a short attention span in your church? Do you make them sit quietly in a corner so that they don’t disturb the service? Maybe, he or she might wish for a way to know God too?
So often it is assumed that all people think and feel the same as their peers, but people with learning difficulties face a very different world of problems.
Of course learning difficulties cover a whole range – from people like me and many others who experience long episodes of depression and for a long time afterwards find it hard to concentrate, to people who are unable to speak or move.
Home groups are often the only solution for adult learning in a parish situation and if a home Bible study group suits you, that’s well and good.
If however, you’re an adult who learns best from, for example hands-on history, or hands-on science, and you are expected to “just grow up” or just sit quietly, you might think that maybe God is far too busy to bother with you.
Does this mean there is no place for us in parish life? We could perhaps have learning zones of exploration in church buildings which are colourful and hands-on?
Colour and play are not “just for the kids”. After all, seals were first invented to aid kings who couldn’t write their own names.
Church services are good for those who like to read a lot – who can read – but we need other options too.
I am a deep thinker, but to really engage concentration and to remember what I need to learn, I am sure a lot more hands-on visuals would be a stronger glue for my brain. After all, a well made stage set is more likely to be remembered than two people on chairs in conversation throughout a whole play.
The word ‘nave’ describing the body of a church building comes from the Latin navum meaning ‘ship’. Officers of sailing ships wore strange-looking hats to show rank and authority, much as bishops wear mitres.
Midshipmen, the lowest level of officer, were expected to know much about navigation systems and the meaning of flags and signals on ships’ masts.
But other ranks were not able to study, and depended upon those who could.
We are all children of God. I know brothers and sisters often fight, but much that happens in church hurts me.
I am 29 years old, but I don’t fit into a twenties/ thirties age group because I am not interested in talking about relationships, career, business or children.
It hurts that I cannot be with younger people without having a police check – the implication being that I could be dangerous to children.
It hurts that there is so much suspicion of women and so much attention to the different roles of men and women.
I am also very concerned about so many people like myself who are frustrated in their search for God by the practices of the churches.
Amy Lewis-Cooper holds the Bishop’s Certificate in Christian Education in the Anglican Diocese of Salisbury UK. Her ministries include Sacristan and Chorister.
