RESTORING THE IMAGE - SPIRITUALITY, FAITH, AND COGNITIVE DISABILITY

There is a great deal of theological confusion within the church as to the level of participation people with profound cognitive disabilitie s should be allowed within the orders of the church. For some, sacrame ntal participation without intellectual comprehension is dishonoring t o God, while for others, lack of cognitive ability precludes any kind of meaningful spiritual life. This paper sets out some of the various positions and argues that faith and spirituality are not intellectual concepts, but relational realities. It is only in and through our rela tionships that any of us can learn anything about the divine. A relati onal understanding of faith and spirituality as outlined here offers t he church the freedom to avoid evaluating a person's spiritual life ac cording to intellectual criteria and to begin to find new ways of prea ching the Word to those who have no words.