The month culminates with a presentation by international scholar Léon van Ommen from the University of Aberdeen Centre for Autism and Theology. Dr. van Ommen will discuss his book Autism and Worship as well as reveal new research dealing with minimally verbal children with autism.

Dr. van Ommen’ presence signals a real need in the church as former Kanas City Star religion writer Bill Tammaeus observes in his Faith Matters news blog https://billtammeus.typepad.com/my_weblog/2024/02/2-14-24.html

Tammeaus notes “The history of how churches deal with people with special needs isn’t especially uplifting. Religious bodies have made lots of mistakes, but the good news is that some people are trying to teach congregations how to do better with all this.” NTS’ Nurturing Care is making strides to accomplish this goal for the Church of the Nazarene and Greater Kansas City.

Dr. van Ommen brings not only key insights to Autism but also the power of worship. Summarizing a longer interview with Dr. Dean Blevins, the director of Nurturing Care, https://nurturingcare.org. Dr. van Ommen recognizes worship really is not about our own personal needs.