Nurturing Care Project to Host
“Day of Learning” on Autism
February 26, 2024, 9:00 am to 2:30 pm

Nazarene Theological Seminary, through its Nurturing Care with Children in Worship and Prayer project, is hosting a “Day of Learning” with Dr. Léon van Ommen, a liturgical scholar and author of Worship and Autism: A Liturgical Theology. In addition to his writings, van Ommen serves as senior lecturer in practical theology and co-director of the Centre for Autism and Theology at the University of Aberdeen.

Van Ommen says that faith communities struggle to include and minister effectively to persons with special needs. His book helps churches address this deficit and recognize the gifts and benefits that autistic people bring to congregational life. He is especially interested in how congregational worship can “create space for people who feel broken or go through a time of suffering.”

Bill Tammeus, former Faith columnist for The Kansas City Star, recently highlighted NTS’ “Day of Learning” on his Faith Matters Blog as a needed opportunity for Kansas City area churches and faith-based organizations to increase their understanding of how to minister to persons with autism.

The Day of Learning will take place on the campus of Nazarene Theological Seminary (1700 E. Meyer Blvd., KC, MO 64131) in the Koinonia Café on February 26, 2024, from 9:00 am to 2:30 pm. The event is free and open to all clergy and people interested in autism and the church. Lunch is on your own from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm.

To register, go online at nts.edu/day-of-learning. To view a 2-minute interview on autism with Dr. Léon van Ommen and Dr. Dean Blevins, director of the Nurturing Care project, click here. To learn more about the Nurturing Care project, click here.

The Nurturing Care project is the result of a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. and is working to help Kansas City-area churches cultivate spiritual practices that nurture neurodivergent children.

About Nazarene Theological Seminary

Located in Kansas City, Missouri, Nazarene Theological Seminary is a graduate school of theology rooted in the Wesleyan-holiness tradition. http://www.nts.edu/.