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autismtheology.bsky.social
Centre for Autism and Theology
@autismtheology.bsky.social
98 followers 21 following 100 posts
Resourcing Faith Communities
📚 Research | 🎙️ Autism and Theology Podcast | 📺 Webinars
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autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from an article on dyslexia and reading the Bible by one of our PhD researchers, Zoe Strong.

Read the article here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10....
"A shift in focus from words to engagement involves listening to dyslexic individuals so that the way in which the Bible is approached does not simply include people who are outside of the norm but allows dyslexic individuals to thrive through utilizing the way that they think and learn."
November 21, 2025 at 12:03 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This month on our CATChat episode Krysia, Ian and Amund (one of our Masters students) reflect on the Centre’s recent conference.

Listen here: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript here: share.transistor.fm/s/273054cb/t...

Recordings of the conference will be made available before the end of December.
November 19, 2025 at 4:00 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from an article by one of our PhD researchers, Christopher Barber, on autism and spirituality.

Read the article here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
Listen to our podcast episode with Christopher: open.spotify.com/episode/1STq...
"In a spiral of connecting with those most immediate to us, and being thereby resourced to connect with others and the world beyond, we aim to participate in God’s redemptive incarnation. By connecting with and sharing individual people’s cares, hopes and life-events, our goal is to heal brokenness, isolation and fragmentation. At the same time, we are led back to the source of connectivity, God, by whom we are renewed to offer that prayerful, spirit-filled and healing engagement with others."
November 14, 2025 at 12:02 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from an article by a few of our researchers which discusses the emerging field of autism and theology.

Read the full article here: ojs.st-andrews.ac.uk/index.php/TI...
"Autism Theology needs to listen to autistic people by reading their publications, whether they are academic books and articles, blog posts, or other ways in which autistic people express themselves."
November 7, 2025 at 12:02 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
In this month's episode, Ian talks with Jon Machnee from the Christianity on the Spectrum podcast about his insights into autistic experiences of Christianity
Listen: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript: share.transistor.fm/s/aab2606b/transcript.txt
Autistic experiences of Christianity with Jon from Christianity on the Spectrum. Jon is pictured.
November 5, 2025 at 11:46 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
There is still time to register for the Faith on the Margins conference taking place 5th-7th November!

www.abdn.ac.uk/dhpa/research/centres/centre-for-autism-and-theology/conference-november-2025/
November 3, 2025 at 2:55 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from one of our PhD researchers, Elizabeth Peach.

Read the full article here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10....
"the ways the participants described how they understand God, how they relate to God, and how they interpret what it means for them to know God as autistic Christians contribute to a growing body of accounts of autistic faith that suggest that autistic people do, in fact, have rich spiritual lives."
October 31, 2025 at 12:02 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Our online conference takes place next week on the 5th - 7th November!

Faith on the Margins: Engaging with Nonspeaking and Black Autistic Christians

See the full conference schedule and FAQs here: www.abdn.ac.uk/dhpa/researc...

Register here: forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...
Faith on the Margins: Engaging with Nonspeaking and Black Autistic Christians Online Conference 5th-7th November Register now!
October 27, 2025 at 12:03 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is by Krysia Waldock.

"Through asking questions of the leadership team regarding access requirements and needs, I was placed in the position of “impossible subject.”

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23312521.2023.2249452
"Through asking questions of the leadership team regarding access requirements and needs, I was placed in the position of “impossible subject.” I understood that through disclosure and advocacy, challenging how the way church was “done” excluded me; perhaps through a lack of provision, but ultimately through me not being heard or listened to."
October 24, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Frequently asked questions for our upcoming conference!

We hope this gives you all the answers you need, but please email cat@abdn.ac.uk if you still have any questions.

A full conference schedule can be found here: www.abdn.ac.uk/dhpa/researc...

Register: forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...
Faith on the Margins: Engaging with Nonspeaking and Black Autistic Christians FAQs Swipe to Read 5th-7th November, 11am-5:30pm (GMT) Is the event accessible? BSL interpretation will be available. Live captioning will be turned on. If you have any accessibility needs or questions, send us a message or email cat@abdn.ac.uk What if I can’t attend every session? You are welcome to attend as many or as few sessions as you can. All sessions will be recorded and available at a later date. Will I be able to engage with other attendees? You will have the option to turn your camera on. It will not be possible to message others directly on Teams but we plan to create a separate social space for attendees.
October 22, 2025 at 10:01 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from Léon van Ommen.

an autistic reader ‘froze’ during his turn to give the reading. The congregation had clearly learned to deal with such moments in patience, giving the person time, without fuss or intervention.

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1756073X.2022.2080630
A quote which reads: A clear example that I observed was when an autistic reader ‘froze’ during his turn to give the Scripture reading. The worship leader and congregation had clearly learned to deal with such moments in patience, giving the person all the time he needed, without unnecessary fuss or intervention.
October 17, 2025 at 10:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
In this month's CATChat episode, Ian and Krysia talk about autism, research, and public engagement. They discuss different ways that they share about their research publicly and in their communities.

Listen here: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript: share.transistor.fm/s/7e8b9193/t...
October 15, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Faith on the Margins Conference
5th-7th November 2025, 11am-5pm (GMT) 🌐

Register here: forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...

Day 1: Autism and spirituality
Day 2: Autism and communication
Day 3: Autism and ethnically minoritised communities

#autism #autismtheology #autismchurchity
October 13, 2025 at 2:44 PM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from an article by one of our researchers, Lizzy Peach.

"If non-autistic ways of showing love or welcome are valued more highly in our churches, this is a challenge to our understanding of what it means to be a follower of Christ."

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
October 10, 2025 at 11:03 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
"being able to practice social interaction within a safe space, within a fictional universe where there are no real-world consequences, presents great value to the autistic person."

ojs.st-andrews.ac.uk/index.php/TIS/article/view/2576
October 3, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
In this month's episode Zoe speaks with Rachel Terlop about neurodiversity and creative practice 🎨

Listen here: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript: share.transistor.fm/s/cf7d6555/t...

Find out more about Rachel: www.mrsterlop.com
October 1, 2025 at 9:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
"Empathy can be developed and discerned, even when there is a significant barrier in language and lifeworld. It can contribute to the kind of understanding needed for the task of practical theology."

aura.abdn.ac.uk/server/api/core/bitstreams/ad3d9948-b819-4693-a541-03668a0e9158/content
September 26, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Faith on the Margins: Engaging with Nonspeaking and Black Autistic Christians
5th-7th November 2025, 11am-5pm (GMT) 🌐

Register here: forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=rRkrjJxf1EmQdz7Dz8UrPzNFa7ljapNItVtbi6_NWAZUNkw1Qko3OUVTRVZNOTJWVjlITDhSSFpCNy4u
September 22, 2025 at 8:09 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from a chapter by Léon van Ommen and Krysia Waldock.

"...differences are not going away. But when non-autistic people get to know autistic people, they will also start to value autistic people and appreciate their gifts."

wipfandstock.com/9798385203321/pathways-to-belonging/
September 19, 2025 at 11:01 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Can you believe we have been running the Autism and Theology Podcast for 2 years?!

In this month's CATChat episode, we reflect on the last year and look ahead to what we have planned for this coming year.

Listen: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript: share.transistor.fm/s/e2c18781/t...
September 17, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
We had a fantastic time at the Ecclesiology and Ethnography conference in Durham last week!

It was a great opportunity to showcase some of the Centre’s work and hear from so many interesting scholars researching people and the church.
September 16, 2025 at 11:22 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from Henna Cundill.

God has always been attentive to those who feel divergent. While the media circus may be new, we can be sure that God has always been attentive to those with ADHD.

seenandunseen.com/paying-attention-adhd-it-really-just-fad
September 12, 2025 at 11:02 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
Faith on the Margins: Engaging with Nonspeaking and Black Autistic Christians
5th-7th November 2025, 11am-5pm (GMT) 🌐

Register here: forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=rRkrjJxf1EmQdz7Dz8UrPzNFa7ljapNItVtbi6_NWAZUNkw1Qko3OUVTRVZNOTJWVjlITDhSSFpCNy4u

#autism #autismtheology #autismchurch
September 10, 2025 at 11:01 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
This week's quote is from an article on dyslexia and reading the Bible by Zoe Strong and Léon van Ommen.

Read the article here: tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/23312521.2022.2041531?needAccess=true
September 5, 2025 at 11:01 AM
autismtheology.bsky.social
On this month's episode of the Autism and Theology podcast, Krysia speaks with Brian Irvine from the Centre for Research in Autism and Education. They discuss perceptual processing and faith.

Listen here: tr.ee/v1JmTAcjX6
Transcript here: share.transistor.fm/s/5e25cac1/t...
September 3, 2025 at 9:01 AM