Resolution Regarding Caring Community (General Conference Mennonite Church, 1983)

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Resolution Regarding Caring Community (GCMC, 1983)

Whereas the Bible calls us to be a caring community as the covenant people of God,

Whereas we recognize that the wholeness of the Christian community requires the involvement of all people,

Whereas we have not always made it possible for disabled people and elderly to participate fully in the community and have often left them and their families to bear the full responsibility of their situation alone,

We pledge ourselves in the spirit of covenant renewal and justice to becoming the caring community according to 1 Corinthians 12, paying special attention to the needs of the minority groups in our midst, including the physically, sensory and mentally disabled.

We pledge ourselves to continue to make public these needs through our various communication and educational materials.

We commend the hosting and program committees for the efforts made at this conference to meet some of the needs of the disabled. We pledge ourselves to continue to break down the barriers that have hindered their participation, by seeking to hold meetings and conferences in accessible facilities, by providing accessible lodging and transportation, by facilitating communication for the deaf and blind, and by including disabled people and their parents in program activities.


Context of the Resolution

This resolution on giving greater profile to the needs of persons with various disabilities was approved without discussion at the end of the delegate sessions of the General Conference Mennonite Church at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in 1983.