Autism and the Image of God

Peter Burdon

I’ve written previously on disability and the church. I argued, following Dr. John Swinton, that the image of God in humanity is not a matter of relational or rational capacity, emotional intelligence, nor bodily autonomy, neither knowing nor acting, but being known by God as a royal child of God (see John 1:12-13; 1 Cor 8:3; Gal 4:9). We are God’s children by birth and new birth, not by ability or capacity.

This applies to those on the autism spectrum. Whether they are high functional or non-verbal. They are as much in the image of God as anybody else.

On this topic, I commend to you an episode from the Autism and Theology podcast where they discuss autism and the image of God. Very good!

Maybe you have a family member on the autism spectrum, with ADHD, or neuro-divergent, maybe not. But I promise that you will have someone on the spectrum in your church. It is worth then, knowing a little bit about autism, theology, and disability. This will make you more empathetic and informed when it comes to thinking about autism, the doctrine of humanity, and the church.

For people with autism, they are not to be included in the sense of being merely tolerated, instead, they fully belong with us and among us. We value their presence and miss them in their absence. Their uniqueness makes them who they are, their special way of experiencing the world and their special way of experiencing God furnishes our testimony to grace and adds to the richness of the body of Christ.

Also, check out the new episode about Autism and Euthanasia. The Netherlands and Canada are legalizing the availability of medically assisted dying for autistic people. This had me welling up with lament, fear, and rage! Oh boy, I was muttering some stuff in the car ride to work I cannot repeat. Look, I know it’s ethically complicated, but this stigmatizes autistics and normalizes their eradication under the moniker of “agency” and the mantra “death is better than dependency.”