A Personal Encounter with the Boarding Home for Adults with Special Needs

The personal impressions of Sergey Losev

at the St. Elizabeth Convent in Minsk, Belarus

TO ACCESS:

Divine Liturgy . . . a Mystery for the heart, not the head . . . 

the Body and Blood of Christ 

. . . the helpers . . . the Joyful Hearts . . . songs for the heart, not the head.

(Read the article. It’s not long.)

St. Paul the Apostle:

“But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.” (1 Cor. 1:27-29)

The St. Elizabeth Convent Monastery Choir:

 

 

Much can be accomplished by cooperative effort

From the website: One Green Planet

Blind an and His Armless Best Friend Have Planted Over 10,000 Trees in China, by Kate Good

About Kate Good and more of her work: About Kate Good

Their names are  Jia Haixia and Jia Wenqi.

For more photos of their work, from My Modern Met:

Elderly Blind Man and His Armless Friend Plant Over 10,000 Trees in China by Jenny Zhang.

See more posts by Jenny Zhang: Posts By Jenny Zhang

 

Charlotte Riggle: Maybe God Is Like That Too: A book to help young children see God

Charlotte Riggle reviews the Children’s Book When Charley Met Emma:

To Access:

Charlotte Riggle: Maybe God Is Like That Too: A book to help young children see God

Also on Charlotte Riggle’s Web Page:

Disability and special needs

An Interview with the Author:

Evangeline’s Kid Book Review

 

The Festive Play in the Boarding Home for People with Special Needs

St. Elizabeth the New Martyr

Thursdays and Fridays are special days – holy days–

for those who live in Boarding Home 3 for the mentally challenged in Minsk, Belarussia:

An Akathist Service on Thursdays, Divine Liturgy on Fridays,

Conversations with the Brothers and Sisters on both days,

and, very often, a Play:

To access:

Similar posts can be found at the bottom of the Convent’s Post. Explore the website and be inspired!

 

 

 

Three Traumatic Brain Injury resources

The following article, from the website Being Patient:The latest news on Alzheimer’s disease and brain health research, suggests activities which enhance brain health by improving our brains’ efficiency while also protecting them from decline into dementia in it’s various forms. At the end of the article, three other articles are suggested which expand on the use of music as brain therapy. To access: 

To Protect Your Brain, Science Says These Activities Help

Another online resource offers in-depth audio discussions of the many and various aspects of life with brain injury. There are 3129 episodes! To access:

Brain Injury Radio

One of the 3129 episodes; To access:

Surviving Head Trauma with Terry Smith

The third resource: The many, many results of a You Tube Search on Brain Injury; to access:

 You Tube: Brain Injury

Two of the many results:  

 

 

Autistic 12-Year-Old Speaks for the 1st Time after Venerating a Miraculous Icon of St. Nicholas in the Ukraine

. . . The miracle, recorded by witnesses, occurred on March 24 during a visit to the church by children and teachers from the local Pearl Rehabilitation Center that works with children with autism and autism spectrum disorders. On March 24, the Ukrainian Church zzzcommemorates St. Alexei of Goloseev, who is venerated as the patron of those who have autism.

St. Nicholas

 

Special prayers for those with autism are read in all the churches and monasteries of the Ukrainian Church on his day. St. Alexei was himself mute until the age of 13, when he was healed on the feast of Pascha by St. Philaret (Amphiteatrov), the Metropolitan of Kiev. . . . 

FROM THE WEBSITE OF “ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY”: AUTISTIC 12-YEAR-OLD SPEAKS FOR FIRST TIME AFTER VENERATING MIRACULOUS ICON OF ST. NICHOLAS IN UKRAINE

See also: A Miracle of St. Nicholas & “PAPA, IT’S HIM!” 

 

Jean Vanier: The Most Rejected Lead Us to God

“Jean Vanier, Savior of People on the Margins, Dies at 90” – Headline from an article in the New York Times

Jean Vanier has an enormous influence on my life.  Would I have chosen to be an advisor to adults with intellectual disabilities if I hadn’t read his book “Community and Growth?” Through this work and others Jean Vanier inspired me to make this my life’s work, my vocation, for thirty years and counting. I cannot fully express my gratitude to God and to Jean Vanier for this great blessing. May his memory be eternal.

from L’Arche International: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of Jean Vanier . . .

Jean Vanier was a founder of L’Arche, a worldwide network of community homes for people with intellectual disabilities.

 “. . . the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity.” (James 3:17)

Here is an article which only begins to convey Jean Vanier’s “wisdom from above:”  Jean Vanier, L’Arche Founder: “The Most Rejected Lead Us to God” Also: ‘Death will certainly be something really beautiful’: an interview with Jean Vanier

Other sites: The Website of L’Arche International * Jean Vanier: Official Site * Books * Relationship and transformation, by Jean Vanier

 

 

 

 

Apps for Students and Teachers with Special Needs

From the Website Educational Technology and Mobile Learning:

8 Apps for Dyslexic Learners, 9 Apps for Autistic Learners, 10 Apps for Autistic Learners, and 6 Apps for Learners with Writing Difficulties:

To Access: 30+ iPad apps for students with special needs

A Search yielded more resources pages on their website: Showing posts matching the search for Special Needs

Here’s another list to help with the choosing process: Sites to Help Select Apps for Children with Special Needs. To access the site:

Click to access sitestohelpselectappsforchildrenwithspecialneeds.pdf

Also Friendship Circle: Special Needs Resources

Public Orthodoxy: Teaching the Mystery of Baptism to Persons with Intellectual Disabilities

the baptism of Christ

This is an essay by co-authors Christina Lappa, Constantinos Mantzikos, Anastasiou, I., and Kyparissos, N. from the University of Thessaly, Greece, translated into English for the website Public Orthodoxy To access:

TEACHING THE MYSTERY OF BAPTISM TO PERSONS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES

originally from Academia.edu

(Lappa, C., Fr. Anastasiou, I., Mantzikos, C., & Kyparissos, N. (2018).Teaching the Christian Orthodox Mystery of Baptism to Adults with Moderate or Severe Intellectual Disability. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention, 7 (3), 64-74.)