This site is simply one person’s effort to bring together disability resources for Orthodox Christians and those interested in Orthodox Christian offerings concerning disability. Perhaps one day a team of Orthodox Christian scholars and professionals will put together an official Orthodox Christian website toward this end. But until that day, I offer this site, with the blessing of His Grace Bishop Thomas. It is not comprehensive; it is merely an effort to begin addressing the need for an Orthodox Christian disability resources website. Lord have mercy on me, a sinner, for my omissions and mistakes!
A Master’s thesis, completed in 2007 under Father Ted Pulcini’s direction, in association with the Antiochian House of Studies/Balamand University in Lebanon: St John Chrysostom and the Socialization of Persons with Developmental Disability: Patristic Inspiration for Contemporary Application
The Thesis led to this weblog. Here’s the story: Arms Open Wide to Persons with Disability
Here is my personal apologetic for the Orthodox Christian faith: Impelled by the Scriptures into the Orthodox Church
To Him whose arms remain ever wide open, for persons with disability as well as for all, the Lord Jesus Christ, together with the Father Who Is from everlasting, and the All Holy, Life-giving Spirit, be glory, honor, worship, and thanksgiving, unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Arms Open Wide 
Good morning!
I am sharing information about the plans we have to take our mission work – educating the public about disabilities via the radio show I host, as we embark on a year-long road trip across the U.S. in an RV. The amazing thing is we don’t have an RV – yet nor do we have the funds to go – YET. But God’s ways are higher than our ways.. and His timing is perfect. I am praying for miracles as the time approaches to 2007 – when we want to leave on the road tour.
Please keep me and my son in prayer as we stand in faith holding on to HIS promises.. as I know God will make a way! Thanks for agreeing with us in prayer. Please share information about the radio show going on tour with your congregation.
God bless YOU!
Monica Moshenko
The countdown begins…only a month away!
DisAbility News & Views Radio will embark on an exciting new venture on called “Takin it to the Streets”. We will be taking the radio show on the road across America in an RV in January 2007 to meet people young and old, in small towns and big cities to hear about disability issues in your area. We will be producing a documentary and book published after the tour is completed about the experience!
13-year old son Alex, diagnosed with a high functioning form of autism called Asperger Syndrome, hosts his own radio show, Al’s Wrestling Talk. He will be interviewing wrestling fans across the country too!
We are now offering LIMITED sponsorship opportunities to businesses that provide products and/or services to children and adults with disabilities (including restaurants, travel agencies, hotels, car/van rental agencies, therapy, cell phone, computers, service providers and organizations) to join us on this amazing year-long venture from Buffalo, New York to Los Angeles, California on the road! As a sponsor of DisAbility News & Views Radio, “Taking it to the Streets”, you will be reaching an untapped market of thousands!
For more information about sponsorship opportunities, including sponsorship of Class A RV, call Monica for at (716) 522-9185 or email monica@disabiiltynewsradio.com
DisABILITY News and Views Radio Show
Sponsored by
PEOPLE INC
http://www.people-inc.org/
Autistic Services, Inc.
http://www.autisticservices.com
Please show your support of our sponsors and mention you heard about them on
DisAbility News & Views Radio Show!
Monica Moshenko, Host
DisAbility News & Views Radio Network
http://www.disabilitynewsradio.com
Our TALK makes a difference!
(716) 522-9185
“How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these.” George Washington Carver
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Mothers of disabled children often amaze me. I’ve checked out the websites and this is definitely legit, worthy of support. You know, I wouldn’t be offended if some Orthodox Mom looked at my website and decided to do better. But I will also continue to what I can in fidelity to Christ.
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I only stumbled across your site. It is very encouraging to discover a voice calling out in the blogoshpere offering “Patristic Inspiration for Contemporary Application” — all the more so to have it in dialogue with Disability Studies.
Scott Rains, D. Min.
The Rolling Rains Report
http://www.RollingRains.com
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Hi! I didn’t know how to respond to your post on my site…Sure! Re-post away! You can put me on the resources, too!
Thank you!
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Thank you so very much for your work on this blog and the sharing of these resources. I work for an organization in Atlanta, GA called the Bobby Dodd Institute http://www.bobbydodd.org. The program I direct here is called the Interfaith Disability Connection. I would love to talk with you about our work and get your advice about adding links to the best Orthodox Christian resources to our site. The web site for the program is http://www.interfaithdisability.org. Please be in touch if you’re interested.
Be Well,
Mark
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I am a concerned christian and I am involved in upliftment of poor and low paid workers in South Africa. I give training to them and assist with upliftment. I have given courses in basic money management, HIV awareness, Basic first aid, workplace safety, home safety.
I am looking for material that I can use for basic life skills for adults who are working, but has very low incomes, and maybee a look at basic money management from a different perspektive. Most can read and write and understand english.
Do you have any material or can you refere me to an organisation please. South Africa and the rest of Africa needs this. We are often limited with the time that employers will allocate for this.
Thank you
Pieter Herbst
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Hello,
According to the comment form at my blog, you left me a comment that you were uncertain about Senator’s McCain’s stance on torture. I wanted to share my response with you, but couldn’t find an e-mail address, so I hope you won’t mind me posting here:
McCain says he doesn’t want to torture, but then President Bush still claims we don’t torture nor have we ever tortured. In February, Senator McCain voted against a bill that would have limited all government agencies to the techniques listed in the Army’s Interrogation Field Manual. He urged the President to veto the bill because the CIA needed the freedom to pursue “enhanced interrogation techniques.”
SInce these techniques are secret, perhaps Senator McCain doesn’t believe they include torture. Given the Administration’s past definitions of torture that appear to exclude anything short of actually killing the prisoner, I find this VERY unlikely. I think secrecy invites abusive, torture like behavior and therefore, I believe McCain has abandoned his commitment. This breaks my heart.
Source:
Daily Dish
McCain: Against Torture, But
14 Feb 2008 10:05 am
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/02/mccain-against.html
This source includes McCain’s full statement on the bill.
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I was very interested to read your blog. I work for St Gregory’s Foundation, which is a small charity working with various Russian organisations that help the poor, disabled or socially disadvantaged.
Our most long-running and important partnership is with a parish in Kondopoga, Karelia. Although the parish there was re-established only in 1991 with very few resources, they put serving the poor at the heart of what they were doing from the very beginning. What’s so exciting is to see how the church has grown as people are drawn to this community living in such a different way from the world around. And for those that wish to really enter this life, there is always a service – washing patients in the local hospital who have no family to perform this basic care, helping with the large children’s programme, cooking for the homeless. They have had disabled adults working in their icon workshop and give others who are broken by alcoholism a new chance working in their kitchen garden, carpentry workshop or sawmill. Disabled children from the local institution (some of whom may simply have diabetes, but are denied an education because schools will not take responsibility for their care) visit regularly for tea and activities.
Many Christians from the UK have visited, or simply receive regular news from Kondopoga, and have found the parish a great inspiration. I wonder whether you might add a link to our site http://www.stgregorysfoundation.org.uk, where there is more news about their work, as well as about our physiotherapy programme which provides more specialist care for disabled children helping them towards independence.
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Respected Sir/Madam
Greetings to you in the wonderful name of Lord Jesus Christ.
Got your organization profile while surfing internet and wanted to know whether your organization could help an orphanage
This orphanage, located at TamilNadu S.India, and helps them to achieve variety of their goals in 2009; this orphanage is a warm and caring center for the destitute and neglected children. Strives to nurture, protect and care the destitute children who are left in the streets and also children from poor and broken families. Its purpose is to promote the total development of children through loving care in a homely atmosphere with adequate nutrition and healthy social interaction and to educate all children till they are old and mature enough to venture out independently.
The Home was started in the year 1967 with 200 childrens (boys&girls)
All children above the age of 3 years go to school and children below 3 years are taken care of by Home In charge
In recent years the strength of the children’s has undergone due to insufficient funds in hand,help them to attain their aspiration to give more education to orphan childrens.
God bless.
Ps : Visit our orkut profile(http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Profile.aspx?uid=4095746740797912663) for pics
-MinorKunju
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Good afternoon and happiness to You !
Please, help them.
All of them two are invalids and all of them need medical treatment and support.
We believe, that there are still hearty people, for whom the grief of another man is not means for action PR.
Help them anyway you can, if you can of course.
At least write them a letter with warm and kind wishes, so that they will be able to believe, that somebody thinks about them.
That means a lot for them too. Wish them health, happiness and well-being.
A kind word needs everyone.
We are passing by another man’s trouble, and then complain when a trouble comes to us.
This is a real situation and a straight appeal to You, as to a Man.
You make the destiny of that girl and her father invalid yourself.
Have mercy on them, like Lord has it on You.
We beg Your pardon, but if You want to help this family, call:
+7 (3812) 673907.(Speak only Russian)
Ask, what You are interested in, to have no further doubts.
We ask You to write your answers only on adresses, specified in the end of the letter.
This appeal, written by the team students, is from Omsk.
We are united by the one goal: to make a kind act, to find money for medical treatment of ill girl Maria and her father are invalids.
“Asking from you – give” – the Bible says.
But many ones try to take away the last from those, who ask.
But the Bible tells, that even the dogs have crumbs from a table of the master.
Is this ill girl and her father invaid are worse than the dogs?
Do they deserve slow death from their illnesses?
The cruel world, hard human harts, indifference to the grief of the other man is what we clash with during our searching for money for this family.
But, nevertheless, we also meet kind and sympathetic persons.
Several times we received positive answers.
The people, who wrote them, have found for this family not only warm words,
but also sent some food products, vitamines,some clothes for Maria, school accessories.
Sometimes they send some money – 20, 50 dollars.
But the precipice between the good and the bad is still great.
Unfortunately, not in favour of good.
If you can somehow help them, do it, please. 100-300 dollars,
any summ you can spend, or if you can, please,
inform us about the adresses of organizations,
which really make assisstance to such poverty-stricken and ill people like theses ones, in practice.
If You know some foreign languages, please, translate the essence of their problems as You see it from this letter, and send it to us, so that we’ll be able to search for help in another countries.
They need a hudge amount of money for medical treatment for all two of them.
We comprehend that not everyone can help an ill child, because she’s not yours. But if mercy and kindness live in your heart, please, help them, anyway you can.
If you have a possibility, please, place the information about this family in Internet, the links are below and in the end of the letter:
http://www.komelagina.narod.ru/index_en.html
Or you can send some medicine, vitamines, preparations for immunity, some biologically active additives – everyhting which can help in recovery.
Or it can be some school acseccories, second hand clothes for the girl, food products.
They are sincerely grateful for any help.
If you have some old toys, and clothes – send them, they will alter clothes,
or if it will not suit at all, they will give it into the local children’s hospis.
We sincerely believe that there is mercy in the world.
And we want to believe, that You’ll have a hand in the destiny of this girl and her father invalid.
Here’s their adress:
Komelyagin Leonid and Maria.
y. 20 n/c – 51 A,k- 24.
Omsk – 53.
Russia.
644053.
Home telephone: +7(3812) 673907.(Speak only Russian)
Donations accounts:
For: SBERBANK Zapadno-Sibirsky head office, Omsk, Branch 8634/0195
Account wich institution: SWIFT: SABRRUMMTN1
Account number:42 307 840 6 4500 0334041
Name: Komeliagin Leonid Ivanovich.
Details of payments: Donations for Medical Treatment.
Or transfer Western Union for Leonid Komeliagin-Omsk.Russia.
And send number transfer in e-mail:
leonkom@pisem.net
Faithfully yours team students – Evgeniy Filippov, Stepan Shpeht.
God will reward you for your kindness and mercy.
P.S.
In Russia they say – do not offend the poor.
We ask for the two poor. On the file You can read about their diagnoses.
Maria metabolism is broken from excessive acceptance of medicines, she’s very plump.
We ask you to send clothes of XL – XXL sizes.
lemk@rambler.ru
leonkom@pisem.net
leonkom@mail.ru
Thank you very much for your mercy.
And let God reward You for your generosity and keep you save from any misfortune.
http://www.komelagina.narod.ru/index_en.html
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Dear William,
Can I please get your contact information so I can send you updates on FOCUS North America.
We have a new Podcast with Fr. Chad Hatfield of St. Vlad’s and a press release on OYO becoming apart of FOCUS North America.
http://www.FOCUSNorthAmerica.org
Thanks,
Jacob Lee
Web Admin
jacoblee@focusnorthamerica.org
949-328-0122
FOCUS North America
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Thank you so much, Great information… You keep writing and I’ll keep reading.
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Bill, I’m with Judson Press, publisher of Autism & Alleluias, an inspiring and honest new book by Kathleen Deyer Bolduc. From April 1-6, Kathy will be taking a “virtual book tour” and based on your blog, I thought (and hoped!) you might be interested in participating.
There are a number of ways for you to be involved. You can choose to:
Review the book on your blog
Feature an excerpt from the book
Host a written Q & A with the author
Invite Kathy to guest post on your blog
If you’re interested, I’ll be happy to send you a review copy of Autism & Alleluias, which has been enthusiastically endorsed by recognized experts in the field of autism and disability ministries. You can read the endorsements on our website. Thanks for your time!
P.S. If you want to participate, please email me with your mailing address.
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