Creating a Safe and Accessible Worship Space

Worship participants at Ripple Church add their salt to a bowl of water during salty prayers.

by Charlene Smalls and Angela Moyer Walter

As we reflect on Ripple Church’s first year of participation in the All In cohort, we look back with deep gratitude for how God is expanding our understanding of inclusive, trauma-informed worship. Disabled community members and children have historically been a part of our gathered life, but our time with the All In cohort has given us a language, framework, and intentionality to understand why we worship this way and how to ensure that ‘belonging for all’ truly means all.

We are continuously considering how to hold a delicate, God-honoring balance: ensuring that those who have historically felt included remain fully at home, while actively decentering traditional structures so that those who require different supports are not overlooked. The resources from All In along with practical insights from the Church Together book are helping us experiment with worship that honors everyone who enters the doors of Ripple Church.

A central realization of this past year has been the profound need for trauma-informed worship practices. Recognizing that almost everyone carries unseen trauma and that worship environments can inadvertently trigger those experiences as well as create space for belonging and healing. We have focused on creating a space that feels safe, accessible, and grounded.

In June and July we developed a series of worship services based on the “Who is God” resource from the All In Project. We sang songs from the All In play list with motions led by a woman with cerebral palsy, had worship flags and fidgets for the congregation, heard the scripture read and then used the call and response method to emphasize the lesson from the text. In July, in addition to the songs and call and response, rather than our usual circle question, a member of the All In team, James, led us in salty prayers. Pastor Charlene and Quadrel passed out salt to everyone and invited them to pray by naming one way that salt is present in their lives, through tears (sadness), sweat (work), or the ocean (healing). James closed the time with a prayer as Kareem stirred the water symbolizing each prayer collectively being offered to God. He said, “God, we lift our prayers to you. Prayers of sadness, gratitude, healing, and strength. Hear each of our prayers in the name of the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.” It was a deeply meaningful, visually rich time that allowed for both personal expression and communal connection.

Members of Ripple Church participate in salty prayers during worship.

In August, we had our annual church retreat in the Pocono mountains where we worship outside under the trees. Pastor Charlene invited us to pick up rocks and place them around the fire ring by saying, “each rock is different and unique, yet together they form a circle with no beginning or end, each rock is necessary to form our circle.”  It was a simple invitation where all could participate if they chose to and with vivid imagery and meaning for us to experience together.

It reminded me of a phrase from the All In retreat, “creating worship that is simple but intentional.” Oftentimes, God is not in the wind or the earthquake, but in the still small whisper. This is a lesson that children and adults with disabilities often help us remember. We hope to build upon the things we have been learning together to deepen the ways we can serve and worship God and continue to share God’s good ripples in our homes and communities.