MHS Association & Anabaptist Disabilities Network Receive $1.2 Million Grant for Accessible Children’s Worship Initiative
“All IN: Immersive Worship for Everybody” project will increase involvement in worship and in the faith community.
MHS Association has received a grant of $1,249,800 from Lilly Endowment Inc. The grant will enable Anabaptist Disabilities Network (ADN), a member organization of MHS Association, to establish their collaborative learning project, All In: Immersive Worship for Everybody.
The project is funded through Lilly Endowment’s Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative. The national initiative aims to support faith-based organizations as they help children grow in faith and deepen their relationships with God.
“MHS Association is honored and thrilled to partner with ADN on this innovative program,” says Clare Krabill, MHS Association COO. MHS Association staff and members will participate in a joint project steering committee with ADN staff and board members to provide input and oversight.
“All In: Immersive Worship for Everybody” is a collaborative learning project for congregations that emphasizes the importance of community-oriented faith-formation. It will encourage worship practices that involve all generations and abilities, such as communal art projects, dramatic reenactments of scripture, songs and liturgy that can be learned with repetition, and other embodied, multi-sensory practices based on universal design. “All In” will advocate for the inclusion of children of all abilities in prominent roles, including leadership, whenever possible.
“All In” pilot congregations will receive training, resources, and consultation on topics such as childhood development, faith formation, intergenerational worship, disability inclusion, and facilitating congregational change. After the five-year pilot program, ADN will grow the number of “All In” congregations, replicating the trainings with other congregations committed to accessible and inclusive faith-formation.
“We are excited about the possibility of diving deeply into working with congregations to create worship services that are accessible to and engaging for children,” provides ADN Executive Director, Jeanne Davies, “especially children with disabilities, so that they come to know and love God and grow in faith.”
MHS Association and ADN are part of 170 organizations funded through three rounds of Lilly Endowment’s Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative, which was launched in 2022. The grants are funding efforts to help organizations that serve congregations in a broad spectrum of Christian traditions develop new and/or enhance existing programs as they design worship services and prayer practices that more intentionally and fully engage children.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff, and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports causes related to community development, education, and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. The principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of diverse religious traditions by supporting fair and accurate portrayals of the role religion plays in the United States and across the globe.
