Hospitable Church Pilot Application

Hospitable Church is a grant-funded pilot program initiated by Asbury Theological Seminary. With the Hospitable Church Certification, Asbury Seminary seeks to equip alumni churches with the tools needed to train pastors, leaders, and congregants on the needs of neurodiverse and/or special needs children and their families within their communities and develop a hospitable environment for them within their church Body.

Asbury Seminary will also develop a limited-screen, sensory-rich, tactile, visual, and embodied worship and prayer program focused on children with special needs (but one that will easily integrate all children). Further, because we know that a strong faith community “can reinforce synaptic pathways as neurons fire together and wire together in healthy, faith-nourishing ways” we will incorporate intergenerational experiences of worship and prayer to fully engage the entire life of the congregation in the process. All pilot churches will receive free training, four years of curriculum, and stipends for various portions of the program.

The Biblical basis for this program will center around three core areas that we will define as a Ministry of Belonging, Presence, and Hope. Our Strategic Plan and Biblical Rationale can be found here.

Mission and Vision:
Mission: Our purpose is to equip the Body of Christ to create a thoughtfully informed and profoundly hospitable community into which neurodiverse and special needs children and families belong.

Vision: Our vision is twofold. First: Churches will be made hospitable places for families with neurodivergent and special needs children to dwell before they ever step through the doors – this will require a time of deliberate preparation on the part of the congregation. Second: We will develop a kingdom-minded, research-based children’s program rich in Wesleyan theology that believes the grace of God is actively working in all people. One that specifically targets the spiritual formation of neurodivergent children and children with special needs. We will start with those on the margins, put them at the center, and build a limited-screen, sensory-rich, tactile, visual, and embodied worship and prayer program that will meet the needs of all children and be fully integrated into the life of the church.

If you would be interested in taking part in this pilot program, please fill out the form below with a brief explanation of why you would like to become a Hospitable Church: