Autistic and Christian

ok discord is part chatroom, part skype, part twitch. it's a service where you can get a free 'server'. on each server there are several channels. Some channels are text channels, basically a chat room. some channels let you post images and text. Some are voice channels where people can talk to each other. Some let you stream video, say of yourself playing a game on your computer, possibly while people chat with you via voice or text.

What is discord? I have heard so much about it but I dont understand it

I'm aware of the apocrypha. I don't put much weight on it personally. Never seemed to ring quite the same when I read it as the canonical books if that makes sense. I suppose what I'm saying is the bible shouldn't be read uncritically. You don't just read every sentence at face value out of the context of the rest of the book. Go look up the Hebrew and greek. Do a bit of research on the history the people referred to lived in so you can maybe understand why things that feel odd to a modern way of thinking were done. That sort of thing.

I actually took Hebrew and greek as electives at university. I can't honestly say I remember that much though but I do remember enough to look things up in a dictionary with out much trouble.

That is a very Gnostic approach Peter, and one that I also identify with.  Are you familiar with some of  the non-canonical stuff too?  A touch of The Gospel of Thomas from Nag Hamadi perhaps - one of my special interests.  Different translations and iterations of essentially the same sayings, stories and proverbs can present themselves to me in very different ways - both from within the different parts of the Bible itself and some of the more fringe documentation that abounds on the interweb these days.....I find it all pretty fascinating.

I suppose so. Given the geographical spread though it would have to be an online thing. Like a discord group.

I admire you for being able to work on a PA system, I couldnt deal with all that stuff. Yes I have these little plastic earbuds I wear which help in church but sometimes I do miss how quiet my old church was with just one organist and hymnbooks 

As an autistic church sound engineer I can assure you that the PA systems are not turned up to 11, sorry couldn't resist a spinal tap reference, it is more a case that a lot of us on the spectrum are more sensitive to sounds and how they physically affect us. Most church buildings do not actually lend themselves to good mixing and playing stuff loudly anyway as an aside.

Reading through a lot of this it strikes me that there seem to be a lot of us that are in a similar boat, confused or alone and needing answers but unable to get the support we need through church because it is very NT and not full of autistic people.

I wonder if we could create some sort of support group for autistic Christians where we could talk about things and support and encourage each other?

Not sure if that made sense but its an idea ive had for some time 

I didn’t read the bible much until I got into eschatology as a teen. Looking at the bible as a code that had to be unraveled made a lot of sense to me.

not that I’m suggesting it’s in anyway for an elite. Just that the author clearly intended the reader to use their brain figuring out what it means. And indeed the Bible it self says as much.

Thats what I do, both in church and at work, but it always leaves me feeling burnt out and unhappy. I am slowly slowly learning to be more myself

Thank you for your reply, it really comforted me 

I'm just repeating what is preached, in the hope of encouraging someone who is struggling.  I'm not going to engage in debates over whether individual things the Bible says is right or wrong, or I could be here for years!  

Great idea 

Thank you for this post. It is good to know others find it difficult figuring some things out. There are only a couple of people I have shared about autism with and I guess the rest of the time and before I knew about it I just try to be like others.

Theology and faith are infinitely complex and personal matters.  It is not wise to try and traduce matters to a point of abject simplicity........."love your neighbour as yourself" is not a good tenant for individuals who don't treat themselves with care and love.  Many folk hate and abuse themselves thoroughly all the time. 

How would anything that helps you be considered sinful?  Some Christian get worked up about all sorts of vices that don't make sense.  Jesus said "love God and love your neighbour as yourself."  Everything that doesn't fit in with this teaching is nothing to worry about.

AuTriker said:

In fact when we are all changed, I would not be surprised if the result was closer to autistic than NT!

I will treasure this saying, it is such a blessing to me! Also I totally agree with you, I think it might be. I often read the Bible and then look at many NT Christians and the things they focus on and talk about and feel like they might have missed the point of a lot of it

Something else that comforts me, the Bible says we are all made in the image of God, so to my logic, maybe that means God is a little bit autistic too 

I found this thread today when I was feeling very overwhelmed and it has been such a blessing to me. As an autistic Christian I often feel very isolated and alone. Most autistic people I meet dont share my faith and most Christians I meet dont share or understand my autism. I feel like my faith and my autism are the two biggest charachteristics in my life and I cant find many people I can share them both with. Reading through all these comments and knowing there are so many other autistic Christians going through the same things I am is such a comfort. Struggling with the noise of PA systems, knowing who to talk to during tea and coffee afterwards, dealing with the feeling that people might think autism is something for God to "cure" , it makes me feel really comforted knowing Im not alone with this stuff. Also I often find understanding the Bible as an autistic person very difficult, does anyone else struggle with this? I feel like all the sermons Ive heard and books Ive read in my life are about how to follow God and understand his Book from a NT point of view and for people with an NT brain. I am still on my journey of how to figure out my own personal understanding of the Bible and my relationship with God with my autistic brain but I think I understand it has to be different to everyone elses if that makes sense 

I like the idea of a safe space as well. I have often thought of writing like a guide for autistic Christians too