Towards an inclusive spirituality: wholeness, interdependence and waiting.

In this paper I want to tread a careful path between spirituality as something to be examined and spirituality as something to be experienced. While we need knowledge, the relationship between spirituality and disability exists in the experiences of those concerned, and should not be reduced to purely analytical categories. This leads me to an examination of some of the contemporary uses of the terms spirituality and disability. This is the inclusive part of the title. The paper will examine the cult of perfection as it acts to stigmatize disability. This is the wholeness part of the title. I will also examine the concept of dependence. In my view there is a need to rehabilitate this concept. This is the interdependence and waiting part of the title. What has all this to do with spirituality? It has to do with the integrity of the human person as an essentially spiritual being.