Mom Told She’d Be Sent to Jail if She Brought Autistic Son to Church
A Catholic priest has filed a restraining order against the parents of a severely autistic 13-year-old boy in an effort to keep him from attending the church in Bertha on Sundays.
Priest files restraining order against parents with “unruly” autistic 13-yr-old.
The Rev. Daniel Walz alleges that Adam Race’s unruly behavior endangers others who attend the Church of St. Joseph.
Race’s parents have ignored the restraining order, calling it discriminatory, and Carol Race, Adam’s mother, was cited by police and is due to appear in court on Monday for violating the order.
“He said that we did not discipline our son. He said that our son was physically out of control and a danger to everyone at church,” Carol Race said. “I can’t discipline him out of his autism, and I think that’s what our priest is expecting.”
Carol Race said it all started last June, when Walz and a church trustee visited the Races at their home address the behavior of Adam, who stands taller than six feet and weighs more than 225 pounds.
Watch the video here:
This isn’t a kid just making a few noises. According to the AP story, “Adam struck a child during mass, nearly knocks elderly parishioners over…, spits and sometimes urinates in church and fights when he is being restrained. He also… assaulted a girl by pulling her onto his lap.” When he started two cars in the parking lot, “people could have been injured or killed.”
The church has tried to accommodate, but the behavior has only become more dangerous. It’s not the boy’s fault, but his own parents cannot always control him.
I doubt that even Jesus would condone the enabling of such dangerous and disruptive behavior — posing great risks to others and self — in the name of “acceptance”. This is sloppy agape.
Someone can be seriously injured. The pastor has definite moral and legal responsibilities to protect everyone from harm. If some child or elderly person were injured, there would be a major lawsuit. “I was practicing inclusion” would not be a defense for reckless endangerment.
This isn’t general discrimination against all handicapped or autistic people. This is a case of a particular individual with dangerously out-of-control behavior. There is such a thing as rational discrimination; Adam will never be allowed to drive either.
In a perfect world, everyone would be welcomed everywhere. But if I had a highly communicable disease, say TB, I’d have no right to mingle in large crowds where I posed a serious threat. And I think Jesus would agree, notwithstanding that he loved everyone.
My right to inclusion ends where your rights to safety begin. Is it unreasonable to ask Adam’s parents to accommodate everyone else’s rights to public safety?
By: Redtown on May 20, 2008
at 1:34 pm
Wow!
What I really want to know is how this boy was able to START cars WITHOUT keys? Who is allowing THAT to happen!? That’s questionable.
However,Adam is not being managed. Jail isn’t the answer for mom, therapy is. For the entire family. If the church offered alternatives to facilitate the families’ attendance and safety for the church, yet the family refused, then the church is well within their right to say enough is enough.
There is something called order and it’s quite tragic that the family cannot work with the church to maintain balance and order for both sides.
If the article is accurate, it appears as if the church is trying to work the family and the family should return the consideration.
By: that neophyte weblogger on May 29, 2008
at 2:11 am
I dunno…something is wrong with this story. I’ll be watching for more subsequent “truths”.
By: that neophyte weblogger on May 29, 2008
at 2:22 am