Disability theology has long addressed the theological and social implications of disability, yet the perspectives of disabled individuals often remain secondary to external analyses by nondisabled scholars. This paper proposes a methodological shift, inspired by Womanist and Black Catholic theologian M. Shawn Copeland, to center first-person disabled perspectives as essential loci of divine revelation. In Enfleshing Freedom: Body, Race, and Being, Copeland foregrounds the Black female body as central to theological inquiry, arguing that “the body provokes theology. The body contests its hypotheses, resists its conclusions, escapes its textual margins” (Copeland, 2010, p. 7). Writing at the intersection of race and gender, Copeland provides a liberative, embodied epistemology grounded in five convictions: the body as a site of divine revelation, the relational nature of human existence, the creative diversity of the Triune God, solidarity as embodied practice, and the transformative nature of the Eucharist.
Building on and expanding Copeland’s framework, I center the disabled woman’s embodied experience as a locus theologicus and mediation of divine revelation, demonstrating that the disabled body provokes disability theology to expand its boundaries. I add two convictions to Copeland’s methodology: first, the experience of disability offers a profound encounter with the presence of God in and through the body. Living with disability reveals a tangible, embodied relationship with God—felt and experienced in the rhythms of survival, resistance, and flourishing. Second, the purpose of disability theology is the liberation of disabled individuals—not from disability itself, but from the societal and cultural shackles imposed by able-bodied privileging systems. Liberation, in this context, means freedom from oppressive perceptions and constructs about disability that marginalize disabled individuals and deny their full humanity. It also signifies freedom for creating spaces of belonging, agency, and flourishing, where disabled voices are prioritized, and their contributions are recognized as vital to both theological and communal life. If disability theology is to fulfill its liberative mandate, it must prioritize disabled voices while critically examining its inclusivity and scope.
By foregrounding the lived experiences of disabled individuals, this approach affirms the disabled body as a privileged locus for theological anthropology and liberation, thereby deepening incarnational theology, reimagining Christ’s suffering and solidarity, and challenging systemic ableism within faith communities. Further, this work enriches disability studies by demonstrating the generative potential of lived experience as a foundation for both theological reflection and social transformation.
Ultimately, this paper provokes disability theology to adopt more inclusive and liberative frameworks, honoring the revelatory power of disabled bodies and voices.
Disability theology has long addressed the theological and social implications of disability, yet disabled perspectives often remain secondary to nondisabled analyses. This paper reclaims the disabled body as a privileged site of divine revelation, drawing from M. Shawn Copeland’s liberative framework in Enfleshing Freedom: Body, Race, and Being. Copeland argues that bodies provoke theology, contesting its hypotheses and resisting its margins. Expanding this methodology, I center the disabled woman’s experience as a locus theologicus, revealing how the disabled body unsettles ableist theological constructs and redefines spirituality through survival, resistance, and flourishing. This paper ultimately argues that disability theology must center disabled voices, not merely for inclusion but for liberation—freedom from societal and theological frameworks that diminish disabled personhood. By foregrounding embodied disabled experience, this work deepens theological anthropology, challenges systemic ableism, and affirms disability as a revelatory source of divine presence.