The Hands of God are Disabled

This documentary poem places biblical narratives in direct conversation with the lived experiences of Disabled people, focusing specifically on the "hands of God." By centering this tactile imagery, the work highlights God’s own embodiment through the Incarnation, reframing the divine as one who navigates the world in a Disabled body (after Nancy Eiesland). Too often, scripture is weaponized to link Disability with sin or a "lack of faith." This poem combats such harmful associations, instead uplifting Disabled bodies as good, powerful, and sacred. It creatively imagines a present-day Jesus who bears the marks of his experience and asks: What if the resurrected Christ used a wheelchair? What if Jesus needed to communicate in different ways after the crucifixion? By viewing mobility aids and accommodations as holy, this work invites us to see the Imago Dei in the diverse, beautiful reality of Disabled life.