Christians and other faith communities are being invited to pray for millions of people around the world with autism.
The prayer effort is part of Autism Sunday on February 8, the International Day of Prayer for Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.
Autism is a development disability that leaves people with the condition struggling to make sense of the world around them and relate to other people. Around one in 100 children in the UK are believed to be on the autism spectrum.
The Autism Foundation is appealing to church leaders to use Autism Sunday as an opportunity to highlight autism and pray for the more than 500,000 people in the UK and 60 million people around the world with the condition.
The Autism Foundation’s Ivan Corea said it was particularly important that governments provide financial help to sufferers of autism as well as support parents and carers during the credit crunch and recession.
The Autism Foundation is urging governments to provide better public services in the education and health sectors, including the provision of specialist speech therapy and respite care for all people with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.
Mr Corea, whose 12-year-old son is autistic, said, “Faith communities have a role to play in reaching out to the vulnerable particularly during the deepening recession.
“There are many more families below the poverty line. Some are in winter fuel poverty and have to decide between heating and eating. Even in Redbridge and Essex the homes of families with autism have been re-possessed by banks.
“We urge faith communities to reach out to the poor during the economic downturn.”
On the web: autismsunday.tripod.com
