Photo by Lee Depkin

MARIETTA—Twenty-five years ago, a Mass like the one Bishop David P. Talley celebrated at the Church of St. Ann July 26 may not have been possible.

The annual archdiocesan Mass of Inclusion marked a special celebration this year—the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

“This sign of our government, that all are welcome—all are included—and everyone has a right to be exactly who they are, we celebrate that, too,” Bishop Talley said as he opened the Sunday Mass.

President George H.W. Bush signed the act into law July 26, 1990, to ensure the civil rights of people with disabilities. The legislation established a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities. The act has expanded opportunities for Americans with disabilities by reducing barriers, changing perceptions and increasing full participation in community life.

A Mass to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act was celebrated July 26 at St. Ann Church, Marietta. Shown (l-r) are: La Salette Father John Gabriel, Deacon Nicholas Morning, Bishop David P. Talley and Kathy Daykin, director of deaf services for the Atlanta Archdiocese. Photo by Lee Depkin

The Mass was hosted by the Faith and Light community at St. Ann’s, which serves a spiritual purpose in the lives and families of those with intellectual disabilities, as well as by the archdiocesan Disabilities Ministry. The Mass was interpreted in sign language, and people with disabilities filled liturgical roles as greeters, lectors and altar servers. Faith and Light is an international ecumenical movement in which small communities made up equally of those with an intellectual disability and their friends and family members, especially young people, meet regularly for friendship, prayer and celebration.

In his homily, Bishop Talley used an analogy of a large chocolate cake with many layers.

“The icing for today’s party is the celebration of the Americans With Disabilities Act. It is the sweetness that brings us together. It’s the thing we want to taste first because so many here, for all of their lives and the lives of those they care for, worked toward this with prayer and fasting and writing their congressmen and women,” he said. “And this bill says that everyone here has a right to their place in this world.”

The top layer of the cake, Bishop Talley said, is Pope Francis, who calls everyone to serve as a missionary disciple of Jesus.

“It means to go out of yourself and your discipline and your longing, and love the one that you see. To be a missionary is to take Jesus and not keep him to yourself but give him away to everyone you meet,” he said.

The Mass included the baptism of Mariska, the sixth child in the Boutrolle family. She joins five brothers and her parents, who recently joined the ecumenical Faith and Light community and moved to Georgia from France. Photo by Lee Depkin

The second layer is Jean Vanier, the Canadian Catholic humanitarian and philosopher who founded L’Arche, an international movement dedicated to creating homes, programs and support for those with disabilities. He also cofounded Faith and Light with Marie-Hélene Mathieu in 1971 in France.

“Jean Vanier was moved by God after he finished a doctorate in philosophy to learn that he had to throw away his books and learn from those who didn’t have books but had life lessons to teach him,” Bishop Talley said. “And so he began to live in what we now know as L’Arche, where so-called able-bodied and so-called disable-bodied learn together, side by side, in a community of love.”

The final and largest layer of the cake, Bishop Talley said, is provided by an insight of Blessed Mother Teresa.

“We know that God loves us intimately and personally. But the thing that Mother told us is that God’s Son longs for us. He thirsts for us. He hungers for us. He thirsts for my obedience and yours: the gift of myself, the gift of yourself,” he said. “And when we satiate the thirst of Jesus by living a life of love then the kingdom is upon us.”

Faith and Light community is family

La Salette Father John Gabriel, a parochial vicar of St. Ann Church, concelebrated the Mass, as did Father Urey Mark, the new campus minister at Lyke House, the Catholic Center serving the historically black colleges and universities in Atlanta.

Little Mariska Boutrolle, 2 weeks old, was baptized during the Mass. Her parents have recently become involved in the Faith and Light community at St. Ann. Anne-Laure Boutrolle said they became involved after moving to Georgia from France. She is delighted that her children, Mariska’s five older brothers, have met new friends through the group.

“It’s important for us and for our kids to encounter other kinds of weakness because we all have weakness. Faith and Light has really opened all of our hearts,” she said. “We are also welcomed just the way we are. We don’t have to pretend to be something we’re not. For us, our families are far away. This is a new family.”

Following the closing prayer, members of the Faith and Light Community at St. Ann gather in front of the altar to sign and sing their community song together. Photo by Lee Depkin

Father Mark, who recently moved to Atlanta from St. Louis, Missouri, said he came to the Mass because he has dear friends who have eight children—three with special needs.

“I find that I connect with (these children) so well,” he said. “I feel a need to learn more and to be of support to this special community.”

Carol Cuviello, whose daughter, Anna, has special needs, feels grateful to those who paved the way for her.

“I was listening to Bishop Talley. Anna is 20. I’m so thankful for the people who did all this before the Americans With Disabilities Act. There are so many things available to her because of it,” she said. “This act says, yes, you’re different, sure. But you’re included.”

And Cuviello knows her daughter has made a strong impact in her young life.

“I’m a firm believer that God doesn’t make mistakes. He doesn’t make junk. These people are here for a reason. We can learn so much from them. I think of all the lives Anna has changed and will continue to change. I’m just so thankful she has so many opportunities because she has so much to offer.”