autism

Yours Truly on the “Parental Office” Podcast

Sep 13th, 2011

by Dan.

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I was invited by fellow Lutheran bloggers Joshua McNary and Brian Yamabe on to their new podcast, “The Parental Office,” a show dedicated to helping Christian parents train up their children in the faith. I think we may have covered 30-40% of everything we wanted to talk about, but there were some good moments in this episode of just under 38 minutes.

Topics we covered included: why supplement the weekly Divine Service, when one should start supplementing, how the Divine Service provides comfort to my child with autism, maintaining continuity among home, church, and the Church; and getting one’s kids to go along with the routine a parent wishes to set for them.

I enjoyed talking about it; I hope you enjoy listening. The episode is available on The Parental Office website.

Convo about Autism, Vaccines, and Guilt

May 11th, 2011

by Dan.

2 comments

Good discussion on Facebook with Frank and Matthew regarding autism and vaccine injury:

Frank:

What’s your take on vaccination and classically defined autism (not the broader definition where every kid who gets upset at the color of his happy meal toy is labeled as autistic)

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Sing the Faith by CPH

Mar 1st, 2011

by Dan.

2 comments

I’ve been trying to teach the twins on occasion the Small Catechism. Twin 1 could recite both a commandment and its “What Does This Mean?” after a few tries, but Twin 2 would only be able to recite the commandment.

A few days ago I downloaded Sing the Faith from CPH (iTunes for $7.99, CD for $6.99). The album has 67 tracks of pieces of the Small Catechism set to music. Each track is about a minute long.

For the eight-year-olds, Sing the Faith has been wonderful. Both girls are enjoying learning the music and are picking up the songs faster than I am. I’m catching them singing it on their own at other times, and they both ask me to play the album.

I’ve likely become too dependent on reading music. I’m also having a little difficulty because the rhythm that I used to speak to memorize the catechism differs from the rhythm of the songs. I also still have echoes of an older edition of the Small Catechism in my head.

The samples of the Sing the Faith Songbook list Cantor Phillip Magness as the composer on several of the pieces. He and other composers, if any, have done a good job. I thank them especially for helping my daughter with autism to learn the Small Catechism. Sing the Faith is an excellent resource for getting younger kids and special needs children to learn the Small Catechism.

Supreme Court Upholds Vaccine Liability Protection

Feb 23rd, 2011

by Dan.

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Reuters reports that the Supreme Court has upheld the federal law protecting vaccine makers from lawsuits that arise from damage caused by vaccines.

Adventures in Autism blogger Ginger Taylor says, “The world has just changed.” The Reuters article says that the Court protected vaccine manufacturers. These statements are not entirely correct.

The Supreme Court protected the government. At issue was the necessity for a law to mean what it says. We can’t have laws that, for example, promise that we can drive 65 mph on major highways but allow the highway patrol to pull us over for doing 55.

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Celiac Disease and the Lord’s Supper

Jul 11th, 2010

by Dan.

16 comments

A comment by Roger on another post leads to this topic worthy of its own discussion.

We have a handful of people in our congregation who are allergic to gluten (which seems to be on the rise today). Therefore, we switched to a gluten-free bread. Does this make for genuine communion bread? What if you were allergic to the skins of grapes used in wine and juice? Does Jesus know your heart or are you forever shunned by Him and the church? What if you were a recovering alcoholic and had put your trust in Christ above your trust in booze. It seems like it would only be wise to steer clear of ANY type of alcohol.

One of my daughters, of a seven-year-old set of twins, has been on a gluten-free diet which seems to benefit her. The diet has been quite the adjustment to the rest of our lives, as we watch what we eat around her so that she doesn’t want what she can’t have.

One day, most likely long before the traditional (how did that happen?) LCMS age of thirteen or fourteen, they will be able to examine themselves as directed by Scripture and be received into the congregation as full members through our Rite of Confirmation. No, Roger, the Rite of Confirmation is not mandated by the Bible, but it is a gift of the church to ensure a person doesn’t harm themselves in the Sacrament of Holy Communion.

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