Do Beliefs Matter? How Disability Theology Can Inform the Belief-Practice Gap

Abstract Topics related to faith and disability have received growing scholarly attention in recent years, yet the relationship between congregational beliefs and practices toward disability has received limited empirical examination. As a result, the extent to which dominant disability models and justice-oriented disability theologies have informed congregational life remains unclear. This article provides a brief overview of three dominant disability models (medical, social, and moral) and an introduction to disability theology, alongside a synthesis of empirical research on congregational beliefs and practices. Existing literature, though limited, suggests that many congregants interpret disability through a moral lens. Although clergy and laypeople generally reject overt associations between disability and sin, more implicit moral framings—such as disability as spiritual edification or evidence of moral innocence—persist within congregational discourse. Drawing on insights from disability theology and empirical studies, this article highlights the need for future scholarship to examine how religious and spiritual beliefs about disability shape, or fail to shape, congregational attitudes and practices. Such work may illuminate broader dynamics between belief and behavior within faith communities and support more inclusive and justice-oriented approaches to disability.