Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, recently took to Twitter to describe his incredibly powerful meeting with a young disabled boy. Twelve-year-old Jonathan Bryan was born with cerebral palsy as a result of a car accident when he was in the womb. But it was this young man’s faith that stunned the British cleric.
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“Occasionally I meet someone who teaches me what it really means to know and trust God’s love and grace – and the comfort and hope of Jesus Christ,” Welby tweeted in his first message of a lengthy twitter thread.
Archbishop Welby said Jonathan “has taught me so much” about what it means to truly follow Jesus.
4. Jonathan’s wonderful parents – Christopher and Chantal – were told he would never be able to communicate. But together with his teacher, Sarah, they believed in him and never gave up (and nor did Jonathan). pic.twitter.com/HVL9Iv4yxX
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) April 18, 2018
The archbishop explained how Jonathan has “learned to communicate by spelling out words, letter by letter, on an alphabet board with the movement of his eyes.” So, the pair immediately got to grips with some deep conversations.
“He can say everything he wants to say — and we had a wonderful conversation about life and faith at Lambeth Palace recently,” Welby recalled.
Welby declared how, in meeting Jonathan, he had encountered a true “disciple of Christ” and commended him on his beautiful faith in the resurrection despite his physical limitations.
“He profoundly knows the love and grace of God,” he added. “He trusts and gives testimony to the comfort of the presence of Jesus.”
7. He speaks with more conviction and joy of the hope of resurrected life with Christ than I have witnessed for years. pic.twitter.com/XCEy53l6nL
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) April 18, 2018
In this joy-filled little boy, the head of the Anglican Communion said that saw a staggering embodiment of genuine faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
“He has taught me about his sense of God’s faithfulness in the midst of a life that I can hardly imagine,” Welby shared.
12. And I pray that all our lives could be defined by Christ’s presence in this way. pic.twitter.com/sNWPa4728P
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) April 18, 2018
“Thank you for this, it’s overwhelming how Jesus speaks to us through the most unexpected people,” one person commented on Welby’s Twitter thread. “Thank you Archbishop for sharing this story. You have touched me and hope that Jonathan and family hold on to their faith,” another added.
As he grew up, and despite all his disabilities, Jonathan was always eager to communicate. He was “engaged with the world and keen to learn” from an early age, his mother Chantal explained to Aleteia.
And this mom’s devotion is utterly inspiring. Chantal painstakingly created a board system of phonics, words, and letters to enable her son to communicate. Jonathan would then select a letter or word and confirm it, all by simply using his eyes. The family is often staggered by the profound nature of many of Jonathan’s comments. He once explained to his mom that “I watch people and I pray; I watch and I look.”
Jonathan has been able to spell out some of his preferences in life — something most of us take for granted.
“The most frustrating thing was having his face washed,” he said one time. Chantal also recalled her son simply stating, “I need a brother!”
He also expressed his love for cooking.
“I love baking for other people and making people happy,” he said once.
Considering that Jonathan cannot eat and is fed through a feeding tube directly into his stomach, this demonstrates the level of character this boy truly possesses.
“He’s learnt to be content … that’s something a lot of us don’t quite get to. We talk to him about his faith and he prays a lot,” Chantal explained. Not only that, but her son’s faith is incredibly unique and creative.
“He doesn’t think using words, he thinks using emotions, colors, and drumbeats,” his mother explained. “Praying is intentional, but he invites Jesus into the drumbeat of his life, and brings pictures of people before God when he is praying for them.”
Of course, caring for a disabled child is still hard work, and can be very tough at times. Chantal, however, believes that God knows all about this, and she takes comfort in that. “He knows what it’s like to have a son who suffers and He knows what it is to suffer,” she said. “So my faith is about getting on with it.”
(H/T: Aleteia)