The Rev. Lamar Hardwick, a disability activist, author and preacher known as “The Autism Pastor,” died on May 22. He was 47 years old.
“With heavy hearts, we want to share that Lamar has transitioned after his journey with colon cancer,” Hardwick’s wife, Isabella Hardwick, said in a recent post on Facebook.
“He was surrounded by love, peace and family, and we are grateful for every precious moment we shared with him.”
Friends and colleagues have described Hardwick as “brilliant” and “surprisingly funny” and said he was known for his dynamic preaching style. He is survived by his wife and three sons.
Born June 5, 1978, in Killeen, Hardwick was influenced in his youth by his father’s dual career in the U.S. Army and as a Missionary Baptist Church pastor.
Frequent moves created instability in Hardwick’s childhood, but he found comfort in the predictable rhythms of church. As an adult, he discerned a call to ministry and earned a master of divinity from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology.
Diagnosed
Hardwick later completed a doctor of ministry from Liberty University School of Divinity and the Clergy Scholar Program at Yale Divinity School. He served several churches as pastor, most recently at Tri-Cities Church in East Point, Georgia.
In 2014, Hardwick, then age 36, was diagnosed with autism. His writing on the topic earned him the moniker “The Autism Pastor.”
“When I was diagnosed, it was like for the first time I understood I was human,” he told RNS in 2024.
His diagnosis led Hardwick to consider how churches could better welcome people on the spectrum — by providing sensory bags with fidget devices and noise canceling headphones, by not pushing nonconsensual touch, and by posting clear signage for those who struggle with executive functions, for example — and how churches could better prioritize people with disabilities, in general.
In 2021, Hardwick’s ideas culminated in the book “Disability and the Church: A Vision for Diversity and Inclusion,” published at InterVarsity Press.
Full story.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Kathryn Post and originally published by Religion News Service.
