Cambridge scientist says he was asked to leave church because son was too noisy
Fri 21 Jun 2019 14.58 BST
First published on Fri 21 Jun 2019 14.54 BST
A Cambridge scientist who was ordered to leave a church service at King’s College because his autistic son was being noisy has received an assurance from the dean that the chapel will strive to be a “more welcoming and open place”.
Paul Rimmer, an astrochemist at the university, met Stephen Cherry, the dean of King’s College, this week after posting online a blistering letter about the incident last weekend. Cherry immediately issued a public and unreserved apology.
“We had a good meeting and discussions will continue on how King’s College chapel might be a more welcoming and open place to all,” Rimmer told the Guardian. “It was very sad and very regrettable that this happened, but I’m pleased with how things are moving.”
Rimmer attended the evensong service on Father’s Day with his two sons. Tristan, nine, is autistic, and was described in Rimmer’s letter as “a clever and joyful child, who loves church buildings, services and choral music. He is also non-verbal, and expresses his excitement by calling out and laughing. His expressions are often loud and uncontainable. It is part of who he is.”
During the service, an usher told Rimmer that the dean had instructed him to remove the family as Tristan’s expressions were disrupting other visitors’ enjoyment of the service. King’s College and its choir are a big attraction, and the chapel is famous for its Christmas Eve carol service broadcast by the BBC.
Rimmer wrote: “As a Christian I believe that worship is primarily intended to glorify God, and may have misinterpreted your evensong as an actual worship service, at which my son’s expressions must surely be pleasing to God, the experience of other worshippers being secondary.”
He added: “Might I suggest that you place a sign at the front of the chapel, clearly identifying which categories of people are welcome and which are not? I can only imagine how terrible it would be if autistic people, others with disabilities, those with mental illnesses and people with dementia were all equally welcome to attend evensong – how this would get in the way of the choir’s performance, how it would distract the choristers, and how upsetting seeing these sorts of people at the chapel would be for the tourists who have come such a long way.
“My son might not be able to talk but he knows perfectly well what is going on around him … He isn’t even 10 years old and he knows that he is unwelcome.”
The academic apologised for his son’s “unpalatable presence” and said he was making the letter public so others “will not make the same careless mistake I have”.
In his response, also made public, Cherry said he had been devastated to read Rimmer’s letter and he said the chapel had “failed you and Tristan. I apologise for that most sincerely.”
The dean requested a meeting, saying, “I’m sure that your insights and connections could help us do better in the future.”
He said he had not given any instruction to remove the family, but as dean “I do take responsibility for the whole life of the chapel”.
Rimmer said Tristan had been “definitely upset” at the incident as “he was enjoying the experience and the music. But we went to the park and he calmed down.”
Similar incidents had happened a few times in cinemas and restaurants, he added. “People can react negatively. Sometimes it’s just out of ignorance. They may not be aware that Tristan is autistic.”
