Miriam Spies

Crip and queer practical theologian

A Brief Introduction

Hello, I’m Rev. Dr. Miriam Spies! Look forward to connecting.

I graduated from Emmanuel College, Toronto School of Theology with a PhD in Theological Studies in 2025. My dissertation, “A Crip Incarnational Model of Ministry,” used an interdisciplinary methodology to bring incarnational and ecclesial theology into conversation with crip and disability studies and construct an incarnational crip practical theology of ministry.  I currently am working on a book with Fortress Press.

Ordained in The United Church of Canada, I have served congregational, denominational, and global ecumenical bodies. I live with Cerebral Palsy, a physical disability and claim the term “crip” as a reclamation and a political identity to disrupt systems of ableism (and intersecting oppressions).

Headshot of Miriam Spies. White woman, smiling face, blue eyes, short blondish hair, against black wheelchair headrest.

From 2020-2025 I have served as Co-Editor of The Canadian Journal of Theology, Disability, and Mental Health and co-host of The Mad & Crip Theology Podcast.