True inclusion for Deaf people

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The idea of the Church providing a place where people can feel truly “at home” is an attractive one. It builds on Jesus’ own assertion that “in my Father’s House there are many rooms” (John 14:2) the ideal “home” is a place of safety and a place of stability – a place to develop one’s own faith within the church community.

If God’s people who are Deaf are to believe that The Church is somewhere they could call “home”, they need to know that they will find safety, stability, and relationships. They need to be included in the “family”.
Inclusion is a word that evokes many perspectives from people.

We define inclusion in the Church as:

• Every person has a participative role
• Every person is communicated with
• Every person is not left out
• Every person co-operates with each other
• Every person’s potential is celebrated
• Every person with potential is encouraged to progress
• Every person is known and used by the Holy Spirit

These are values that everyone can agree on, but it’s important to look more closely at these generic values and substitute real people for “Every person”.

For example, if we substituted “Deaf people” for “every person” we would see that questions need to be asked of any local church that seeks to be truly inclusive. It is a wise precept that if we get it right for a minority of people, it will certainly benefit the majority. Deaf people, especially those who rely on and use British Sign Language, are catalysts of communal enrichment within the Church: increased visual accessibility, visual images, Sign Language in worship, communication, friendship and most of all acceptance of such diversity.

Demonstrating our values

Below, we have grouped the values above into three main headings and outlined how these values would be demonstrated:

1. Deaf people are communicated with and not left out
   This would mean that the ministry to Deaf people in the local Church is carried out directly with them, preferably in their own language, or – if not – by using well qualified and experienced BSL/English interpreters.
   Deaf people are included in worship, Bible Studies, discussion groups, gossip over coffee after the service, Annual Church Meetings, etc. In too many churches, interpreters are provided for a service and then no one communicates with Deaf people at coffee-time. Deaf people are ready and willing to communicate when people use Deaf-friendly approaches.
   Videos that are issued as communication to the whole Church or nation by senior representatives of the Church such as national Church leaders, will always be subtitled and have a BSL/English interpreter to enable the message to be shared in the Deaf Community.
   The need for “Deaf space” where Deaf people may learn and worship in their own language (BSL) according to their culture, is recognised and made available without judgement and with acceptance.
    
2. Deaf people co-operate with each other, the wider church, and the Holy Spirit!
   What a Christian community that would be! It would be a community where the work of the Holy Spirit is recognised in all people, not just those in leadership positions. 
   It would be a community that watched for signs of God’s Kingdom among those least expected and recognised these as mission opportunities. It would be a community that actively wants all the members to experience the power of the Holy Spirit to enable and convert and so will allocate resources to enable this to happen and thus receive blessings back again.
    
3. Deaf people have participative roles that celebrate their potential and enable them to progress
   Deaf people contributing to the life of the Church, whether through the coffee rota, or offering themselves for ordination can only enrich the life of the whole church. 
   We look for a church where barriers to participation are proactively removed, making it possible for a Deaf, BSL user, to be on the PCC, Deanery Synod, General Synod – as full, voting members. We expect Deaf, worshipping communities to be recognised as “valid” expressions of Church.
   We celebrate the fact that God the Holy Spirit calls Deaf people to a variety of ministries and look for ways in which those callings may be explored and fulfilled within the Kingdom of God.
   We learn from the different and enriching perspectives on the Bible, the Christian faith, worship, and the church that sign language communities can bring.

Looking to Jesus for our example

We look to the Gospels to see how Jesus treated each person as an individual in specific situations, seeking access into the Kingdom of God.

When Jesus was led by people to a deaf man, He recognised the obstacles and hopes of someone who was much disadvantaged and restricted by society at the time. This was reinforced by the deaf man’s concerned friends. Jesus took the deaf man, alone, to a quiet place and ministered to him. 

This one-to-one encounter tells us that Deaf people are not excluded from the Kingdom of God, nor left out of the work of the Holy Spirit and God’s Word.

Deaf people nowadays have at their fingertips, the available choice of participation, access, and potential progression which did not exist during Jesus’ life on Earth. 

* We have used “Deaf people” to include Deaf people who have additional conditions, Deaf-Blind, Deaf with Usher Syndrome, Deaf with other sensory or physical disabilities and Deaf with additional learning needs. All are family – all need to feel “at home” within their churches in the Church of England.