When Catholics who are deaf make a joyful noise to the Lord, they do it with a flourish of fingers.<\/p>\n
Every day they face isolation in a hearing world, even when it comes to expressing their religion.<\/p>\n
In Arkansas, deaf Catholics are a minority within a minority, and they are acutely aware of the lack of resources for their small community. Their hope is to be able to worship and live a full faith life just like any other Catholic in the state.<\/p>\n
But for a deaf Catholic in Arkansas, they are lucky if they can go to Mass and understand what is happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the organ\u2019s really loud, you can feel that, but that\u2019s about it,\u201d said Betty Babin of Little Rock who was born deaf and is now also blind.<\/p>\n
While hearing Catholics take their cues from what they hear during Mass, Catholics who cannot hear are left in the dark.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019d just do a lot of praying. Without an interpreter, you\u2019re just kind of watching to see where you are at and you watch the other people and do what they do. Now, I can\u2019t go without an interpreter. You have to understand what\u2019s going on,\u201d said Betty\u2019s son, Art Babin who was also born deaf.<\/p>\n
At the 10:15 a.m. Sunday Mass at St. Mary Church in North Little Rock, deaf Catholics have the opportunity to have an interpreted Mass through Nancy Quinn, a Catholic who has been interpreting Mass since the 1970s after a couple asked if she would consider interpreting at Mass.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had no idea what that meant. I did not have the credentials. They were kind enough and patient enough with me that I just gave it a try,\u201d she said. \u201cThen I started learning about interpreting as a profession. I went and got credentialed. I think it was the Lord pushing me along.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a common experience for deaf Catholics to attend Mass without an interpreter, but a frustrating one.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf anyone needs an interpreter, churches can hire one,\u201d Quinn said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Read more. <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A diocesan paper in Arkansas looks at the particular challenges of deaf Catholics \u2014 and how the church is trying to help them: When Catholics who are deaf make a joyful noise to the Lord, they do it with a flourish of fingers. Every day they face isolation in a hearing world, even when it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,40,1],"tags":[11179,559,11192],"class_list":["post-11699","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-liturgy","category-prayer","category-uncategorized","tag-liturgy","tag-mass","tag-prayer"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a><\/p>\n