How can we make the Catholic Mass Accessible
for all the deaf and hard of hearing?
"Go and Announce the Gospel of the Lord. It is the Mass."
(Source: http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/the-mass/index.cfm)
What can you do to help Catholics with Hearing Loss and Deafness in getting access to the Mass by providing
Real time Captioning (CART or Remote CART) ? :
1. Contact your Diocese/Archdiocese - find it here: http://www.usccb.org/about/bishops-and-dioceses/all-dioceses.cfm.)
" We have seen rampant confusion on the part of government leaders {and church leaders} who assume that "deaf and hard of hearing" {compared to capital D Deaf/culturally Deaf} is one group of people whose communication needs center around American Sign Language. This confusion has meant that people with hearing loss are not receiving the services and support that could make their lives better."
(Source: http://www.cilww.com/shhh%20page.htm)
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"Out of 100 people, 10 have a significant
hearing problem. Of those 10 people, one
or two use sign language. The rest do not
know sign language."
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"An obvious benefit of closed captioning is to allow everyone to have an equal opportunity to participate in and enjoy the benefits of a service, program or activity."
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"The majority of people who are deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language. According to a Johns Hopkins study, more than 48 million people in the United States are deaf or hard of hearing, or a fifth of all Americans. Of these, almost 99 percent lost their hearing or were raised orally–not using sign language–and rely on their residual hearing (aided by hearing aids or cochlear implants), speech reading, and the printed word for communication access. This group of people are greatly aided by text forms of access." (Source: http://www.captionaccess.com/communication-access-101/?replytocom=41)
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"(Catholics) who want to attend mass and be a part of ministries but do not find a willingness or desire for their inclusion. Often times this is do to ignorance and a lack of awareness." (Source: http://www.disabilityawarenesstraining.com/component/content/article/3/40)
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What is CART?:
"CART {real time captioning} is classified as an assistive technology and is considered a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is a service provided in the academic setting for students with hearing impairment as well as in public settings such as conventions, churches, corporate meetings, funerals, police interrogations, etc. "
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How does 'Remote CART' Work?
It's real time captioning via Remote which is cheaper then regular CART because the person does it at another location and doesn't have to travel or require more then an hour time slot
It's real time captioning via Remote which is cheaper then regular CART because the person does it at another location and doesn't have to travel or require more then an hour time slot
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"One way many diocesan offices try to assess their community’s needs is to send out accessibility surveys, which require parishes to record every physical amendment they have made to become more accessible to churchgoers with disabilities." (Source: http://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201312/ramp-it-how-parishes-can-increase-accessibility-28230#sthash.YfofSqWI.dpuf)
However, there is a caveat here; only 4-10 percent of those with hearing loss attend church, and in general, those with disabilities are less likely to be in church to contribute to the survey. They should make the church accessible in advance of any one actually requesting access. Several resources indicate 90 percent of those with disabilities including hearing loss do NOT attend church with the culprit generally centering around the church not being accessible (physical, social, services, Mass, Confessionals, programs, ministry etc including 'effective' communication access) for them.
"The Largest Minority is the community of individuals with a disability, and we number 56 Million nationwide, 600 million throughout the world." (Source: http://dnnyc.net/tlm.html) 1 in 5 Americans have a disability. 1 in 5 Americans have a hearing loss.
"A sobering thought for religious leaders is that 90% of those with a hearing impairment may not attend services due to an inability to hear and participate." (Source: http://premiervisualvoice.com/index.php/blog/16-blog-8)
" No captions is like no ramp for people in wheelchairs or signs stating ‘people with disabilities are not welcome."
This applies just as well to real time captioning in churches as well, only the church is ADA exempt. The ADA law does not apply to churches. The church and any kind of worship place of any faith is allowed to discriminate and not provide real time captioning for church services. 90 percent of the those with hearing loss do not attend church because the church is not accessible to them. Wouldn't it be nice to provide real time captioning to our brothers and sisters in Christ in order to share the Joy of the Gospel? Maybe the 90 percent of the missing brothers and sisters might return to the church if it is accessible to them, thereby opening the doors and welcoming them to share and experience the fullness of their faith.
"A sobering thought for religious leaders is that 90% of those with a hearing impairment may not attend services due to an inability to hear and participate." (Source: http://premiervisualvoice.com/index.php/blog/16-blog-8)
"The ADA calls us to be aware of and correct what we do
that unnecessarily excludes people"
that unnecessarily excludes people"
(Source: http://network.crcna.org/disability-concerns/q-ada-church-and-americans-disabilities-act)
"A general rule of thumb is to ask whether people are able to access the facility and, once in, is effective communication happening?" (Source: https://hsdcstore.com/adasystems.htm)
"The key to deciding what aid or service is needed to communicate effectively is to consider the nature, length, complexity, and context of the communication as well as the person’s normal method(s) of communication." (Source: http://www.ada.gov/effective-comm.htm)
Encourage the Diocese/Archdiocese to centralize support (a few churches within a Diocese/Archdiocese to offer captioning with funds supported by Diocese/Archdiocese) so that people can at least reasonably travel to an accessible church. Why? Because individual parishes become overwhelm w/o diocese funding support which is why there are none to a few churches accessible for those with hearing loss. A centralized place for Captioning (Remote CART or CART) a Mass is better then none at all. Real time captioning at a Mass is a rare find in spite of the fact that 90 percent of the deaf do not know sign language.
Other ideas is by offering it 2x a month instead of each Sunday, or offer it one Sunday each shared by four churches within the diocese - a once a month rotation cycle. That way people can have an accessible Mass at least once a month at a particular church.
"Costs must never be the controlling consideration limiting the welcome offered to those among us with disabilities, since provision of access to religious functions is a pastoral duty. " (Source: http://www.ncpd.org/views-news-policy/policy/church/bishops/welcome-and-justice)
There should also be at least one accessible confessional within the diocese as well for those with hearing loss and deafness (see my blog post on making the confessional accessible).
Post ADA, wheelchair ramps, adjusted bathrooms and water fountains, and special parking spots have been implemented in most if not all churches, but those with hearing loss and deafness still
need to advocate for at least one accessible church (of reasonable travel) that they can go to in order to have access to the Mass.
Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio loops are the three most common communication access used by the deaf and hard of hearing in secular business, education and entertainment settings. The hearing loss and deafness population is diverse so all three most common communication access needs to be in place.
About 10 percent of the hearing loss population benefit from sign language, about 40 to 60 percent of the hearing loss population benefit from Real time Captioning, and about 70 to 80 percent can benefit from Audio Loops (assuming they are wearing hearing aids and cochlear implants with T coils so this is more in theory), however in reality; 1 in 5 Americans with hearing loss who can benefit from a hearing aid wear one. 1 in 4 deaf adult Americans who can benefit from a cochlear implant wear a cochlear implant. 25 percent of hearing aids do not have T coils in them. Many people with more severe and profound hearing losses who do wear hearing aids and do have T coils in them often find the Audio Induction loops not reliable for them. Captioning can also cover all these groups and thereby provide effective communication access. Technically though any one who can read (receptive) and speak (expressive) can benefit from Captioning.
Think those with mild and moderate hearing loss who most benefit from audio induction loops are wearing hearing aids? According to this:
"Only 14% of older adults with hearing loss use
hearing aids, according to estimates from a
nationwide survey.
The proportion dropped to fewer than 4% of people
with mild hearing loss across all age decades and
to fewer than 5% of adults ages 50 to 59,
irrespective of the severity of hearing loss."
(Source: http://www.awesomecapital.com/awesome-blog/most-hearing-impaired-adults-forgo-hearing-aids)
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The increasing demands of real time captioning
and broadcast captioning is driven by two
forces:
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Real time Captioning (CART or Remote CART) is a wonderful way to share the Joy of the Gospel to the deaf and hard of hearing, reaching the widest user population within the spectrum of hearing loss and deafness as well as many other 'disabilities'. (see my blog post on the Universal design of Captioning and how it reaches a wide population who can benefit from it and not just those with hearing loss)
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Addressing Communication Access
Universally:
The Church needs to have Universal
Communication Access for the deaf and hard
of hearing:
" we need assistive listening technology like
hearing loops and captions,
and signage that
makes it clear that the service is available. This
is a goal that we can
achieve, but in order
to do so, we need to change the way we think
about communication and
hearing access."
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"Can we all agree that achieving
the
genuine inclusion of deaf and
hearing
impaired people in society
demands
better than a one-size-fits-all
approach to
communication?" (Source: http://therebuttal2.com/2010/07/27/1007/ -Tony Abrahams)
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the
genuine inclusion of deaf and
hearing
impaired people in society
demands
better than a one-size-fits-all
approach to
communication?" (Source: http://therebuttal2.com/2010/07/27/1007/ -Tony Abrahams)
Without real time captioning as a valid accommodation for the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing it is like saying to them at the church door: 'no ramp for the wheel chair users' , or 'no blacks allowed', or 'no Irish need to apply'.
Raise awareness of the diverse groups of those with hearing loss and deafness and the three
most common communication access needs: Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops.
Traditionally Catholic Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries have focused on those who use sign language and yet 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language so awareness needs to be raised to make these ministries fully inclusive to the diverse deaf and hard of hearing population by offering captioning (CART or Remote CART) and audio loops at Mass, conferences, retreats, RCIA, Bible studies, programs etc. I like to see the confessional more accessible as well. See my blog post on making the confessional accessible.
The late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are underserved in these ministries. They are being excluded if 'effective' communication access is not being provided for them.
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hearing people in the USA, I consider ASL (American
Sign Language) a gorgeous language that I can't fluently
understand. CART (Communication Access Realtime
Transcription) offers an alternative option for folks like
me;…" (Source: http://opensource.com/life/11/12/open-source-changes-face-stenography-and-possibilities-hearing-impaired) * note: now 48 million and counting and will double by 2030
"For various reasons,
churches
3. and their Disability Ministries as well
It is important to also contact the Disability Ministry of the Dioceses/Archdiocese too, and not just the Deaf Ministries because often the Deaf ministry service at Catholic Dioceses service 'only' the culturally deaf and hard of hearing (those who use sign language) and may not be familiar with the wide use of captioning and CART that is being used by the late deaf, oral deaf, severe to profound hearing loss folks).
most common communication access needs: Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops.
Traditionally Catholic Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries have focused on those who use sign language and yet 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language so awareness needs to be raised to make these ministries fully inclusive to the diverse deaf and hard of hearing population by offering captioning (CART or Remote CART) and audio loops at Mass, conferences, retreats, RCIA, Bible studies, programs etc. I like to see the confessional more accessible as well. See my blog post on making the confessional accessible.
The late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are underserved in these ministries. They are being excluded if 'effective' communication access is not being provided for them.
"The overwhelming majority of people categorized as deaf by the NHS and SIPP are perfectly fluent speakers of
English (or another spoken language) and did not experience any difficulty hearing until well
into adulthood (e.g., Blanchfield, Dunbar, Feldman, & Gardner, 1999; Mitchell, 2005). As a
consequence, most people who are audiologically deaf do not use sign language."
Source:
Draft manuscript accepted for publication in
Sign Language Studies, Volume 6, Number 3, 2006
How Many People Use ASL in the United States?
Why Estimates Need Updating
Ross E. Mitchell, Travas A. Young, Bellamie Bachleda,
and Michael A. Karchmer
Gallaudet Research Institute
Gallaudet University
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" The majority of deaf and hard of
hearing people
are oral using spoken languages and
know a little
or no sign language to benefit from
hearing people
are oral using spoken languages and
know a little
or no sign language to benefit from
interpreters, so signed events are still
not “fully”
inclusive, especially for those people." (Source: http://audio-accessibility.com/news/2013/12/importance-of-quality-communication-access-no-waving-hands-or-auto-captioning/)
not “fully”
inclusive, especially for those people." (Source: http://audio-accessibility.com/news/2013/12/importance-of-quality-communication-access-no-waving-hands-or-auto-captioning/)
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"CART is a type of “accommodation” service for people with disabilities. In function, CART is similar to sign language interpreting for people who are deaf, because it transforms spoken language into a visual format that is appropriate for people with hearing loss. But CART can be used by the 95% of hard of hearing and deaf people who do not use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate."
(Source: http://www.visiblevoices.com/faq.html)
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" Many people who are Deaf or hard of hearing grew up hearing or were educated in an “oral tradition”, and do not know sign language. Not all Deaf or hard of hearing people find assistive listening devices to be effective. For these individuals, captioning may provide an effective way of communication – seeing what is said. "
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"This much larger group is routinely
overlooked when
we look at welcoming people with special
needs into our
local communities of faith. While a very
small number of
people who are physically deaf may be
able to use an
ASL interpreter, most cannot. "
"This much larger group is routinely
overlooked when
we look at welcoming people with special
needs into our
local communities of faith. While a very
small number of
people who are physically deaf may be
able to use an
ASL interpreter, most cannot. "
_______________________________________
What do the deaf and hard of hearing use for Communication Access?:
ASL (American Sign Language) is used by the Culturally Deaf in the USA, CART (real time captioning) or its newer tech version called Remote CART is used by the late deaf, oral deaf and severe to profound hearing loss, ALD's (Assistive Listening Devices) are used by the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss). Captioning (CART) can sometimes be used by the culturally Deaf but you need to ask them first. The Hard of Hearing (mild and moderate) can also use captioning but they usually prefer Audio Loops. Again, you need to ask them first. Yes, I know I keep saying this through out my blog. We are diverse you see. We need to break the sound barriers for everyone so they can fully and actively participate and share the Joy of the Gospel to all.
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"All of us are covered by the ADA. This is not about a preference, a personal choice, or the opinion of one over another or over a majority." (Source: http://network.crcna.org/disability-concerns/q-ada-church-and-americans-disabilities-act)
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"However, like 98% of the 35 million* deaf and hard of
hearing people in the USA, I consider ASL (American
Sign Language) a gorgeous language that I can't fluently
understand. CART (Communication Access Realtime
Transcription) offers an alternative option for folks like
me;…" (Source: http://opensource.com/life/11/12/open-source-changes-face-stenography-and-possibilities-hearing-impaired) * note: now 48 million and counting and will double by 2030
___________________________________________________________
"For various reasons,
churches
have lagged behind wider
trends in
trends in
society to be inclusive of
people
people
with disabilities."
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"Having no captions is equivalent to stating 'people with disabilities may not enter.'" - See more at: http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/legal/nad.php#sthash.6aKtVH0e.dpuf
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Deaf/deaf and Hard of Hearing Demographics:
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Some one says: "I honestly feel that hearing impairment is much worse than my inability to walk, because it is so isolating. At least once I get to where I’m going, I can enjoy it thoroughly. Also, I think sometimes people feel that having a sign language interpreter satisfies the requirement to make a performance accessible for the hearing impaired, not realizing that the majority of people who lose their hearing as they age or from disease do not learn sign language"
(Source: https://broadwaydancecenter.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/hard-times-on-broadway-for-the-hard-of-hearing/)
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It is important to also contact the Disability Ministry of the Dioceses/Archdiocese too, and not just the Deaf Ministries because often the Deaf ministry service at Catholic Dioceses service 'only' the culturally deaf and hard of hearing (those who use sign language) and may not be familiar with the wide use of captioning and CART that is being used by the late deaf, oral deaf, severe to profound hearing loss folks).
Various sources and observations indicate only half of all Dioceses have a Disability Ministry and that should be encouraged considering that 1 in 5 Americans have a disability making it the largest minority group in the USA. Shouldn't the largest minority community in the USA have a Ministry too?
"With the Baby Boom generation about to age into infirmity, and wounded war veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan in growing numbers, the issue of worshippers with disabilities will very soon overwhelm ethical and theological abstraction."(Source: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/2011-01-10-column10_ST_N.htm)
Contact is: http://www.usccb.org/about/bishops-and-dioceses/all-dioceses.cfm. It would be very helpful.
Hearing Loss in the Church:
"Live captions delivering access to lesson content is particularly beneficial to students impacted by ASD. It provides consistency of message delivery and a single point of focus for the student leading to less distraction, reduced anxiety and improved attention. People with autism often have audio processing issues. " (Source: http://www.ai-media.tv/magic-live-captions-students-asd/)
Diocese Disability Action Team ('The clergy, religious and laity engaged in this program should help the parish by developing policy and translating it into practical strategies for working with individuals with disabilities')
"Of all the barriers to full participation and
inclusion, the barrier of unexamined attitudes
is the most difficult to address," states Ginny
Thornburgh, director of the American
Association of People with Disabilities'
Interfaith Initiative."
inclusion, the barrier of unexamined attitudes
is the most difficult to address," states Ginny
Thornburgh, director of the American
Association of People with Disabilities'
Interfaith Initiative."
(Source: http://www.disabilitiesandfaith.org)
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4. Also bring it up with the Pastor at your church. It would be nice if the Diocese/Archdiocese would support him with the funding as they often do with the Sign Language Masses to empower the Parish and promote accessibility. ENCOURAGE THAT! 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language. Many churches fund sign language interpreters either via the church or through their diocese, and yet captioning is a rare find in churches in spite of the fact that the majority of the deaf do not know sign language. If you can read and speak, you can benefit from captioning.
"The U.S. bishops’ document stressed that parishes must be sensitive to the plight of its members who have disabilities. It added that efforts to bring them into the parish community are more likely to be effective if they are supported by resources on the diocesan level." (Source: http://www.pittsburghcatholic.org/newsarticles_more.php?id=1027)
The Catholic church directory (for emails and addresses) : http://www.thecatholicdirectory.com
"Statistics tell us that 98% of people with hearing loss do not have a church home, and the deaf and hard of hearing are the fourth largest unreached people group in the world." (Source: http://captioningtheword.com/information.html)
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Captioning is a Universal Design Access: http://captioningthemass.blogspot.com/2013/09/advantages-and-disadvantages-of.html
Captioning is a Universal Design Access: http://captioningthemass.blogspot.com/2013/09/advantages-and-disadvantages-of.html
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5. Parish Committee: Many churches have committees. Discuss Inclusion Awareness with them.
"How many do you see active in your parish? Are their needs being met?" (Source:
http://catholicexchange.com/disabilities-and-the-catholic-church)
in the church:
http://catholicexchange.com/disabilities-and-the-catholic-church)
"The parish is the door to participation for individuals with disabilities, and it is the responsibility of the pastor and lay leaders to make sure this door is always open')" (Source: http://www.disabilityawarenesstraining.com/component/content/article/3/40
The deaf and hard of hearing experiences
in the church:
Opening the Doors:
http://captioningthemass.blogspot.com/2014/06/opening-doors-catholics-with-hearing.html
Can we Open more doors for the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing?
Can we Open more doors for the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing?
"Remote {CART real time captioning}
services are more economical
as the minimum booking is only one
hour. More people can have more
access, as all you need is internet access
and sound. " (Source: http://deafunity.org/article-interview/tina-lannin-founder-121-captions/)
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6. Contact this source at http://www.ncpd.org/about (National Catholic Partnership on Disability) and encourage them to be proactive in providing Captioning Masses within the USA. 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing do NOT know sign language. MANY can not use the audio loop either. It would be very helpful.
NCPD site says: “There is no captioning for this videotape, therefore I am handicapped in sharing in my parish's adult education program.”
This of course can also mean: 'There is no Captioning Masses available for me, therefore I am 'handicapped' in sharing (and participation) in the liturgical celebrations of the Mass'.
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7. ALSO Contact http://www.ncod.org and request that they be proactive in supporting Captioning at Masses and not just sign language so that all those with hearing loss and deafness can participate at Mass. It would be very helpful.
I would love to see the Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries be more inclusive to the diverse population of the deaf and hard of hearing in order to reach everyone for Christ given the diversity of the deaf and hard of hearing population. The majority of people who are deaf on an audiogram actually do not know sign language.
This organization however may only be focused on serving those who use sign language as a cultural and linguistic approach (Deaf culture/ASL culture) which is 10 percent of the deaf population, so hopefully in the future there will also be some kind of Catholic ministry to reach the wider deaf and hard of hearing population such as a 'Catholic Hearing Loss and Deafness Ministry' . The idea is to incorporate diversity and provide Universal Access to all the deaf and hard of hearing; being Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Induction Loops and not just one type of communication access. Communication Access needs to be approached Universally for the deaf and hard of hearing because we are diverse.
The focus could be on the entire diverse community that needs Captioning, Sign language and Audio Loops in order for them to be able to fully and actively participate at the Mass because the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language and often fall in the cracks of services offered at Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries if Captioning or Audio loops are not available for them. This is a very under served group in need of having the Mass fully accessible to them. They have different language needs. They socially identify with their own native English language whereas the culturally Deaf are defined by their commonality of American Sign Language within a social-cultural-linguistic framework. They are two different groups and so they need different communication approaches and maybe perhaps different ministries, so I'm not sure #7 contact on this list would be appropriate since the groups have different needs unless a Universal Access approach is provided (Captioning, sign language and audio loops). But you could raise awareness of the diversity that many people are not aware of.
8. For Secular support:
There are two wonderful secular organizations tailored for the late deaf, oral deaf, severe and profound hearing loss as well as the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss) called HEARING LOSS ASSOCIATION at http://www.hearingloss.org.
This organization is very supportive of diversity and advocates serving all communication needs such as Captioning, Sign language and audio loops.
They embrace diversity in the deaf and hard of hearing population. You can often find real time captioning, sign language and audio induction loops at their annual conferences, workshops and meetings. They are very accepting of the diverse deaf and hard of hearing population.
There is another wonderful secular organization called ALDA for the late deaf BUT they welcome ANY deaf and hard of hearing person with the common language being 'diversity'. In other words 'WHATEVER WORKS'. They are at http://www.alda.org
They also embrace diversity and acceptance of all communication modes for the deaf and hard of hearing. They address communication access 'universally'. They are inclusive
to all the deaf and hard of hearing. They are welcoming.
These two organizations are really nice in the secular world.
We need a similar ministry for the Catholic churches in the USA though because currently the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are a very unreached group with no ministries tailored for them that I am aware of because you rarely see Real Time Captioning being provided (CART or remote CART). This is a very underserved population at Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries.
The only thing that is usually available in Catholic churches are Catholic Deaf Ministry (with a capital D; aka culturally Deaf 'only' usually; aka sign language only) designed and tailored for that culture based on their native or acquired language of American sign language, and not for the late deaf, oral deaf, severe and profound hearing loss and the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss) whose primary native language is English. This is good of course because we all need access, however it is not addressing adequately the needs of all the deaf and hard of hearing in terms of making the Mass accessible universally for the deaf and hard of hearing. Diversity is allowing everyone access to Christ, access to the Mass, confessionals, conferences, retreats etc by providing the three most common Communication access, that being Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Induction loops. The church needs a Universal Communication Access Design for ALL the deaf and hard of hearing and not just a segment of our population or community.
9. Let us pray that Captioning will be provided for Catholic Masses at Parishes that will benefit so many Catholics with hearing loss so that they can fully participate and engage in the celebration of the Mass.
Prayers work! Through the Grace of God; I am now getting Captioning at a Catholic Church! Keep praying! Jesus I Trust in You! See my blog post on 'Opening the Doors'! It is totally joyous and I'm very GRATEFUL!
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10. It is not enough though that I have Access. Like Pope St. John Paul II said: " It's not enough to know Christ, we must bring him to everyone!" Every Catholic should have access to the Mass and be able to fully participate in its celebration. So keep praying that everyone has access to the Mass. Pray that our church will share the joy of the gospel to everyone.
Everyone should have access to God's word in church with 'effective' communication that works for them.
Lord Hear Our Prayers.
11. If You Have a Hearing Loss - Advocate
for Yourself:
This is very important because all too often, many of those with hearing loss like to hide it but in doing so, keeps us all in exclusionary circles. Each one of us can do our part. When you advocate access for yourself, you do much more. You help others get access. Speak up.
Making the Mass accessible to All those with Hearing Loss allows honoring 'Sacrosanctum Concilium'. It allows All those with Hearing Loss to be able to participate, and in order to do so, diversity awareness is needed in what is effective communication access. The three most common communication access for those with hearing loss and deafness in the secular world of business, education and entertainment is Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops that provide full, equal, and effective communication :
" Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council's document on the reform of the liturgy, declared that in its mandate of fittingly celebrating the "memorial of [Christ's] death and resurrection," "The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ's faithful, when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as strangers or silent spectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration" (48). (Source: http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2006/04/full-conscious-active-participation.html)
completely accessible to people with
disabilities, since these forms are the
the spiritual tie that binds the Christian
community together," the bishops
I don't know who enforces the Canon laws in the Catholic church but I can tell you from personal experience, the Mass is not accessible to many people who are deaf and hard of hearing if Captioning, Sign language and Audio loops are not being provided as a Universal Communication Access approach for ALL the deaf and hard of hearing. Captioning in particular is very rare and yet the majority of the deaf who are physically deaf on an audiogram do not know sign language so just providing sign language does not make it inclusive to the majority of deaf people.
The late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are often neglected and underserved in church. Their needs are usually unrecognized. The often are not provided with 'effective' communication access.
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13. Resource for making the Mass accessible:
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I would love to see the Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries be more inclusive to the diverse population of the deaf and hard of hearing in order to reach everyone for Christ given the diversity of the deaf and hard of hearing population. The majority of people who are deaf on an audiogram actually do not know sign language.
This organization however may only be focused on serving those who use sign language as a cultural and linguistic approach (Deaf culture/ASL culture) which is 10 percent of the deaf population, so hopefully in the future there will also be some kind of Catholic ministry to reach the wider deaf and hard of hearing population such as a 'Catholic Hearing Loss and Deafness Ministry' . The idea is to incorporate diversity and provide Universal Access to all the deaf and hard of hearing; being Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Induction Loops and not just one type of communication access. Communication Access needs to be approached Universally for the deaf and hard of hearing because we are diverse.
The focus could be on the entire diverse community that needs Captioning, Sign language and Audio Loops in order for them to be able to fully and actively participate at the Mass because the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language and often fall in the cracks of services offered at Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries if Captioning or Audio loops are not available for them. This is a very under served group in need of having the Mass fully accessible to them. They have different language needs. They socially identify with their own native English language whereas the culturally Deaf are defined by their commonality of American Sign Language within a social-cultural-linguistic framework. They are two different groups and so they need different communication approaches and maybe perhaps different ministries, so I'm not sure #7 contact on this list would be appropriate since the groups have different needs unless a Universal Access approach is provided (Captioning, sign language and audio loops). But you could raise awareness of the diversity that many people are not aware of.
8. For Secular support:
There are two wonderful secular organizations tailored for the late deaf, oral deaf, severe and profound hearing loss as well as the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss) called HEARING LOSS ASSOCIATION at http://www.hearingloss.org.
This organization is very supportive of diversity and advocates serving all communication needs such as Captioning, Sign language and audio loops.
They embrace diversity in the deaf and hard of hearing population. You can often find real time captioning, sign language and audio induction loops at their annual conferences, workshops and meetings. They are very accepting of the diverse deaf and hard of hearing population.
There is another wonderful secular organization called ALDA for the late deaf BUT they welcome ANY deaf and hard of hearing person with the common language being 'diversity'. In other words 'WHATEVER WORKS'. They are at http://www.alda.org
They also embrace diversity and acceptance of all communication modes for the deaf and hard of hearing. They address communication access 'universally'. They are inclusive
to all the deaf and hard of hearing. They are welcoming.
We need a similar ministry for the Catholic churches in the USA though because currently the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are a very unreached group with no ministries tailored for them that I am aware of because you rarely see Real Time Captioning being provided (CART or remote CART). This is a very underserved population at Catholic deaf and hard of hearing ministries.
The only thing that is usually available in Catholic churches are Catholic Deaf Ministry (with a capital D; aka culturally Deaf 'only' usually; aka sign language only) designed and tailored for that culture based on their native or acquired language of American sign language, and not for the late deaf, oral deaf, severe and profound hearing loss and the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss) whose primary native language is English. This is good of course because we all need access, however it is not addressing adequately the needs of all the deaf and hard of hearing in terms of making the Mass accessible universally for the deaf and hard of hearing. Diversity is allowing everyone access to Christ, access to the Mass, confessionals, conferences, retreats etc by providing the three most common Communication access, that being Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Induction loops. The church needs a Universal Communication Access Design for ALL the deaf and hard of hearing and not just a segment of our population or community.
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9. Let us pray that Captioning will be provided for Catholic Masses at Parishes that will benefit so many Catholics with hearing loss so that they can fully participate and engage in the celebration of the Mass.
Prayers work! Through the Grace of God; I am now getting Captioning at a Catholic Church! Keep praying! Jesus I Trust in You! See my blog post on 'Opening the Doors'! It is totally joyous and I'm very GRATEFUL!
Lets pray that we break the
communication barriers for all!
communication barriers for all!
10. It is not enough though that I have Access. Like Pope St. John Paul II said: " It's not enough to know Christ, we must bring him to everyone!" Every Catholic should have access to the Mass and be able to fully participate in its celebration. So keep praying that everyone has access to the Mass. Pray that our church will share the joy of the gospel to everyone.
Everyone should have access to God's word in church with 'effective' communication that works for them.
Lord Hear Our Prayers.
Prayer of Inclusion: http://www.ncpd.org/ministries-programs/spirituality/prayers
'How Am I Suppose to Pray?': http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpfcBsqlXGE
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for Yourself:
This is very important because all too often, many of those with hearing loss like to hide it but in doing so, keeps us all in exclusionary circles. Each one of us can do our part. When you advocate access for yourself, you do much more. You help others get access. Speak up.
“Just as with wheelchair access issues, advocacy is paramount,” Kasper wrote. “Staying at home to avoid problems or pretending to understand when we don’t will not help us or future generations, and joining with others in a cause can be rewarding in itself.” (Source: sack-church-offers-captioning-for-hearing-impaired-1.1172320)
The deaf and hard of hearing in other churches advocating for CART (aka captioning): See http://xpressivehandz.blogspot.com/2014/04/ada-violation-at-upcoming-giant-center.html
A church event in a public place was offering sign language interpreter, spanish interpreter and almost didn't provide real time captioning (CART) which is translating spoken English into verbatim English in real time like interpretation does that allows the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing to be able to PARTICIPATE like the others! However, in the end, they were granted CART (real time captioning) that allows the same equal and effective communication access that ADA would support in secular society.
A church event in a public place was offering sign language interpreter, spanish interpreter and almost didn't provide real time captioning (CART) which is translating spoken English into verbatim English in real time like interpretation does that allows the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing to be able to PARTICIPATE like the others! However, in the end, they were granted CART (real time captioning) that allows the same equal and effective communication access that ADA would support in secular society.
ADA laws and the church:
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12. Canon Law and Sacrosanctum Concilium as it relates to the deaf and hard of hearing:
Making the Mass accessible to All those with Hearing Loss allows honoring 'Sacrosanctum Concilium'. It allows All those with Hearing Loss to be able to participate, and in order to do so, diversity awareness is needed in what is effective communication access. The three most common communication access for those with hearing loss and deafness in the secular world of business, education and entertainment is Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops that provide full, equal, and effective communication :
" Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council's document on the reform of the liturgy, declared that in its mandate of fittingly celebrating the "memorial of [Christ's] death and resurrection," "The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ's faithful, when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as strangers or silent spectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration" (48). (Source: http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2006/04/full-conscious-active-participation.html)
"It is essential that all forms of the
liturgy be
completely accessible to people with
disabilities, since these forms are the
essence
of
the spiritual tie that binds the Christian
community together," the bishops
wrote.
I don't know who enforces the Canon laws in the Catholic church but I can tell you from personal experience, the Mass is not accessible to many people who are deaf and hard of hearing if Captioning, Sign language and Audio loops are not being provided as a Universal Communication Access approach for ALL the deaf and hard of hearing. Captioning in particular is very rare and yet the majority of the deaf who are physically deaf on an audiogram do not know sign language so just providing sign language does not make it inclusive to the majority of deaf people.
The late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing are often neglected and underserved in church. Their needs are usually unrecognized. The often are not provided with 'effective' communication access.
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13. Resource for making the Mass accessible:
"Accessible meeting space allows
everyone to participate."
14. A Model of Inclusion for all the
deaf and hard of hearing:
Salt Lake City Utah Catholic Diocese (according to this website) has a really good model for including diversity in hearing loss by having available, not only sign language interpreters but also real time captioning services and amplification for the Mass!
THIS IS A MODEL! It has the three most common 'effective' communication access, that being sign language, real time captioning and amplification/ald to cover the spectrum of hearing loss.
On their website at http://www.dioslc.org/ministries/disabilities/guidelines-for-accommodating-people-with-disabilities it says:
deaf and hard of hearing:
Salt Lake City Utah Catholic Diocese (according to this website) has a really good model for including diversity in hearing loss by having available, not only sign language interpreters but also real time captioning services and amplification for the Mass!
THIS IS A MODEL! It has the three most common 'effective' communication access, that being sign language, real time captioning and amplification/ald to cover the spectrum of hearing loss.
On their website at http://www.dioslc.org/ministries/disabilities/guidelines-for-accommodating-people-with-disabilities it says:
For the Deaf or Hard of Hearing:
Arrange for seating the Deaf community in the front, near the speaker.
Arrange for interpreter or real time captioning services at least two weeks in advance.
Utilize room amplification system or personal amplification system.
Provide all materials to the interpreter or CART reporter one week in advance.
Provide bright lighting. Avoid creating a special atmosphere with dim lighting.
For the Blind or Visually Impaired:
Always have all materials available in large print and electronic format.
Arrange for availability of alternative formats (a minimum two week advance notice is necessary).
Seating close to the speaker may be necessary.
I'll look to see if there are other Dioceses with similar diversity inclusive models for all those with hearing loss and deafness and add to the list when I find them.
____________________________________________________________________________
15. Media Access
Integrating Technology in the
Church:
"John Paul II wrote: "…the Church is
not only called upon to use the mass
media to spread the Gospel but, today
more than ever, to integrate the
message of salvation into the "new
culture" that these powerful means
of communication create and
amplify." (source: http://www.officialcatholicdirectory.com/special-feature-article/new-media-and-the-church.html -Karen A. Walker)
If 20 percent of the population can't
hear the media, we need CC on
DVD's, TV and internet.
______________________________________________________________________
"It's not enough to know Christ, we must bring him to everyone!" - Pope St. John Paul II
_________________________________
Integrating Technology in the
Church:
"John Paul II wrote: "…the Church is
not only called upon to use the mass
media to spread the Gospel but, today
more than ever, to integrate the
message of salvation into the "new
culture" that these powerful means
of communication create and
amplify." (source: http://www.officialcatholicdirectory.com/special-feature-article/new-media-and-the-church.html -Karen A. Walker)
not only called upon to use the mass
media to spread the Gospel but, today
more than ever, to integrate the
message of salvation into the "new
culture" that these powerful means
of communication create and
amplify." (source: http://www.officialcatholicdirectory.com/special-feature-article/new-media-and-the-church.html -Karen A. Walker)
If 20 percent of the population can't
hear the media, we need CC on
DVD's, TV and internet.
______________________________________________________________________
hear the media, we need CC on
DVD's, TV and internet.
______________________________________________________________________
"It's not enough to know Christ, we must bring him to everyone!" - Pope St. John Paul II
_________________________________
"The reference was to Mark 16:15 — Go
throughout the whole
world and preach the gospel to all mankind.
“He didn’t say, ‘Leave out some of the people,’
” Fr. Robinson
said." (Source: http://www.northtexascatholic.org/pages/features-article?r=J53ELUMU61)
” Fr. Robinson
said." (Source: http://www.northtexascatholic.org/pages/features-article?r=J53ELUMU61)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Captioning Shares the Message
____________________________________
How do you make it Inclusive to all those
who are deaf and hard of hearing?:
"However, in order to serve ALL deaf, hard of hearing,
the hearing impaired or people with hearing loss
(whichever terms you choose), all of these accessible
solutions need to be provided, and the Deaf and
hearing impaired should always be placed down front
where they can use their eyes to see to hear and the
audio amplifiers to be picked up by their assistive
devices. Captions should be on the wall or a screen for
those who need to read what is being said."
(Source: http://limpingchicken.com/2014/01/16/deaf-discrimination-to-deaf/)
__________________________________________________
" For some congregations, universal design and
accommodation
may seem to be at odds with the most efficient means
for reaching
for reaching
the most people with the gospel. However, fulfilling the
Great
Commission cannot neglect the great commandment toGreat
love one
another (Luke 10:27-37; 1 John 4:20)."
_________________________________________________________________
"We depend on captions for television, movies, relay phone calls, live theater and meetings, etc. However, captions are lacking at churches and synagogues. As a result we no longer attend. We feel excluded from the spiritual communities." (Source: http://xpressivehandz.blogspot.com/2014/07/why-churches-and-synagogues-need-to.html)
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Captioning Shares the Message
__________________________
form of disability, and many people naturally
join this group as they grow older and experience
loss of vision, hearing, or mobility, so the need
for accessibility can end up benefitting many
members of the parish."
_____________________________________________________________________________________
"…Our world is really suffering from
indifference. Indifference is apathy, not
caring. I wonder maybe if our Lord does
not suffer more from our indifference,
than he did from the Crucifixion.”
- Archbishop Fulton Sheen
- (Source: http://www.integratedcatholiclife.org/2012/05/randy-hain-escape-from-apathy-ville/#sthash.j6RXN8iG.dpuf)
___________________________________________________________________________
"…It sometimes feels as if there is no
awareness of how a disabled person
could enter into the worship
experience." (Source: http://julieclawson.com/2010/07/23/americans-with-disabilities-and-the-church/)
___________________________________________________________________
awareness of how a disabled person
could enter into the worship
experience." (Source: http://julieclawson.com/2010/07/23/americans-with-disabilities-and-the-church/)
___________________________________________________________________
"It sounds crazy that many of our places
of worship don't think about accessibility
and inclusion," Starnes says. "
__________________________________________________________________
"The church has a wonderful theology
and heart. ... We don't always live it out
well,"
said Anne Masters, the director of
pastoral ministry with persons with
disabilities for
the Archdiocese of Newark. "
(Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/30/autism-in-the-church-grow_n_855677.html)
and heart. ... We don't always live it out
well,"
said Anne Masters, the director of
pastoral ministry with persons with
disabilities for
the Archdiocese of Newark. "
(Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/30/autism-in-the-church-grow_n_855677.html)
_______________________________
"We want people with any disability to be nourished in the faith and to be able to contribute to the life of the parish community," Benton said. (Source: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1003026.htm)
______________________________________________________________________________________
Church Drop outs:
"About 90 percent of church members and constituents living with any of these forms of hearing loss become church dropouts. The culprit is the not uncommon failure of churches to be "hearing-accessible. "
Source: ( http://gbgm-umc.org/disc/sosbook.stm)
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"Those benefitting from these stenography services include U.S. military and war veterans who suffer hearing loss sustained from being in close proximity to explosions or from repeatedly operating loud weaponry. "- See more at: http://www.stenotype.edu/news/stenographers-captioning-and-cart-professionals-celebrate-october-as-disability-employment-awareness-month/#sthash.6PfiBdEN.dpuf
________________________________________________________
Using a 'Smart Board' for the deaf and hard of
hearing with the CART at a church service -now
that is being REALLY SMART! :
_______________________________________________________
“Every baptised person, by virtue of baptism itself, has the right to receive from the Church a teaching and formation which permits them to attain a true Christian life”.(CT 14).
__________________________________________________________________
Captioning is a Universal Design Access:
_________________________________________________________
Who Do You Say that I am?:
A short film: See http://www.archmil.org/Synod2014/Sessions/Videos/Beauty-of-the-Catholic-Church-cc.htm
___________________________________________________________________
The Deaf/deaf/HOH need Universal Access:
"When designing a space or
planning
an event, we need to strive for
universal access—so that all
members of our communities can
attend and participate. This means
that, in addition to ramps and
elevators, we need assistive
listening technology like hearing
loops and captions, and signage
that makes it clear that the service
is available. This is a goal that we
can achieve, but in order to do so,
we need to change the way we
think about communication and
hearing access. "
- See more at: http://agewisekin
gcounty.org/en/134/1/661/Too-Many-People-with-Hearing-Loss-Miss-Out.htm#sthash.em7Uhug6.nW91Nm7I.dpuf
(Source: http://agewisekingcounty.org/en/134/1/661/Too-Many-People-with-Hearing-Loss-Miss-
___________________________________________________________________________
Captioning the Word: See http://captioningtheword.com
_________________________________________________________
Captioning is the language of many who are
deaf and hard of hearing
_________________________________
Hearing Loss Association of America – The Nation's Voice for people with hearing loss: See http://www.hearingloss.org
______________________________________
The Association of Late Deafened Adults (really anyone deaf of any age onset): See http://www.alda.org
____________________________________
"Start by doing what is necessary, then do what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible." -St. Francis of Assisi
 |
| Lord Hear Our Prayer |
100,000 Christians are Killed – PER YEAR ANNUALLY- because of their Faith Per Vatican: See http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/06/02/vatican-spokesman-claims-100000-christians-killed-annually-because-faith/
RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION, MORE WIDESPREAD TODAY THAN 1700 YEARS AGO (Source: http://www.visnews-en.blogspot.com/2014/06/religious-persecution-more-widespread.html)
___________________________________________________________
Come Pray the Rosary with others - together Online: http://www.comepraytherosary.org
(text guided version offered to follow along)
_________________________________
Caption Catholic Tidbits:
What is section 508?: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_508_Amendment_to_the_Rehabilitation_Act_of_1973
Catholic bridge: http://www.catholicbridge.com
Bouncing back to the Church: http://www.catholic.org/hf/faith/story.php?id=53419
Bouncing back to the Church: http://www.catholic.org/hf/faith/story.php?id=53419
__________________________________________________________________________________________Inclusivity for all: See https://www.captionfirst.com/Universal_Design__________________________________________"Of all the barriers to full participation and inclusion, the barrier of unexamined attitudes is the most difficult to address," states Ginny Thornburgh, director of the American Association of People with Disabilities' Interfaith Initiative."(Source: http://www.disabilitiesandfaith.org)__________________________________________________________
Catholic Mass for the deaf and hard of hearing:
"For the Deaf or Hard of Hearing:Arrange for seating the Deaf community in thefront, near thespeaker.Arrange for interpreter or real time captioningservices atleasttwo weeks in advance.Utilize room amplification system or personalamplificationsystem.Provide all materials to the interpreter or CARTreporter oneweek in advance.Provide bright lighting. Avoid creating a specialatmospherewith dim lighting."(Source: http://www.dioslc.org/ministries/disabilities/guidelines-for-accommodating-people-with-disabilities)________________________________________________________US Bishop Statement:
'It is essential that all forms of the liturgy be completely accessible to people with disabilities, since these forms are the essence of the spiritual tie that binds the Christian community together'
(Source: http://www.disabilityawarenesstraining.com/component/content/article/3/40)_________________________________________________________________The purpose of this blog is to raise Diversity Awareness among those with hearing loss and deafness, and to raise awareness that many with hearing loss are being excluded from full participation at the Mass if the church does not have Captioning. Catholics with hearing loss deserve the fullness of their faith. Does your Diocese/Archdiocese have at least one Mass service in Captioning at a church that one who benefits from it can reasonably travel to in order to fully and actively participate at the Mass? Contact your Diocese/Archdiocese - find it here: http://www.usccb.org/about/bishops-and-dioceses/all-dioceses.cfm.)Is your church or Diocese/Archdiocese inclusive to all those with hearing loss and deafness by providing Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops? If not - Diversity and Inclusion Awareness is needed in order to share the joy of the gospel by applying Universal Communication Access. It is very important to share the Word of God with everyone. Let's pray for that!Prayer of Inclusion: http://www.ncpd.org/ministries-programs/spirituality/prayers"Be not Afraid, Open Wide the Gates" - Pope St. John Paul II
(Source: http://jp2forum.blogspot.com/2013/12/be-not-afraid-resounding-from-1531-to.html)
CC-Caption Catholic
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