Ancient Faith
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Sign Language at the Liturgy: The Orthodox Christian Deaf Association
40:58
What the video says
Melanie of Ancient Faith Presents interviews Savanna Foster, president of the Orthodox Christian Deaf Association (OCDA). Savanna, an Orthodox Christian since age five at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, became interested in sign language at sixteen after meeting two Deaf people at a Barnes and Noble bookstore, then taught herself ASL through YouTube and immersion at a local Deaf service center.
When her father suggested she start a Deaf ministry, no Orthodox deaf organization existed anywhere, so they founded the OCDA. Later her own hearing deteriorated and she now uses medical hearing aids, making the ministry personal for her. The OCDA has over 600 members worldwide, provides interpreters for Divine Liturgies, livestreams services in ASL, holds catechism classes, and is developing theologically accurate signs for Orthodox terms like Theotokos through a lexicon team under the Assembly of Bishops.
She describes challenges Deaf Orthodox Christians face, the misconception that standing in the pew is enough, memorable liturgies in ASL at their first conference, and hopes for interpreters in every church and accessible theological education. She invites people to visit orthodoxdeaf.org, volunteer, donate, and pray for the ministry.
Key moments
- Savanna became Orthodox at age five through the Greek Archdiocese at St. George in Shreveport, Louisiana.
- At sixteen she saw two people signing at Barnes and Noble, searched YouTube for basic signs, greeted them, and decided to learn ASL through YouTube over the next six months, then immersed herself for six or seven years at a nearby Deaf service center with Deaf friends as her teachers.
- Her father suggested she serve in an Orthodox deaf ministry; unable to find any existing deaf association in the Orthodox world, she and her father founded the OCDA. About three years ago a doctor told her she needs hearing aids, so the ministry became personal to her.
- The OCDA's main goal is making Orthodox services accessible to Deaf and hard of hearing people through interpreters at Liturgy, catechism classes, livestreamed Divine Liturgies in ASL, and conferences. It has over 600 members, including over 60 Deaf or hard of hearing people and 38 to 40 who have inquired about the church, with four to five interpreters livestreaming Liturgies.
- Challenges include the lack of interpreters at services and, discovered early on, the absence of theologically correct Orthodox ASL signs, such as no sign for Theotokos, baptism, or the Cherubim and Seraphim. A lexicon team formed by the OCDA under the Assembly of Bishops created new signs that will soon be presented by Lolla and Hanna to the bishops for approval.
- Savanna rejects the misconception that standing in the pew and watching means a Deaf person can participate; being in the building and accessing what happens are two different things. She compares it to an English speaker attending an Antiochian parish that speaks only Arabic.
- For those interested in Orthodoxy, the OCDA offers free membership, monthly catechism classes (soon one taught by a Deaf person and one by a priest), connections to interpreters or agencies, weekly livestreamed Liturgies with rotating interpreters, welcome meetings, social events, and an annual national conference; the first drew over 50 people in Dallas, the second over 40 in Greenville, South Carolina, and the next is planned for California.
- At the first conference in Dallas at an OCA cathedral, with Bishop Gerasim presiding, the Liturgy in ASL moved her deeply: Deaf participants signing 'Lord have mercy' in response, and tears in their eyes. A priest said sign language is the Word of God incarnate, and she describes this moment as the most beautiful thing she has ever seen.
Melanie of Ancient Faith Presents interviews Savanna Foster, president of the Orthodox Christian Deaf Association (OCDA). Savanna explains how she became Orthodox at age five at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, and learned American Sign Language as a teenager after meeting two Deaf people at a bookstore.
When her father suggested she start a Deaf ministry, she found that no Orthodox deaf organization existed anywhere, so they founded the OCDA. Her own hearing later deteriorated and she now uses hearing aids, which made the ministry personal for her. The association has over 600 members worldwide and works to make Orthodox services accessible to Deaf and hard of hearing people.
It provides interpreters for Divine Liturgies, livestreams services in ASL with rotating interpreters, holds monthly catechism classes, and organizes an annual national conference. A major challenge was the absence of theologically correct Orthodox signs in ASL: there was no sign for Theotokos, baptism, or the Cherubim and Seraphim.
A lexicon team formed by the OCDA under the Assembly of Bishops created new signs that will soon be presented to the bishops for approval. Savanna rejects the idea that standing in the pew is enough for a Deaf person to participate, comparing it to an English speaker attending a parish that speaks only Arabic. She recalls the first conference in Dallas at an OCA cathedral with Bishop Gerasim presiding, where Deaf participants signed 'Lord have mercy' during the Liturgy and a priest called sign language the Word of God incarnate.
She invites listeners to visit the OCDA website, volunteer, donate, and pray for the ministry, and describes hopes for interpreters in every church and accessible theological education for Deaf Orthodox Christians.
Main points
- Savanna Foster learned ASL after meeting two Deaf people at sixteen, then founded the OCDA with her father when no Orthodox deaf organization existed.
- The OCDA has over 600 members, provides Liturgy interpreters, livestreams services in ASL, and holds catechism classes and an annual conference.
- A lexicon team under the Assembly of Bishops created theologically accurate signs for terms like Theotokos, to be presented to the bishops for approval.
- Savanna rejects the idea that standing in the pew means participation, comparing it to an English speaker at an Arabic-only parish.
- At the first conference in Dallas, with Bishop Gerasim presiding, Deaf participants signed 'Lord have mercy' during the Liturgy.