Rev. Dr. Tom Hudspeth and his church members are used to navigating a world made for hearing people. They are part of SEEDS (Serving Educating Evangelizing Deaf Seekers) Deaf Mission Church UMC, a new congregation born out of a 25-year ministry and fellowship for d/Deaf individuals at Lovers Lane and Walnut Hill United Methodist Churches in Dallas, Texas. Over the last few months, they’ve begun transitioning from a hearing, interpreted worship service to a Deaf-led, Deaf-owned mission ministry to “Share the Love of Christ with the d/Deaf near and far.”
When they found out about the Foundation’s Thriving Congregations Local Church Cohorts, they applied, hopeful that it could help them think through this new beginning of Deaf ministry and being a Deaf church that reaches out to the Deaf and their hearing family members and friends.
Even though the cohort sessions are held online through a Zoom video conference, the SEEDS leadership team worked with the Foundation to hire two American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters to participate along with them during the cohort meetings. Afterward, they take the recordings back to their congregational team to take part in the work that’s done there. The experience has been an affirming one for this growing congregation and an eye-opening experience for the cohort participants from hearing congregations.
The Local Church Cohort sessions are designed to help congregations understand and respond to their contexts, so the instructors constantly assess and adjust the curriculum to be accessible and relevant to participants. Rev. Dr. Heather Lear, vice president for grants and co-instructor for the fall cohort sessions said, “I’m grateful for the privilege of coming alongside SEEDS as they challenge us to consider and adapt further to include audiences who otherwise would be unable to fully engage. It is a blessing to work with a team who seeks to find creative ways to draw the circle wider instead of limiting participation due to a lack of imagination or desire for inclusivity.”
Rev. Hudspeth is optimistic that this cohort will help SEEDS find deeper connections and build relationships in the d/Deaf community. He shared during the first cohort session,
“In the last few months, we’ve had 10 new members and a baptism, and growth in first-time visitors as well. So, I think there is something about building trust with the deaf community – statistics are that only 2% of the Deaf have a relationship with Christ or have a church home…church is seen as a hearing place and not Deaf-friendly. Deaf individuals are often seen as objects of pity, so we’re trying to be an authentic Deaf expression of Christian faith.”
For more about SEEDS Deaf Mission Church, visit their website and Facebook page where they stream their worship services.
