The Voice of One Blogging in the Desert
  • Chris AllenChris Allen
    Posts: 150
    Inspired by the large number of bloggers at the Colloquium, I invite y'all to Clamator in Deserta. Quality and quantity of posts not guaranteed, unfortunately....
  • miacoyne
    Posts: 1,805
    Very interesting post on the Mass for Deaf people. I have been in a parish where there are seperate pews reserved for deaf people and a sign language expert translating in front of them. It is nice to accommodate them since they are parishioners. But when the whole congregation sing "Halle, Halle, Halle...' with hand clapping and sign language that has hand and arms going up and down, even the priest joins, it was too much. I wonder there's any guidelines about this sort of thing. I noticed that sign language and hand gestures are used pretty often, expecially among children's choir at the Mass. I think we need to watch out. (I have to confess I did use it for children during children's Mass, when I didn't know better,and it was fun. I feel very sorry about that.)
  • Donnaswan
    Posts: 585
    We used to have an associate Pastor who was extremely proficient in signing. When he said Mass, he signed absolutely everything as he was reciting. Needless to say, Mass was always longer than some considered desirable, but I learned long ago not to wear a watch during church! We also had signers for the main Sunday Mass once a month and for one of the Christmas Eve Masses. We no longer have enough deaf in the congregation to warrant it.

    Donna
  • miacoyne
    Posts: 1,805
    How does the celebrant hold up the host duirng the consecration and do signing?
  • Chris AllenChris Allen
    Posts: 150
    Mia: He didn't. A laywoman standing next to him at the altar handled and elevated the vessels during the consecration while the celebrant both spoke and signed the text. That, plus the priest's somewhat ad-libbed words of consecration over (well, under the circumstances, more like well to one side of) the Host, led me to doubt that this was a valid consecration, so I didn't go up for Communion.
  • JamJam
    Posts: 636
    ...

    I can't even properly respond to that kind of thing anymore...
  • GavinGavin
    Posts: 2,799
    Have no doubts, Charles, that had to be an invalid consecration (not to mention probably an illicit Mass given the implication of female ordination).

    At any rate, perhaps we should discuss what legitimate choices exist (if any) for allowing the hearing-impaired to fully participate in Mass? I don't like the person up from signing everything, but is their only recourse to just sit and read the missal?
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