{"id":408,"date":"2016-03-25T13:37:06","date_gmt":"2016-03-25T12:37:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsscreenng.wordpress.com\/?p=408"},"modified":"2016-03-25T13:37:06","modified_gmt":"2016-03-25T12:37:06","slug":"when-the-deaf-pray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/when-the-deaf-pray\/","title":{"rendered":"When the deaf pray\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"deaf\"<\/p>\n

Some years ago, the Lagos State Government, South West Nigeria, sealed some worship centres for their failure to comply with regulations regarding noise pollution. The deaf in Nigeria, numbering about 9 million people are also shared among the various religious groups and operating their own worship centres.\u00a0 If God hears the deaf who worship in silence, using the sign language, the hearing may have no excuse to engage in noise pollution in the name of calling on God.\u00a0DAYO EMMANUEL visited the Assembly of Deaf Church, becoming the \u2018deaf\u2019 in their midst, he reports.<\/p>\n

A cold and noisy Sunday morning it was. Blaring megaphones pierce the innocent air. High praises and loud prayers from various worship centres enveloped the atmosphere. Such is a major feature of a typical Sunday morning in the Lagos metropolis, home to over 17.5 million people according to a 2011 survey.<\/p>\n

Despite the noisy compound hosting a couple of churches in Gowon Estate area of the metropolis, it was also a Sunday morning in one of the class rooms of Palmville Schools, where a group of deaf men and women gathered in a silent but sign-full worship.<\/p>\n

The Assemblies of God Deaf church is the church for the deaf.\u00a0 The service began with a Bible study titled \u201cGod\u2019s Promises for those who pray.\u201d Bible text for the day was Mathew 7:7-11 and the congregation, numbering about 30 adults had a deep discussion on prayer.<\/p>\n

The deaf seem to have a deep understanding of God\u2019s word as they interacted, asking relevant questions. Obviously, there was no distraction from the noise of public address systems of neighbouring churches and the church for the deaf seems to be cheaper to run with the absence of a public address system or musical instruments which are needless in their sincere worship to God.<\/p>\n

Soon it was question time and a brother asked, \u201cif I pray for more than two or three years without answer, what do I do?\u201d\u00a0 The teacher was prompt to answer, \u201cGod knows the thoughts of man and answers are delayed because of unbelief\u201d other members took turn to ask bothering questions on prayer which were all answered scripturally.<\/p>\n

Pastor of the congregation, Kenneth Yero took over the podium as he led the congregation in a powerful prayer session.\u00a0 Yero is deaf, but not dumb as he could totter his words which were accompanied by sign language.<\/p>\n

According to him, he became deaf at age five and he had lived with such disability ever since.\u00a0 He led his congregation in a passionate prayer for the unity of the church in Nigeria, for the leadership of the country and Lagos State, because, according to him, \u201cit is in the peace of the nation that the deaf could have their peace and develop.\u201d \u201cPray for the church in Nigeria, because God will build His church and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it,\u201d he urged.\u00a0 Despite their disability, Yero asked the congregation to pray that the presence of God envelopes all churches worshiping across the world. He In his sermon, \u201cthe God that answers by fire\u201d, the Adamawa born cleric described God as a prayer answering God who only answers to those who call upon Him in faith.\u00a0 The pastor seems to wield a great influence among his members who took turn to seek counsel after the service.\u00a0 The deaf also had a nice time in the presence of God, singing and dancing in sign language.<\/p>

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According to Yero, the Assemblies of God Deaf Church was inaugurated in 1998 and was later adopted by the Assemblies of God Church. \u201cThe mission is to preach the gospel to those who are lost and to reach those who are blind to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Unemployment is a major plague among the deaf in Nigeria which has made quite a lot of them take to begging along major streets, public buildings and bus stations. The situation has also exposed the deaf in the country, especially the female members to untold hardship including sexual abuse which they keep suffering in silence.<\/p>\n

The 2006 national headcount had put the figure of the deaf in Nigeria at about 9 million persons, the equivalence of the population of Holland.\u00a0 Their disability is however no fault of theirs and this army of disabled but sometimes able people have often proved to be equal to their hearing counterparts who often discriminate against them.<\/p>\n

Adewale Adeyanju is the President of National Handicap Carers Association (NAHCAN), a non governmental organisation that sees to the welfare of persons with disabilities in Nigeria.\u00a0 Adeyanju, an activist and social worker has traveled locally and internationally on disability issues. He is of the opinion that the government has not done enough to cushion the effect of the hardship among people living with disabilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are sad when we keep reading about several millions of Naira belonging to the public being siphoned through private accounts while we keep wallowing in poverty,\u201d Adeyanju said. The activist, who had been at the fore front of a rape case involving a deaf woman has pointed poverty as a factor endangering the deaf in Nigeria. \u201cWe are currently in the Magistrate Court to defend a deaf woman who was raped repeatedly, it is a serious issue and we have to defend her, seriously speaking, we need help on the rape case for justice to be done,\u201d he pleaded.<\/p>\n

The hearing impaired activist stated further that, \u201cin civilized countries, the deaf for instance do not need to struggle to survive like we do in Nigeria because there is enough legislation to support them but here in Nigeria, things are hard for the people with disabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adeyanju who also runs the Sign Language Communications Technology, a counseling and mentoring outfit for the deaf holds a National Certificate of Education (NCE) in special education.\u00a0 He also complained that, \u201ceven when the deaf or other disabled people are qualified for a job, we are often marginalised and discriminated against, leading to more poverty in the community of the deaf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pastor Yero is of the opinion that disability is not a punishment from God and God does not discriminate because He has created all humans in His image and likeness. \u201cSometimes, disabilities come as a result of human errors and people with disabilities should be showed care and affection,\u201d he said, adding that, \u201cthe same way God hears the prayers of the able bodied people is the way He also answers people with disabilities. It is not the amount of noise you make in prayers that guarantees your answers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some years ago, the Lagos State Government, South West Nigeria, sealed some worship centres for their failure to comply with regulations regarding noise pollution. The deaf in Nigeria, numbering about 9 million people are also shared among the various religious groups and operating their own worship centres.\u00a0 If God hears the deaf who worship in …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[320,321,322,323,324,325],"coauthors":[2392,2393],"class_list":["post-408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-feature","tag-adewale-adeyanju","tag-assembly-of-deaf-church","tag-deaf","tag-kenneth-yero","tag-national-handicap-carers-association-nahcan","tag-sign-language-communications-technology"],"yoast_head":"\nWhen the deaf pray\u2026 - National Wire<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/when-the-deaf-pray\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"When the deaf pray\u2026 - National Wire\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Some years ago, the Lagos State Government, South West Nigeria, sealed some worship centres for their failure to comply with regulations regarding noise pollution. 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