Cracking a Code
For a Deaf person, trying to read God’s Word in printed form can be like trying to crack a code—the words simply don’t make sense. That’s because most Deaf communicate best in a sign language.
A conservative estimate suggests there are about four hundred sign languages worldwide. Each has a unique structure, grammar, and vocabulary, making it vastly different from the spoken, written languages of hearing people.
Barriers to Scripture
The vast majority of these sign languages have no translated Scripture. As a result, millions of Deaf have never experienced God’s Word in a language and form they clearly understand.
In the Americas alone, about thirty Deaf communities in twenty-three countries need translation and language development. Together these communities comprise the largest people group in the Americas without God’s Word.
Equipping Deaf Leaders
God is raising up Deaf men and women to lead a movement of Scripture translation in the Americas. These leaders are passionate and committed to the task—but they need resources. Wycliffe is working with its partners to provide training, mentoring, and funding through a project known as Americas Area Sign Languages: Equipping Hands to Bring Good News.
Your gift will help committed Deaf men and women in the Americas to translate God’s Word into their own language.
Learn more about this project (click to open PDF).