AN EVALUATION OF THE CHALLENGES IN THE RELIGIOUS SETTING ENCOUNTERED BY THE DEAF CHURCH MINISTRY, NAMIREMBE DIOCESE, KAMPALA DISTRICT
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 Introduction
The study is aimed at exploring challenges in the religious setting encountered by the deaf church ministry, Namirembe, Kampala District. This chapter presents the background to the study, the statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions, scope of the study, significance and limitation of the study.
1.1 Background of the Study
Religious setting is defined as a setting which deals with church services, where many religious activities such as weddings, baptisms, funerals, holydays, may happen in a church. While other religious activities are carried outside the church, these include seminars, retreats, counseling sessions, meetings, and others based on the religious theme.
Therefore challenges in the religious setting are those problematic situations that may occur within the church activities. These may be considered to be beyond the working abilities of the deaf church priests with divine responsibilities to lead parishioners who are deaf in serving God.
Namirembe Diocese is the oldest diocese in the province of the church of Uganda and its centrally located. It started in 1897 as the diocese of Uganda until it acquired the Name “Namirembe Diocese” in 1960. In the deaf church ministry, Namirembe diocese in Kampala district, deaf priests have appropriate signing abilities who can hold their communication with other deaf church members.
Namirembe diocese comprises of the majority hearing congregation without signing abilities. These comprise of the church administration (priests, bishops, canans etc) and staff with divine responsibilities toward their duties in serving God in different departments backed by religious organizations.
It’s therefore not known whether communication barriers may in one way or another limit their divine ministry in other areas. It is anticipated that this group of the congregation may lag behind and left out in a variety of religious activities necessary for deaf ministry to work effectively. It is for this reason that the researcher seeks to explore the challenges encountered by deaf priests involved in the ministry of church when working with the majority hearing congregation at Namirembe diocese, Kampala district.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Despite Namirembe diocese being able to train priests in sign language which they mutually understand, the ministry has not been able to fully utilise the technology available such as the hearing aids and other technologies for the benefit of the deaf community. The lack of these gadgets sees deaf people relegated to the periphery and ostracized from society and the church. This has created made many deaf people to have little access to the word of God and has been the reason for the few attendances of deaf people in the ministry. Therefore, the researcher seeks to explore the challenges encountered by deaf priests involved in the church ministry of church when working with the majority hearing congregation at Namirembe diocese, Kampala district.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The study is aimed at exploring challenges in the religious setting encountered by the deaf church ministry, Namirembe, Kampala district.
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The study will be guided by the following research objectives;
- To find out the challenges encountered by deaf priests in ministering with their hearing priests.
- To examine whether communication barriers limit deaf priest’s divine ministry in a variety of religious activities within and outside the church.
- To suggest the different measures that can be employed to improve the deaf church ministry.
1.5 Research Questions
The following questions will guide the study:
- What challenges are encountered by deaf priests in ministering with their hearing priests?
- Do communication barriers limit deaf priest’s divine ministry in a variety of religious activities within and outside the church?
- What different measures can be employed to improve the deaf church ministry?
1.6 Scope of the Study
The study will be carried out at Namirembe Diocese, Kampala district. Namirembe Diocese is the oldest diocese in the province of the church of Uganda and its centrally located in Central Division. The study will be carried for a period of four months from February to May in 2017 The study will aim at exploring challenges in the religious setting encountered by the deaf church ministry at Namirembe, Kampala District. Emphasis will be to find out on finding out the challenges encountered by deaf priests ministering with their hearing priests of religious activities within and outside the church.
1.7 Significance of the Study
It is hoped that the study findings will have the following significances to the under mentioned beneficiaries:
- The findings may provide policymakers in the church ministry with information that can be used to improve the deaf church ministry.
- Deaf priests may use the findings to identify strategies that can be adopted to minimize the challenges they undergo while ministering with the hearing priests.
- Deaf people may find the study findings important since it may suggest more and better ways of improving the deaf church ministry.
- Future researchers may use the study findings as a source of useful information.
1.8 Limitation of the Study
The study will be faced with the following limitations:
- This unrealistic expectation from the respondents is also another problem the researcher will face. It is argued that very many people will expect too much thing from researcher for example money etc, yet the researcher is totally student who does not have money. The researcher will convince the respondents that the information required will be used for academic purposes only.
- The researcher may be faced with lack of text books in the library. However, she will source information from the internet, newspapers and previous reports.
- The field of study is still new that no researchers have conducted studies in this field.
CHAPTER TWO
This chapter reviews the existing literature put forward by different scholars and personalities as well as critically analyzing the deviations in the explanations to find out the research gap in the study variablesbased on secondary sources like text books, internet, newspaper, report at the company, and journals.
2.1 The challenges encountered by deaf priests in ministering with their hearing priests
It is an undeniable truth that the Catholic Church has done a lot in improving the lives of people with disabilities especially in areas of education, social and spiritual ministries. One of the plausible church initiatives is the establishment of the Deaf Ministry in Namirembe which has done a tremendous job in making the deaf community feel part of the church.
Although a lot has been done, deaf people still feel that the Deaf Ministry needs to be further capacitated to ensure that it fully caters for their needs. They argue that the ministry has not been able to fully utilise the technology available such as the hearing aids and other technologies for the benefit of the deaf community. The lack of these gadgets sees deaf people relegated to the periphery and ostracized from society and the church (Mauricio, 2012). According to the researcher, I agree with the above statement since Namirembe church uses less technology while ministering in the church.
Majority of deaf people don’t have access to education (sign language) that would make them progress in life and feel part of society too. As a result of lack of sign language education, effective communication becomes a big challenge even in the church ministry. As the researcher, I agree with the statement since without access to sign language, deaf priests find it hard to communicate with the congregation.
Fr. John Turner of the Congregation of the Missionaries of Mariann hill (CMM), who ministers a congregation of the deaf in Mariann hill, knows only too well about the stressful experiences and obstacles faced by the deaf. In that, it is always painful and frustrating to encounter discrimination and being labeled disabled person because of loss of hearing.
The Mariann hill Catholic Deaf Mission, where Fr. Turner ministers is the first of its kind in the whole of Southern Africa and the only hope that deaf people have. According to Fr. Turner, the success of this ministry would not have been possible without the assistance of the CMM, who for the past three decades have cared for the spiritual needs of the deaf people.
Fr. Turner, who is also severely deaf, has been working with the deaf people for over three decades now. He said when he began his ministry in 1978, there were hardly many deaf people around. However, as he travels across the country as part of his ministry and even to the neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, Swaziland and Zimbabwe, it is evident that the number of deaf community is growing rapidly. As a researcher, I agree since this is an indication that there is tremendous spiritual need for the deaf in South Africa as many of them die without having heard the gospel of Jesus Christ during their life time.
More than 99% of these people have no access to the sermons preached in church. The challenge for the future, according to Fr Turner, is for the church to be able to train deaf Catholics and Christians in sign language which they mutually understand. There is an urgent need for the establishment of a college for the deaf, to train them and help them to be placed as missionaries in their communities.
Language Difficulties: written English is based on the spoken word. Reading, writing and comprehension all require a higher language focus. Children who only learn to sign have trouble understanding priests. The Gallaudet Research Institute in Washington, D.C., tested a group of 926 deaf students, ages 17 to 18, in reading comprehension skills. The results of their tests were equivalent to those of the same tests given to hearing children in the fourth grade. The median literacy level of the deaf 17- to 18-year-olds was the same as hearing 8- to 9-year-olds in public schools. It’s important to note that these tests were based on comprehension skills of the English language and not I.Q.
Education: the World Federation of the Deaf, or WFD, was established in Rome in 1951. It is an international community that strives for equality, human rights and respect for all people, with a focus on deaf individuals. Better education is highest on the WFD agenda. Federal monies are lacking for most special needs children with disabilities. The Individuals Disability Education Act from the 1970s states that all children should be provided with a free and appropriate education. The problem is getting parents and schools to agree on what “appropriate” means. Proponents reason that, if a child is bright and capable of learning but learns in a different way than typical children, providing them equal education rights should be adhered to by law.
2.2 How communication barriers limit deaf priest’s divine ministry in a variety of religious activities within and outside the church.
The main function of language is to communicate. Communication is very important in maintaining relationships. It is a means of sharing ideas and emotions which involves sending and receiving messages. Expression of sharing ideas and feelings can be expressed orally or manually by use of spoken language or signs (Jitolee, 2007). Some of the communication modes that are used in delivering content to the HI according to Luterman, (2002), include the following:
Even though Simultaneous Communication (SC) is popular in most institutions, studies have revealed that during its use, priests fail to represent spoken language accurately due to modality difference, that is, vocal and gestural output. Johnson, Liddel and Erting (1989) argue that it suffers not only from distortion, but also from omission of obligatory words, which do not fit the rhythmic pattern of spoken languages. I agree with the above, as it also applies in most deaf church ministries in Uganda.
Ndurumo, (2009) observes that deaf have inability to grasp information during church services when speech and speech reading are being used as methods of communication. The oral methods have several shortfalls alongside the other communication methods. For example, articulation, lip reading and use of hearing aids are other methods that are equally challengeable, as they require the input of specialists such as educational audiologists speech therapists and auto-laryngologists than teachers to use them. This makes the church ministry both complex and expensive and yet they must be taught Godly ways. Therefore, a variety of methods should be used that include concept formation for communication to take place. I agree with the above, as it also applies in most deaf church ministries in Uganda.
According to Kiyaga (2003) most priests lack appropriate training and relevant skills which are necessary to work effectively with hearing impairments. The office of demographic studies reports that the average reading level of HI learners when they leave school at the age of nineteen hovers at the fourth grade and world data show similar reading levels for HI students learning other languages (other than English) in other countries. I agree with the above, as it also applies in most deaf church ministries in Uganda.
2.3 The different measures that can be employed to improve the deaf church ministry
More than 99% of these people have no access to the sermons preached in church. The challenge for the future, according to Fr Turner, is for the church to be able to train deaf Catholics and Christians in sign language which they mutually understand. There is an urgent need for the establishment of a college for the deaf, to train them and help them to be placed as missionaries in their communities.
There are several technologies that can be used to help in communicating to deaf people. This includes provision of hearing aids, radio frequency system, cochlear implant, use of computer and projectors. Assistive Learning Devices consist of a transmitter that sends electronically enhanced sound to receivers worn by individuals who are HI(Moeller, 2000).
Other technologies include the use of Computer-Aided RealTime Translation (CART), which uses a stenotype machine with a phonetic keyboard and special software that translates phonetic symbols into English captions almost instantaneously. These facilities may not be available in most churches in Uganda, and if available classes may be fitted with a loop induction system which enables learners using hearing aids to have direct input from the teacher‘s microphone, thus eliminating background noise. Audiotapes, videotapes and other auditory materials can be translated into print format to make them accessible when teaching, (Moeller, 2000). Captioning is another method where technology is used and has been discussed in the proceeding section. As a researcher, I argue that the above is put ion most practice in Namirembe church to ease communication during church service.
The reading difficulties that people with hearing impairments encounter are most likely related to delays in the acquisition of the spoken language. Reading is a process that is dependent on the language that provides the basis of the writing system, especially during the early stages of acquisition (Perfetti&Sandak, 2000). In these early stages, hearing people learn that written and spoken words consist of smaller elements, letters and sounds (phonological and orthographic awareness).
Phonological awareness and orthographic awareness are important prerequisites for mastering the alphabetic principle (Stanovich, 2000), the principle that individual letters map onto individual sounds. People with hearing impairments must be able to decode, independently (without the support of their parents or teachers), the meaning of the many unknown words they are bound to encounter during reading. As a researcher, I agree that this applied in church ministries to ease communication in deaf church ministries in Uganda.
CHAPTER THREE
This chapter presents the methodology to be used in the study and includes the research design, area of the study, study population, sample size, sample techniques, the data collection methods and instruments, the procedures of data collection, validity and reliability, data processing and analysis and ethical considerations.
The study will use qualitative research design. Its main objective is to describe the variation in a phenomenon, situation or attitude like description of an observed situation, or opinions. Qualitative research design helps to capture qualitative data, based on qualitative aspects that cannot be quantified. It aids in discovering the motives and desires or what people think and how they feel about a given subject or situation. The research will use qualitative research design because it allows flexibility in all aspects of the research process and it is more appropriate to explore the nature of a problem, issue or phenomenon without quantifying it.
According to Baron, (2011), population constitutes of individuals, organizations, groups, communities or other units that provide information or to collect information about the study. This will include deaf priests, hearing priests, sign language interpreter, church leaders and other church members.
The sample refers to a few items selected from the universe or population for study purposes, (Baron, 2011). The study used a total of 20 respondents to provide a manageable volume of data and allow the researcher to make accurate estimates of thoughts and behavior of a larger population.
Table 1. Showing Sample of the study
| Respondent | Population | No. of respondents |
| Deaf priests | 1 | 1 |
| Hearing priests | 2 | 2 |
| Interpreter | 1 | 1 |
| Church leaders | 15 | 10 |
| Church members | 100 | 6 |
| Total | 119 | 20 |
The study will use purposive sampling which is the deliberate selection of respondents. In this study, deaf priests and hearing priests will be selected purposively because the researcher will choose the sample based on who she thinks will be appropriate for the study. The interpreter, church leaders and church members will be selected using convenient sampling because it will involve selecting them by virtue of their positions.
3.5 Data collection methods and instruments
Interviews
The main method of data collection will be interview.
Cohon and Manioh (1989) qualify interview to be a conservation initiated by the interviewer for specific purpose of obtaining research relevant information and focuses on content specified by research objectives of specific description. Semi-structured interviews will be used to generate information from the respondents. This method is chosen because it helps in the collection of more data as it allows the interaction of both the researcher and the respondents. It is cheap and does not waste much time.
An interview guide will be used for the in-depth interviews with respondents. The interview guide will be developed based on the objectives.
Informal observation
Informal observation is usually done when the researcher has little knowledge of a population and its behaviour. The main purpose of informal observation is to create hypotheses to be tested later, in a survey or using for a survey. This method involves watching and listening to people.
3.6 Procedure of Data Collection
The researcher will ensure the approval of the research proposal and instruments especially the interview guide to test their effectiveness in carrying out the study;
- The researcher will get a letter of introduction from the head of department for introducing her to the area of study;
- The letter will be presented to the town council authorities to seek for permission to collect data from the area;
- She will prepare other letters to individual respondents requesting their willingness to participate in the study;
- The researcher also will present herself to the area of the study and give respondents their consent letters;
- Then actual data collection on arrival to the area will be carried out;
- The researcher will arrange with the local leader and explain her visit and will carry on with interviews with each interview lasting between 15 to 30 minutes.
3.7 Validity and reliability of research instruments
To test the validity, citations of all sources where materials and evidence of material collected from will be provided. The supervisor will review the research tools and approve them.
When conducting research, the researcher will try to act as neutral as possible in order to avoid being bias. The researcher will also be conscious about the type of questions to ask.
3.8 Data processing, presentation and analysis
Data collected will be sorted, edited and coded so as to obtain a reasonable judgment. Data will be edited to check the completeness of the respondents’ responses with the purpose of detecting and eliminating errors and identifying vital information that is essential in coding and tabulation and finally data will be entered.
Data Presentation
The data will be presented using percentages and tables according to objectives of the study to come up with the conclusions and recommendations.
The data will be qualitatively analysed. It will involve transcribing interview data, identifying the major themes arising from the respondents’ answers; assigning codes to these themes; classification of the major responses under the main theme; and integrating the responses into the report in a descriptive and analytical manner.
3.9 Ethical Considerations
The researcher will maintain confidentiality of respondents’ information; and will report the true findings of the study without any bias.
The researcher also will collect data upon seeking respondents’ consent after revealing the type of information needed and the purpose to avoid potential concealment of vital information.
