Nigerian church for the deaf offers people a sense of community

Africanews (in English)

Nigerian church for the deaf offers people a sense of community  It is estimated that over 9 million of Nigeria’s 232 million citizens are deaf or living with hearing impairment.  READ MORE : http://www.africanews.com/2025/08/05/nigerian-church-for-the-deaf-offers-people-a-sense-of-community  Subscribe on our Dailymotion channel and receive all the latest news from the continent.    Africanews is available in English and French.  Website : www.africanews.com  Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/africanews.channel/  Twitter : https://twitter.com/africanews

Transcript

00:00To the beat of drums, the congregation of this Lagos church are worshipping using sign language.

00:09It's a branch of the Christian Mission for the Deaf,

00:12a church for deaf and mute people in Simolu, a suburb of Nigeria's largest city.

00:18It's offering them a sense of community in a society where the perception of people with disabilities

00:23is influenced by traditional beliefs or is even seen as a divine punishment.

00:30African society believed that deafness or blindness or any disability was a curse.

00:40So they took people to churches or fetish priests looking for a miracle.

00:47But it doesn't work like that.

00:50The fact that we can communicate with our hands, sign language, is the miracle itself.

00:57Started in 1956 during the colonial period, the church has a teaching unit for sign language

01:02and also serves as a learning centre, which Akhenremi says is vital to help deaf people understand the world better.

01:09The deaf church has a great importance for us, the deaf, because with it we come to know Christ.

01:22And it also provides us with a community for people like ourselves,

01:28whereas before we were living in isolation with our families.

01:34They don't know that there are other deaf people we can relate to.

01:40That is the importance of sign language and also the importance of the church.

01:50It's estimated that over 9 million of Nigeria's 232 million citizens are deaf or living with hearing impairment.

01:58It's important to respectけ.

02:00And there is no gap in religion.

02:02No match وهbrecht for deaf people.

02:03Your extraordinarily

02:09And there is no Laser Advisor with all that stuff.

02:15There is no problem for black and white dogs.

02:17This is still money for black people.

02:19Email the fout.

02:20isesat st.

02:21You are having a conversation with those people

02:23Both of you am blij17.

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