Jamaican Adventist Church for the Deaf in Media Spotlight
3 December 2019 | An Adventist congregation in Jamaica was recently featured in the premier newspaper in the country. The Jamaica Observer spotlighted the unique worship environment in the denomination’s Deaf Church in St. Catherine, southeast Jamaica, which started four years ago and now has an attendance of 35 to 40 worshipers per weekend.
The church was built in the town of Portmore in St. Catherine, which, when the church was founded, had one of the highest concentrations of deaf people in Jamaica.
The church communicates through sign language and incorporates typical church service programming such as praise and worship, as well as sermons.
Coniel Morgan pastors the church and said that due to their hearing challenges, many who attend the church have learning difficulties. He said that the church was trying to help attendees grow in confidence. He added that this takes time and patience.
The congregation has also been able to help with humanitarian needs by feeding worshipers and providing clothes and some other basic services.
In partnership with the Jamaica Association of the Deaf and the government, Deaf Church also hopes to involve congregants in work programs to help provide them with a livelihood.
According to the denomination’s Office of Archives, Statistics and Research, there were 703 churches and a membership of 310,762 in Jamaica as of June 30, 2018.