Should we cancel Columbus Day?

This October, Federal government employees like I will have a day off on Columbus Day.  As a biased Viking family member, I would rather to view that Leif Erikson as the first explorer from Europe to reach North America.  However, that is not a point here.  We honor Christopher Columbus for his courage in both reaching North America and evangelizing the Gospel to Native people there.

Even though some people have threatened to cancel the Columbus Day holiday because it has become for them a symbol of European greed and genocide, in his defense, several historians have shown that Columbus was not a villain. 

What is the Festival of Purim?

Purim is a Jewish holiday that remembers the victory against Persian King Xerxes’s highest official named Haman.  He loathed the Jews, especially Mordecai (a relative of Xerxes’ wife) who had refused to bow down to him.

Haman created a decree that could not be reversed, to have every Jew in Persia annihilated. The king agreed to his plan to kill the Jewish people on a specific day.  Mordecai heard about the plot and sent the message to Queen Esther.

Esther invited Xerxes and Haman to a banquet where eventually she exposed her Jewish heritage to the king, as well as Haman's evil plot to have her and her people annihilated.  Furious, King Xerxes executed Haman on the gallows — the very same gallows Haman had built to kill Mordecai.

Haman’s plot was thwarted, and Mordecai's act of kindness prevailed in the chronicles of the king.  Mordecai was promoted to Haman's high position and Jews were given protection throughout the land. The people celebrated God's tremendous action in protecting the Jews.  The joyous festival of Purim was created.   
          
You can watch the movie about Esther below.  However, the movie is not 100% identical to the Bible.  I highly recommended that you read the Book of Esther in the Bible.  Pray that antisemitism in the world will be significantly reduced. 
https://tubitv.com/movies/708192/the-book-of-esther

Letters From Prison (part 1)

The Apostle Paul was confined in prison for several years, but he used that time in productive ministry.  We see some of the fruit of that ministry in his prison letters that the Bible has preserved for us.

Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians to thank them for a financial gift they sent him for his care and comfort in prison.  Ancient prisons were very different than the prisons we know today.  There was no prison commissary.  There were no prison jobs where inmates could earn a little money.  Food, clothing, medicines, and essential supplies all needed to be provided by friends and family (see Acts 24:23).  Without outside help, inmates suffered miserably. 

Christians in Philippi were aware of Paul’s incarceration.  Although they were not wealthy people, they donated what they could.  They put their gift into hands Epaphroditus, of one of their members, to deliver to Paul hundreds of miles away.  While on his way to visit Paul, or after he arrived, Epaphroditus became sick and almost died.  After he recovered, Paul dictated a letter for Epaphroditus to carry back home to Philippi, thanking his friends for their gift. 

In his letter, Paul also reported on his life in prison:  “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has helped to spread the Good News. All the palace guards and everyone else knows that I am in prison because I am a believer in Christ.  Because I am in prison, most of the believers have become more bold in Christ and are not afraid to speak the word of God.” (Philippians 1:12-14)

In spite of Paul’s incarceration, his letter to the Philippians is perhaps the most joyful and encouraging letter in the Bible.  Paul continually points his readers to Christ Jesus, as he reminds us of all that Jesus has done for us.  And Paul reminds us how our relationship with Jesus affects the way we think and act in our daily life.

On September 17, 1862, the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, under the command of General Robert E. Lee, and the Union Army of the Potomac, under the command of General George McClellan, engaged in battle at Antietam Creek at Sharpsburg, Maryland (near Harpers Ferry, MD).  It was the first battle of the war on Union soil.

History looks back on that day as the deadliest battle of the Civil War.  Over 3,675 men died that day (2,108 Union solders; 1,567 Confederate); 17,301 were wounded; and 1,771 were captured or missing.  The combined total losses for both sides was 22,727 men.

Even though more soldiers died and were wounded on the Union side, General Lee and his Confederates were driven back south.  The Battle of Antietam was an important turning point for the Union army.

On that day, September 22, 1862, President Lincoln issued his famous Emancipation Proclamation, giving the rights of life, freedom, and citizenship to all people, regardless of their race, origin, and circumstance, which took effect on January 1, 1863.

September is Deaf Culture Month.
We don’t call it “Awareness Month” or “History Month” because the public already observes two other Deaf annual events being observed at different times during the year.
 
The first is National Deaf History Month (March 13 – April 15), proclaimed 52 years ago, November 1972, by Colorado’s governor, with the support of Colorado Association of the Deaf and the late David Anthony and Jerry Moers, the two first Deaf movers and shakers and heroes ever in American history of Annual Deaf events.   National Deaf History Month.  was endorsed by the American Library Association in  2005 and National Association of the Deaf in 2006.
 
December 3-10, 2024, Clerc-Gallaudet Week, was first proclaimed 50 years ago, December 1974, by the DC Executive Office (now Mayor) with the support of DC Public Library former ASL students, in cooperation with the DC Deaf community and NAD.  It was then called Deaf Awareness Week.  The week now honors the first two visionary leaders in the American history of public education.  Laurent Clerc (Deaf) and Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (hearing) were born in the month of December, on December 26, 1785 and December 10, 1787 respectively.

Our state of Maryland was the first state in America that had its governor signed Deaf Culture Digital Library (DCDL) into state law ten years ago on May 15, 2014, thanks in large part to the efforts of Alec McFarlane, one of several members of the Maryland Governor’s DCDL Task Force.

Then, Librarian Susan F. Cohen of the Montgomery County Public libraries was appointed as the first Coordinator of the DCDL.  The rest is history.

Deaf Culture Trivia
Who was the founder of the first national Deaf convention in America?

While I attended the Wisconsin School for the Deaf in the 1980s-90s, I am thankful that my parent signed a form requiring me to attend a Bible Study on Wednesdays at the church across from the street.  The teachers and pastor provided me a strong foundation of understanding about God and His Word.  The most important thing I learned was that Jesus Christ is our Messiah and to trust Him for the forgiveness of my sins.  Today, I have seen so many young adults who are not affiliated with a religious group because so few parents encourage their children to attend either Bible Study or worship.  Even if parents don’t believe in God, it would be good for children to be exposed to the Gospel. 

Here are visual charts showing that religious activities have positive effects.

This chart indicates that only eight percent of students in Grades 7-12 who worship weekly have ever used hard drugs, while 18 percent of those who never worship admit using hard drugs.

Dr. Mark Regnerus found that weekly religious worship provides educational benefits that are similar to promoting poor children into middle class neighborhoods. 
Jonathan Moreno-Medina assistant professor of applied microeconomics at University of Texas–San Antiono, discovered that church attendance correlated with a decline in drug and alcohol related crimes and white-collar crimes.  He also determined that these correlations were stronger in more religious counties. His research also found that church attendance decreases the consumption of alcohol and drugs.

According to a Duke University study, when fewer people attended church, more people commit at least three crimes—buying drugs, committing forgery, and embezzling money.

~~ Pastor Andy

Did the Noah’s flood cover the whole Earth or just a regional area?
Genesis 7:19-20

Why did it mentioned 20 feet above the mountains?  The main reason was to prevent Noah’s gigantic boat from running aground.

The Bible clearly refers to global flood, not just local flood.  If it was a local flood only, then God would have explained that clearly.  Ponder these few quotes:

• “...the face of the earth (i.e. planet)” (Genesis 6:1)
• “...end of all flesh… the earth is filled with violence.  I will destroy them with the earth.” (Genesis 6:13)
• “I will destroy all flesh wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven, and everything that is in the earth shall die.” (Genesis 6:17). 
• “Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out.” (Genesis 7:23)

It clearly was a global flood. 

God made a special promise that a flood will never destroy the earth again. (Genesis 9:11)  He refers to global flood because we have seen regional floods. 

When you see a rainbow, remember that it is a sign of God’s promise, and praise Him for that promise. (Genesis 9:16-17) 

That’s a question I was asked almost every week by men in a maximum security unit of the Cook County Jail in Chicago. 
     
I answered, “Yes, it does.  The Bible says that murderers can’t go to heaven.  It says that thieves can’t go to heaven.  Liars can’t go to heaven.  Adulterers can’t go to heaven.  Gossips can’t go to heaven.  Those who covet can’t go to heaven.  Now, if you are on that list, welcome to the club.  So am I.  So I guess we are both stuck.  But let me ask you something: Why did Jesus die on the cross?”
     
Every man answered that question with exactly the same words.  “He died for the sins of the world.”
     
“Oh, I see,” I replied.  “Jesus died for the sins of everyone in the world, but not yours.  Is that right?”
     
“No!” each man answered.  “He died for my sins, too!”
     
“And for how many of your sins did Jesus die?” I asked.
     
“All of them!” they said.
     
“Ok, I get it,” I said.  “Jesus died for all of your sins except one.  That’s one sin He will never forgive and so you are just stuck with it.  Is that it?”
     
“NO!” they shouted back at me.  “Jesus died for ALL my sins!”
     
“Yes!  All!  Christ Jesus has forgiven ALL of your sins!  Do you want to know some famous murderers in the Bible?  Moses.  King David.  The Apostle Paul.  If God could forgive, restore, and use these men in His service, God still has a plan for your life, too.”
     
God’s love is so amazing!  He has also forgiven ALL of your sins, and no matter how you have messed up, He still has a good in His service.

~~Pastor Ron

Long ago in ancient times, when a king gave a formal announcement, his statement was engraved (carved) in stone, like we see on many old buildings and also the Ten Commandments. 

But  chiseling stone is no good for everyday writing.  So what did they do?  How did they write?

They scraped the skin very clean and very thin almost like paper.  That animal skin for writing is called parchment.
The Hebrew language is written right to left.  They wrote in columns. When the ink was dry, they rolled up the parchment.  That made a scroll.

And when they needed to add more columns, they sewed on another animal skin. That made the scroll longer.  Parchment scrolls could be 10 – 30 feet long.
 
Animal skins are really wonderful for writing on, because they stay good thousands of years.  Our oldest  Bible scrolls that we have found, are written on animal skins. Those Old Testament Bible scrolls are called the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Today we use paper for writing.  Back during Bible times, Egyptians made paper from tall grass that grew in water.  That grass was called papyrus.

They lay the grass stalk side by side.  Then they lay a second layer of grass, perpendicular to the first, like a thin mat.  When that was finished, they pressed the grass mat and let it dry.  Then they trimmed the edges straight  Papyrus became like paper for writing a letter.

The prophets, poets, and historians of the Old Testament wrote on parchment.  New Testament writers probably used both parchment and papyrus.  Papyrus was cheap, but it quickly fell apart.  Animal skin parchment remains good a long time.

Scribes
Long ago, people did not have printing presses.  They did not have copy machines. No Xerox machines.  They did not have computers, email, or printers.  All writing was done by hand.

Professional scribes worked for kings and government officials, writing laws and history.  Scribes in Israel were responsible for copying God’s Word, and they taught God’s people.

When Paul wrote his letters in the New Testament, Paul did not write those letters himself.  He spoke while a friend wrote for him.  Then at the end of each letter, Paul wrote his own short personal greeting.

Bible copies vs. original manuscripts
When the Apostle John wrote his letters, John wrote on parchment or papyrus.  Other people wanted to have their own copies of John’s letters, so they read it line by line, and as they read it, they wrote their own copy.  Many churches had hand-written copies of John’s letters.  Many more people wanted copies of John’s letters, so they made copies from earlier copies. 

Every time someone makes a handwritten copy of someone else’s letter, the copyist could make a mistake – accidentally change a word or leave a word out.   That could be a problem, because somehow, somewhere the letters that John wrote himself (the original manuscripts) were lost or destroyed.  All we have left are thousands of handwritten copies of his letters. 

So we must ask the question:  Are those copies of John’s letters accurate?  Do the say exactly what John wrote in the original manuscript? 

We have so many copies that were made soon after John’s original writing, it is easy figure out what John wrote. 

Scrolls vs Books
When you read the Bible, often you read the word “book.”  The Greek word is biblios, and that word means book.
 
Today when we see that word “book,” we visualize a normal book with pages.  Wrong.  They did not have books in Bible times.  They had scrolls.  Books were not invented yet.  So when you read the word “book” in the Bible, visualize a scroll, not a book.
When did scrolls change to books?

Remember that Hebrew scribes in the Old Testament wrote on animal skin scrolls.  They wrote from right to left, and they arranged their columns from right to left.  Greeks and Romans wrote from left to right, and they also arranged their text into columns.  When they needed more columns, they sewed on more animal skin parchment.

If you wanted to bring your Bible to a meeting, you carried an armload of scrolls.  If you wanted to find a specific chapter or verse, you must unroll the scroll, until you find the verse.  Then when you wanted to find another verse, you must roll the scroll again.  That wastes a lot of time.

Jewish people solved that problem by memorizing a lot of God’s Word.  So they did not always need to look up verses.  But that did not help Gentile Christians in Greece, Italy, and other countries.  So the Romans invented a good trick.

If we unroll a scroll and use a sharp knife to cut the scroll between each column of text, then stack the pieces of parchment, and sew or glue side of the stack, you have a book.  It is easy to flip pages to find verses.  And you can carry a book more easily than scrolls.  And you can write on both sides of the pages.

The formal name for “book” is “codex.”

The free ASL course “How to Study the Bible” at deafjesus.org/deafpah has more information about

• Who chose the books to include in the Bible?
• Getting the Bible in our own language.
• Evidence for the reliability of Scripture.

Also study the course “Everyday Life in Bible Times.”

Why is it essential to have BOTH father and mother roles in your life?
While driving, I spotted a sign, “Are you pregnant?  If so, who is the father?”  It really makes me sick.  I am grateful to have both father and mother supporting me in my life with God’s guidance.  However, some children don’t have a father or mother on their side.  We analyze the effects of parenthood absence.
Based on professional literature, the absence of the father is the main source of the poverty and high crime rate.
Facts about children with single-parent homes:

1. Children with married families are the least likely to commit delinquent acts.
   
2. The abuse or emotional victims are more likely to be children of single-parent homes.
   
3. They are more likely to be convicted before reaching age 30.
   
4. Similar results from the early 19th century and today pertaining to the likelihood of becoming a criminal for children with single parent homes.
   
5. The poverty rate is more likely by single parent families than normal married parent families.
   
6. Countless more!!!!!
   

The effect on child from abandoning mother
When a mother is well burdened, her child needs his father.  However, the father might not be there to support them.  The single mother is likely not to meet all her child’s needs as well if the father also were in the home.  As a result, the gap occurs to cause more issues  such as a mother abandoning her own child physically or emotionally.  The child: Where is the father????
 
The effects on sons who are abandoned by father
Studies have shown that without a good relationship with his father, a boy tends to yield more hostility and excessive aggressiveness.   Personal security is lost.  According to the studies over 50 years by two researchers at Harvard University, a father’s authority and discipline are essential to balance the family direction.
The facts from this newsletter are from the following sources:

• https://www.marripedia.org/effects_of_fatherless_families_on_crime_rates
• ‘Life Without Father’: Less College, Less Work, and More Prison for Young Men Growing Up Without Their Biological Father | Institute for Family Studies (ifstudies.org)
• Growing up without a father is harmful — Aleteia

The next Mustard Seed newsletter will elaborate on the link between church attendance and crime.  Pray that children are well nurtured by the parents through the Holy Spirit, and that they depend on Jesus Christ as their Savior who forgives their sins, that they repent and have faith in Him.

Do you believe Near Death Experience?
I heard some people saying they saw something when they almost died.  Near death experiences (NDEs) are psychological events, at times the victims seeing people they knew who had already died, witnessing ghosts, and so on.  Here is a summary of what the LCMS Lutheran Theologians said 2015. 

Many NDE reports elaborate a welcoming and often unnamed “being” of light. However, those claims should be taken with caution because we know that even Satan can show himself as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14) as the victims being manipulated.  Scripture tells us, however, that “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23).

Scripture vividly emphasizes that upon death believers enter the presence of God. “We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:6-8; see also Luke 23:42-43; Phil. 1:23; Heb. 9:27).

The NDE report believers seek is for hope concerning life after death.  As Christians, we know that salvation is not based on human efforts or in an unnamed “being” of light.  Our Savior Jesus Christ is our living hope.  Jesus was not just “near death,” but died and was buried and raised bodily to life on the third day—raised as we, through faith in his name, will on the Last Day be raised up from our graves (1 Cor. 15: 20-23; 1 John 3:2).  With that said, we don’t know much about life in God’s presence and should not depend on NDE reports but on the Word of our risen and reigning Lord: “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades” (Rev. 1:17-18).

~~ Pastor Andy

Recently after a discussion with one of our “inside brothers” (prison inmates), he asked me to write this insight and share it with our readers.
     
Many years ago during a difficult week I felt a darkness overwhelming me. I was physically tired, and I was dealing with a lot of stress.  One morning when I woke up, climbing out of bed, felt like I was climbing out of the pit of hell.  It felt like God was a million miles away.  Then I remembered God’s promise:  “I will never leave you, nor forsake you.”*
     
Here I had a clear contradiction.  My feelings told me one thing, but God’s promise said the exact opposite.  I must now make a choice.  Which I can believe?  Is God’s promise a lie?  Or are my feelings lying?  They could not both be true. 
     
In my life as a child of God, I have learned that God never lies.  I can always trust His promise, no matter how I felt, no matter the circumstances. 
     
So obviously, in this situation, what I was feeling was a lie.  Where did that lie come from?  Satan?  Possibly.  The enemy is always whispering lies about me and my Lord.  But my own corrupt imagination is also capable of deceiving me, if I don’t keep in check with the Word of God.
     
Our culture today says: “Follow your feelings!”  That’s usually a bad idea.  Try this instead:  Trust and obey God.  You won’t go wrong!

Deaf Culture: The Sutcliffe Legend
On the day, September 12, 1934, Agnes Marie Dunn was born in Missouri,  She, her parents and older brother boarded the train ride of their lives. She knew her family will always travel by her side. 

After a short ride on the train, Agnes became Deaf and others now joined her family as riders.  Her school friends, classmates, colleagues, students, and neighbors! 

 However, at some stations, such riders have stepped  down from the train leaving others on this journey.  Some, however, had gone so unnoticed that Agnes did not realize they vacated their seats.

This train ride was always  full of  joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.  Riders  did not know at which station  they themselves would step down.

On September 27, 2020,  Agnes knew she was ready to step down from the train and go home to the Lord. 

Agnes died peacefully at her daughter, Jane’s then home in  Jefferson, Maryland.  She had just celebrated her 86th birthday in 2020.  Her last sign was “I Love You.”
Agnes has lived in the best way, love, forgive and offer the best of who we are.]

FOLDA
Agnes has left behind many memories that FOLDA plans to preserve as we share stories during the year whenever the public observe Deaf and other appropriate annual events during the year and beyond.

Agnes Sutcliffe founded Riderwood Deaf Community group in 2018.  Membership is open to Deaf Riderwood residents.  Hearing children of Deaf adults (CODAs) and  hearing residents who use ASL are also welcome as  their supporters.  Bill Tipton is the current coordinator.  There will be an event in September 2024 to celebrate her 90th birthday anniversary.  More details later.
 
Agnes leaves behind beautiful memories for those who continue to travel on the train today.

You can read more about the life and legacy of Agnes Sutcliffe in prior editions of the Mustard Seed: Nov-Dec 2020 & Jan-Feb 2021.

Luncheon with Ron Sutcliffe’s family
at Gallaudet Ole Jim Gym – April 11

Deaf Annual Events
2024 Theme:
Every One Has A Story.  Welcome to Ours.

FOLDA  observes March 13 - April 15 as National Deaf History Month (NDHM)
The NDHM concept began 52 years ago in November 1972 in Colorado. It was then called Deaf Awareness Week. Today we focus on the three first Deaf  historical events in American public education.
March 13, 1988, April 8, 1864 and April 15, 1817

Governmental agencies, the public library and grown children would benefit from such exposure. 

Today FOLDA adds two following annual events for the public to observe  the Deaf Culture of many things American.   From Family to Heritage and Mental health. We also go globally.

A.  September as Deaf Culture Month for two important reasons.

1. International Week of Deaf People was founded in September 1958 by the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD)
   
2. International Day of Sign Languages was first proclaimed on September 23, 2017, by the General Assembly of United Nations in cooperation with the WFD.  
   

B.  December 3-10 is Clerc – Gallaudet Week

1. Laurent Clerc (Deaf) and  the Rev. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (hearing) were honored as the two first American visionary leaders  in the history of American public education.  They  cofounded the first American School for the Deaf that opened in Hartford on April 15, 1817.
   
2. Dec 3 and Dec 10. Proclaimed annually by the General Assembly of United Nations as International Day of People with Disabilities Dec 3 and Human Rights Dec 10.
   

Pastor Ron’s friend shared an excellent article about Paul’s quote, For we know that our old self was crucified with Christ.  (Romans 6:6)

For a young woman by the name of Anne Greene, the year 1650 was a year she would never forget. Anne was employed as a maid by Sir Thomas Reade. One of Sir Thomas’ grandsons seduced Anne with promises and enticements. Eventually, Anne consented to having sexual intercourse with the teenage boy and became pregnant at the age of 22. Six months later, Anne went into labor while stirring a vat of malt and gave birth prematurely while in the outhouse. Frightened of what had happened, the servant buried the stillborn child near a cesspit. This was soon discovered and Anne’s actions were reported to Sir Thomas.  Anne was put on trial in Oxford for killing her baby. The medical evidence indicated that the child was stillborn, but the court determined that Anne had murdered her child and  condemned her to death. She was sent into Oxford Gaol [jail] and was to be executed by hanging on the 14th of December.  Falsely accused and wrongly convicted of murder, Anne Greene faced the gallows. The hangman carried out her execution. Immediately afterward, the coffin bearing her body went to a team of doctors for medical research. Upon lifting the lid, however, the doctors detected faint breathing. They tried many remedies to revive her.  Finally, she began to recover quickly, beginning to speak after twelve to fourteen hours of treatment and eating solid food after four days. Within one month she had fully recovered, aside from amnesia about the time surrounding her execution. In so doing, they saved her life with God’s help.

The authorities granted Greene a pardon from execution and believed that the God had saved her demonstrating her innocence. The consensus among all involved was that her official execution had taken place; there was no need to pursue the matter further. As a result, Anne Greene enjoyed a full and free pardon. Displaying an extraordinary sense of wonder about her indescribable experience, she took her coffin as a souvenir, settled in another town, got married, and raised three children.   On the day of her execution, Anne Greene labored under massive debt. Afterward, however, Anne received more than enough contributions from others to wipe her debt away. In our crucified and risen Lord, the debt of our sin is gone, too. It’s official.

In Romans chapter 6, the apostle Paul tells us that our official execution has taken place as well. When Jesus went to the cross outside the city walls of Jerusalem, God took all the sins of my old self and placed them on his Son. This means that, as far as God is concerned, my old identity as a lost sinner is no more. It’s no more because a first-century crucifixion detail carried out my execution just outside the city walls of Jerusalem. And now, through faith in Jesus, I enjoy a full and free pardon. Jesus’ death has washed my old identity away. I stand forgiven. A fresh, bright future now awaits me. And beyond that is eternal life in heaven. 

Source: whataboutjesus.com – WELS

Is Temptation is a sin?
It is a tricky question.  Temptation is not of itself sinful. We have to look at when it becomes sin.  Once we allow temptation to become action, it becomes a sin such as in our minds.   For instance, lust is sin even though it may never show outside of you (Matthew 5:28). Covetousness, pride, greed, and envy are sins of the heart; even though they may not show to anyone else, they are still sin (Romans 1:29).  When we yield to temptation, we replace the fruit of the Spirit with the fruit of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-23; Ephesians 5:9). Many times, what first began as a thought turns into action (James 1:15).

The best strategy against giving in to temptation is to go away in the first place. Joseph showed a great example of someone who prevented temptation to become sin (Genesis 39:6–12).  Although tempted to sin sexually, he did not give the temptation time to preside. He used his legs given by God to physically run away.  Rather than stay in a potentially risky situation and attempt to dialogue, justify, or otherwise weaken his resolve, Joseph took off. The temptation was not sin for him because he dealt with it in God’s approved way. It could have become sin easily if Joseph had presented around and attempted to beat the temptation in his own power.

Pastor Andy

Life in prison can be discouraging.  Day after day is the same routine.  When something happens to break that routine, it usually isn’t something good.  For the guys who simply are focused on serving their time, staying out of trouble, there is the constant annoyance of power-politics of prison gangs and young insecure inmates who feel that they need to show that they are tough.
     
Recently our friends in prison studied a Bible verse from Isaiah 40:  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.  He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable.  He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)
     
We found two pieces of gold in the last verse that says, They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength.
     
First, that word wait does not mean simply waiting for time to pass.  Rather, it means eagerly anticipating something good that will certainly happen.  When an inmate is notified that those in authority have set a specific date for his release, he is no longer just “serving time.”  He is eagerly counting the days when he can go home, as he gives away his precious possessions to fellow inmates.  God’s promises are like that.  We may not know exactly when God will do as He promised, but we are confident that He will.
     
The second thing we find is that the word renew is a Hebrew word that literally means exchange.  They who wait for the Lord shall exchange their strength... They exchange their strength for His strength.  When we are weak, then God is strong.

Recently two members of Christ/Deaf each celebrated their 90th birthday:
Alice Hagemeyer
Tony Munoz
Both are going strong!!
Congratulations Alice & Tony

2024 FOLDA Theme
Every family has a story. Welcome to ours.
Laurent Clerc and American Sign Language

“The knowledge of history is extremely useful. It lays before our eyes the great picture of the generations that have preceded us.” –  Speaker 78-year-old Laurent Clerc at the inauguration of what today we call Gallaudet University on June 28, 1864.
 
March 13 - April 15, 2024 is National Deaf History Month, originated in November 1972 by the Colorado Association of the Deaf, led by David Anthony and Jerome Moers. Colorado Governor proclaimed it. It was then called Deaf Awareness Week. Today the public acknowledges the three most important Deaf historical events in America’s history.  

• March 13, 1988 (Deaf Civil Rights Victory),
• April 8, 1864 (Gallaudet University)
• April 15, 1817 ( State Deaf Schools and the birth of American Sign Language (ASL). 

American Library Association in 2005 and the National Association of the Deaf in 2006 passed a member-based resolution in support of the concept.
September 20 – 26, 2024 (Sunday –Thursday) is International Week of Deaf People, founded by the World Federation of the Deaf on September 23, 1958.               The 2024 theme is “Building Inclusive Communities for All”.  This week, events and campaigns aim to raise awareness about the human rights of Deaf people and promote sign language through coordinated efforts and media coverage.  
 
December 3~10, 2024 (Tuesday-Tuesday)
Clerc-Gallaudet Week, the 50th founding anniversary. It was proclaimed in 1974 as Deaf Awareness Week by the D.C. Executive Office. It was launched by the D.C. Public Library with the dual purpose of educating the public about the Deaf and the Deaf about the Library.  The DC Deaf community and the NAD participated in the week of activities. In 1989 the Week was renamed to honor Laurent Clerc and Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet as the two first visionary leaders in America's history of public education. And a new annual event was also added what we today call National Deaf History Month, March 13-April 15.
 
International Days proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly.
September 23, 2024 (Monday) Sign Languages  (2017, began 2018)     
December 3, 2024 (Tuesday) Persons with Disabilities (1992) 
December 10, 2024 (Tuesday)  Human Rights Day (1948)

Are you excited about the NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl game?  If so, I would like to mention a few famous Christian athletes and how they share the Gospel.  These athletes are among of many Christians in amateur and professional sports. 

Gabby Douglas
Gymnastic gold medalist Gabby Douglas’s mom influenced her and her siblings to read the Bible and be courageous in their faith.  On the way to the Olympics, she carried that faith.  She shared about the impact faith has in her life.   While confronting obstacles in life, she is inspired by the Bible. 

Allyson Felix
Despite her famous gold medal, Olympic Allyson Felix, gives credit and all glory to God and depends on her faith in all she does. As a young woman, she accepted Christ into her life.  While on the professional sports platform, she promotes the Gospel.  She is blessed while using God’s gift of running speed. 

Deion Sanders
Hall fame NFL cornerback Deion Sanders proclaimed he had nothing until he found God. Sanders said that the $10,000 bed, 15,000 square-foot home, and women didn’t satisfy him.  Only the Lord can satisfy him.  Today, he mentors youth programs, as well as the Boys & Girls Club of America.

Reggie White
Green Bay Packer legend Reggie White was called “The Minister of Defense” because of his devout Christian faith.  He was an ordained Evangelical minister.  In the 1990s, a wave of arsons at African-American churches, including a church where he served was buried in 1996, affected White profoundly.   White say, “My grandmother – she never forced us to go to church or anything, but it was just her commitment of going to church that got me interested. A lot of times she would walk. The church was a few miles away.”

Terry Cummings
Well-known Milwaukee Bucks forward, Terry Cummings. in the 1980s became an ordained minister. He won the 1983 NBA rookie of year.  Cummings said, “Just beating them up for the fun of it – I tried all the drugs, too, everything. But when I was 16 one night I had a dream. I saw the Lord coming back to get his chosen, but I was unprepared.”  That night he was sleeping in the basement of his grandmother's home in Hammond, Indiana. “In the dream, I remember crying out, ‘Come now and take me,’ but the Lord ignored me. And when I woke up from the dream, I decided to go about the process of giving my total being to the Lord from then on. That was the first day I received the call of the ministry.” Thankfully, he serves the Lord! 

Who started the football prayer circle?
The prayer huddle began after a Monday Night game on December 3, 1990, between the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers.  At that time, it was not easy to be an openly Christian in the NFL.  A group of players from the 49ers players decided to reveal their faith and even have Bible study.  They determined that Christ was the most important thing in their lives.  The Giants prayed with every team for the rest of season, including at the Super Bowl where they beat the Buffalo Bills. 

However, there have been complaints against the prayer circles.  In 2015 high school football coach Joe Kennedy knelt for prayer on the field after a game. The school board fired him, saying that Kennedy’s praying activities violated the separation of church and state.  Coach Kennedy sued the school board for violating his free speech rights.

The case took several years, and went all the way up to the US Supreme Court.  In 2022 the High Court ruled that the school board was wrong to fire Coach Kennedy.  It was a significant change for religious expression affecting local games for all sports.
~~ Pastor Andy

This is a famous Bible verse that gives us hope and comfort in difficult situations.  Sadly, most people who know this verse don’t know its full story. They miss the important message it has.

Recently our friends in prison studied Jeremiah 29. They saw how the story applies especially to them.  This chapter is a letter the prophet Jeremiah wrote to Jews in exile in Babylon.

“What does exile mean?” one of the men asked.

His friend explained, “Exile means people are removed from their homes and forced to live a long time separated from friends and family. Like us!”
Through the prophet, God told the people of Israel to settle down where they were forced to live in exile.  God wanted them to pray for the peace and success of their slave masters.

“What are slave masters?” asked the same fellow.

Again his friend explained, “Slave masters are the C.O.s (correctional officers; prison guards).  If the COs have problems at home, guess who suffers?  We do!  But if things go well for them, things will go well for us.  So let’s bless them, encourage them, and pray for them.”

The next three verses in Jeremiah 29 also give our friends in prison great hope.  “You will search for Me. And when you search for Me with all your heart, you will find Me! I will let you find me,” says the Lord. “And I will bring you back from your captivity. I forced you to leave this place, but I will gather you from all the nations, from the places I have sent you as captives,” says the Lord.  (Jeremiah 29:13-14)

Everyone in prison looks forward to the day when they can go home. But they do not know when that will happen.  Some suspect that they may never be able to go home.  But they still hope, pray, and entrust their lives to their loving Heavenly Father.

What do Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday have in common?
A couple things...  First, this year (2024) Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday are on the same day.  Valentine’s Day is always on February 14.  But the date of Ash Wednesday changes every year.  Why does that happen? 
 
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent – six weeks before our annual celebration of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Easter, like Passover, follows the Jewish lunar calendar, which is based on the cycles of moon, not the sun. (Our English word “month” come from the word “moon.”)  So every year the dates for Passover and Easter fall on a different date during spring.  As the date of Easter changes from year to year, the date of Ash Wednesday changes with it. And it happens, merely by coincidence, that in 2024 Ash Wednesday is on February 14 – Valentine’s Day.

Ash Wednesday is a serious day for self-examination and repentance.  Valentine’s Day is a happy day on which sweethearts express their affection for each other.
 
Saint Valentine, for whom this date is named, was a Chrisian minister who lived in last part of the 3rd Century AD. The only other thing we know for certain about Valentine was that Roman authorities arrested Valentine and killed him for his faith and ministry.  So the church today honors him as a martyr for Christ – not as an author of love notes.
Over the centuries legends arose about the way he disobeyed a government by performing marriages ceremonies, and about a note he wrote on February 14, the day of his execution.  The note was to his prison guard’s Christian daughter, which he signed “Love, Valentine.”

Whether these stories are true or not, legends about Saint Valentine stay alive through the annual celebration of the day named in his honor, as a day for romantic lovers.
 
While the themes of Lent and Valentine’s Day (as we celebrate it today) are very different, there is a common connection in the expression of God’s love for us that we see in the story of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday.

If you ask couples who are “in love” to give you a definition of the word “love,” they will tell you about their warm wonderful feelings for each other.

For married couples, those warm fuzzy feelings of being in love are important.  Husbands and wives must daily nurture those feelings if their marriages are to thrive.  But feelings can’t be the foundation of their relationship.  Feelings come and go.  Any marriage which has feelings as its foundation is destined to fail.

This feeling of being in love, the Greeks called that EROS.  But the love that God wants to instill in us, the love that He wants to be the foundation, the motivation, the guide and strength of our marriages, He calls that AGAPE love.

What does AGAPE mean?  We find a simple clear definition in Romans 5:8.  But God demonstrates his own AGAPE love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  It wasn’t nails that held Jesus to the cross.  It was love. 

You can be sure that Jesus hanging there on the cross didn’t experience a warm wonderful feeling. Rather it was love, commitment, a desire, to seek your best, no matter the cost to Him.

Beginning this year 2024, we will be sharing memories of pioneers (firsts) and movers and shakers who gave back time and Deaf cultural resources over the years to local communities.  They may be living or non-living.
 
I checked the dictionary.
In our case, we will define pioneers who are Deaf or hearing with “ASL hearts”. They know about the value of  Deaf culture, from heritage to language to mental health. They developed to be the first to use or apply a new method, area of knowledge, or activity.
 
Movers and shakers are the Deaf of many things American. They are willing to make big changes to get things done on behalf of both communities: the Deaf and the Library.
 
Incidentally, this year 2024 the public will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Clerc-Gallaudet Week, December 3-10, 2024. 
 
Some of you may remember its old name – Deaf Awareness Week, December 1-7, 1974.  The purpose then was to educate the public about the Deaf and the Deaf about the Library in the D.C. area.  Mary Jane Rhodes (Hearing mother of  a Deaf Child), Rita Corey, Frederick C. Schreiber, Dr. Robert Davila, and Louis Schwarz  (Deaf Pioneers) were present, also a few Deaf library workers and representatives from Gallaudet University and the University of Maryland.

Pioneers Who?  Movers and Shakers Who?  Check at your local public library.  You may ask your local membership organization like the State Association of the Deaf or other affiliates of the National Association of the Deaf about their history. Who was the first elected president? And so on.

If your membership organization is interested in promoting public awareness of Deaf culture of its many things American, in your local community or the state, please consider forming a section called “Friends of Libraries for Deaf Action (FOLDA)  E.g., Friends of Maryland Libraries for Deaf Action (FOLDA-MD).   Discuss this with your president.
 
FOLDA  E:NEWS
January 2024
Alice L. Hagemeyer, editor

Can you imagine Christmas being cancelled? 
It happened in the past! 

In the 1600s, religious reformation transformed the way Christmas was celebrated in Europe.  The Puritans changed and threw Christmas away.  In England, Oliver Cromwell and his Puritan group ousted King Charles I in 1649 and cancelled Christmas.   However, King Charles II brought Christmas back.  Like many immigrants who came to America, pious Puritans who sailed from England in 1620 to establish the Massachusetts Bay Colony, brought even more pious Christians with their contempt for Christmas. 

 The Puritans kept their shops and schools open and churches closed on Christmas, a holiday that some disparaged as “Foolstide.”  In England, the parliament declared that December 25 should instead be a day of “fasting and humiliation” to account for their sins. The Puritans of New England eventually followed suit.  In 1659 the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared it as a criminal offense to publicly celebrate the holiday and determined that “whosoever shall be found observing any such day as Christmas or the like, either by forbearing of labor, feasting, or any other way” was subject to a 5-shilling fine.  In Boston, the celebration of Christmas was prohibited from 1659 to 1681. Captain John Smith of the Jamestown settlement still celebrated Christmas without being fined.   

Why did the Puritans hate Christmas? Stephen Nissenbaum, the author of The Battle for Christmas, says it was partly because of theology and the rowdy celebrations that marked the holiday in the 1600s. Based on their strict Biblical interpretation, the Puritans determined that there was no scriptural basis for commemorating Christmas. They claimed that the Bible didn’t mention about celebration of the Nativity.   

The fourth century AD, the church in Rome established the celebration of the Nativity on December 25, which coincided with the pagan celebration of Saturnalia, a Roman winter holiday marked with lights, drinking, and feasting.  The Puritan minsters claimed that Christmas simply followed the pagan celebration of Saturnalia.  Some Christians believed that the Catholic church took over pagan customs without any Biblical basis.  The rowdy break allowed Christians to have an excuse to drink, gamble, feast in immoral behavior.  Men dressed as women, and vice versa, and went door-to-door asking for food or money in an exchange for carols or Christmas wishes in the Yuletide, a twist on trick-or-treating!  Those who failed to give could be greeted with vandalism or violence.

Christmas was legal again in England in 1660, but the Yuletide was not allowed in Massachusetts.  Even though Christmas was not permitted in public, people still celebrate with heavy drinking and loose sexual activity, according to Nissenbaum.  Finally in 1681, the Massachusetts Bay Colony removed the ban on Christmas under the pressure from King Charles II.  However, the Puritans were still hostile toward the public celebration of Christmas for years. 

Americans recreated Christmas and transformed it from an immoral carnival holiday into a family-based gathering across lines of wealth or social status.  Americans focus on social gatherings and built Christmas traditions like decorating trees, holiday cards, and gift-giving.  In 1856, Christmas finally became a public holiday in Massachusetts and in 1870 for the United States. 

What do we learn from this?  We celebrate Christmas in the right mindset, the birth of Jesus Christ, who gave His life for our sins.  Santa Claus is not our god.  Gifts are not our idols.  We worship only the Trinity of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).  Christmas is not supposed to be filled with immoral behavior, but social gatherings in celebrating His birth.  

~~ Pastor Andy

Lutherans are illogical!

Theological paradox
Christians have always been at home with illogical doctrines, such as the Trinity and the two natures of Christ.  However, most Christians are very uncomfortable with the Bible's answer to the question: “Why are some people saved and others are lost?”   Both Calvinists and Arminians have perfectly logical answers.

• Calvinists teach that God predestines (chooses in advance) specific people whom He forces to believe and be saved.  All others (also by God's choice) will be damned. 
• Arminians on the other hand teach that people have a free will with which they can choose to believe or not believe. 
• Lutherans teach that they are both wrong.  If we are saved, God receives 100% of the credit; it is entirely His doing, as Calvinists teach.  If we are lost, that is 100% our own fault, as Arminians teach.

Is the Lutheran position illogical?  Yes.  But it is perfectly consistent with the Bible’s teaching that God wants all people to be saved and that He offers the merits of Christ's sacrifice to all, while we have no power within ourselves to receive that gift.
 
See more on this topic on our website:  “What is a Lutheran?”

Also see related videos on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@ChristDeaf/videos

~~ Pastor Andy

Isaiah 49:13-16

Picture in your mind one time in your life when you felt completely helpless and alone.  It may be the very first night you spent in jail.  Or it may have been an incident during your childhood, when someone who should have been your protector wasn't.
Now picture Jesus coming into that scene. Watch the door open and Jesus comes in. He comes straight to you, and sits next to you. Then He puts His arm around your shoulder. He helps you to stand, and leads you out of the dark and lonely place.

Walls have cut you off from everything near and dear to you. You are not behind those walls by your own choice.  But there is no wall high enough or strong enough to keep God out. You are not alone.

Even if your earthly parents have turned their backs on you, He says, “I will not forget you!   I have engraved you on the palms of My hands” – the nails that held Jesus on the cross as He was thinking of you.

October 6, 2023, Friday, the ship arrived at Silver Spring, Maryland. The regional registrants fought the battle of Metro Washington, D.C. beltway traffic. I am sure most of them express their white knuckles! Some of the asked me how did I survived this horror driving the beltway! In the years of my experience, you both go with the flow and try to drive like Indy 500 racing driver at high speed or get out of the way!

All have arrived safely with the help of our Lord and his angels to protect us from harm. I was glad to see them again. Unfortunately four didn’t make it, two were sick and two decided not to come. I pray for those four to get well I hope to see them at Dearborn, Michigan ILDA Convention next year and/or GLRC at Rochester, New York in two years.

Friday evening, after their arrival and check in the registration to receive the folder with nametag. When everyone settled in, Pastor Andy Petajan (Silver Spring, Maryland) led the open devotion then following with banner/skit/songs. I performed the skit. Social/refreshment afterward then we played the game called LCR (Left – Center – Right) to pass the chips until depleted. Last person have some chips remain is the winner. Fun game, many of us enjoyed! We closed with a devotion led by Pastor Edwin Bergstresser (Columbus, Ohio) and we all went home and hotels afterward.
October 7th, Saturday is the big and long day! Started off at 9am with devotion led by Pastor John Rushton (Rochester, New York) after that, the GLRC meeting for all of us from 9:15am to 10:30am. 15 minutes break and light refreshment. Meeting resumed 10:50am. Lunch served 12:00 Noon. Everyone got his or her selection of submarine from our local Deli nearby. It was delivered to us.

We resumed the meeting at 1:30pm for another hour and meeting adjourned. After the afternoon break/light refreshment, retired Pastor Ron Friedrich (Silver Spring, Maryland) and Pastor Andy Petajan led workshop focused on Light and Darkness from different verses other than our theme, “God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5. After the workshop, short break before our dinner.

Dinner was buffet style from our local catering company: Flank steak with herb roasted potato and garden salad with dressing. Marinated grilled chicken with rice and garden salad with dressing. Plenty food left from the buffet, some of us got second helping!

In the evening, we played the family feud style, just like on TV. I found the software and I changed the title to “The GLRC Feud” to play. It was fun to participate. Some of the question such as: ‘Fill the blank, Jesus said “I am the __________” and they need to get the right answer. For example, “Good Shepherd” and checked with the survey says... correct! Some of the answers were hilarious or wrong! After the game, evening devotion led by Pastor Edwin Bergstresser and Vicar Vincent Mroz (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) and went home / hotels for the night.

Sunday, October 8th, Pastor Andy Petajan answered questions from the audience in lieu of Bible Study before the Service. The service is just a typical normal Liturgy with Holy Eucharist. Pastoral Advisor, Pastor John Rushton, administrate the swearing the oath with elected officers.    

After the installation of officers, I represents the Christ Lutheran Church of the Deaf passing the Great Lakes Region banner over to Larry Blout, represents Alpha Lutheran Church of the Deaf. It will be held at Rochester, New York, in the year of our Lord, 2025 A.D.

The GLRC ship embarks and sails for two years travel from the Potomac River to the Lake Ontario into the Irondequoit Bay!

Respectfully Submitted,
John Mason

The Labor Day weekend comes in September.  We reflect on that which we devote the most time during our lives; that’s, work.   We tend to expect to be paid if we work longer, right?  Well, that’s not necessarily true in God’s eyes and the real world.

See the pic, Scottie Pippen was #2 basketball player on the Chicago Bulls, but his salary was significantly lower than four other players by about half.  Michael Jordan earned more than the team salary combined.  Is that just? 

Matthew 20:1-16 provides excellent examples.  The landowner compensated his workers equally regardless of how long each individual worked. 
 
 
Why?  Mercy!  God gives grace and mercy abundantly.  It doesn’t depend on our accumulated work effort.  He gives His grace and mercy to people who are not able to obtain salvation via self-righteousness.  We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God.  His grace is adequate to save all who believe whenever God calls someone early or late in life for salvation.  God has the glory and praises that we credit Him.  Similarly, the landowner in the parable had the right to compensate his workers however he decided.  God has the right to have mercy on people.  Remember, God invites everyone to have eternal life with Him via His mercy, but some people reject Him. 

The Pharisees were furious with Jesus because He said that others would enter the heavenly kingdom.  Pharisees believed that the heavenly kingdom was reserved for them.  Jesus gave poor weak sinners access to the heavenly kingdom, which the Pharisees resented.  The main point is that being jealous or envious doesn’t do you good in going to heaven.  The workers in the parable who worked the longest should not complain or envy the others.  In the same way, we should be joyful when others come to Jesus Christ and celebrate for those serving Him. 

God is a perfect judge in rewarding us for our service.  How He rewards others should not affect our service to Him negatively.  We should focus on Him instead of being jealous or envious.  No matter how long or how hard a believer works during their lifetime, the reward will be the same to all.  Both Paul, the apostle and the thief on the cross have the same reward of eternal life.  Although there are different rewards in heaven for various services, the main reward will be equal for all who are bound for heaven. 

~~Pastor Andy

Pros of in-person worship:

1. The last edition of the Mustard Seed elaborates God’s encouragement of in-person worshiping via the Lord’s Supper, fellowship based on Acts 2:42.  
2. Provides REAL fellowship with everyone. Develops a rapport  and depth relationship with God and Christians.  
3. Allows dining with fellow Christians after service.

 
Which approach should we select?  We need to balance both to address the diversity of the attendants’ wishes while adhering to God’s will.  Dealing with the weak side of Zoom, we can be creative, such as setting up fellowship time among individuals, chat boards, and other methods.  

-Pastor Andy

One of the challenges prison inmates face is years of separation from friends and families on the outside.  It is not easy to stay in close contact with them.  Inmates pay for their phone calls, and each call is surprisingly expensive.  Time they are allowed to stay on the phone is limited.  Each residence unit has a limited number of phones which all the inmates in the unit must share. Deaf inmates in many jails and prisons have access to Video Phones by appointment.

In-person visits are again permitted following the pandemic lockdown.  During the pandemic, some institutions allowed inmates to have remote family visits through video services like Skype.  Even though in-person visits are allowed again, video visits are still an option, especially for inmates whose families live long distances from the prison.

Prison administrators are understandably nervous about giving inmates access to the internet.  A few prison systems are gradually coming into the 21st century by giving inmates access to email services.  Folks on the outside cannot receive email directly from inmates; they can only receive and send messages through the prison’s website system.  Most prison email services allow transmission of text only – no pictures.  Maryland inmates at some State institutions are able to receive both text and photos from loved ones.  This service is slow and it’s not free. The system scans and screens all messages and pictures.  Even with this delay, messages come through much faster than postal mail, at a much lower cost than a postage stamp.  Christian churches are able to take advantage of this service by sending inmates daily encouragement from God’s Word.

Remember those who are in prison
as if you were in prison with them.
Hebrews 13:3

Reprinted from October 2003 Mustard Seed

Autumn Glow
Lord, if You will make
The Autumn of my life
As lovely as this
Golden autumn morning
I will not look back to grieve
The passing days of summer.
Of all the regal seasons
Autumn is most brilliant.
Make my life brilliant, too!
~~ Ruth Harms Calkin ~~

‘Tis time for the autumn frost to be on the grass, misty dew on grapes of purple, blue and gold. The early mornings will be cold, puddles in the ground will freeze and look like glass -- winter is coming, alas! Bring in your green tomatoes before the heavy frost, lay them on layers of newspaper and cover with a couple layers of newspapers and push the whole thing under your bed. You’ll have ripe tomatoes one, two or three at a time. That’s if you had a good crop this year.

Thanks to Judi Spittle for passing this on as was passed to her and so I pass it on to you...
Although things are not perfect
Because of trial or pain
Continue in thanksgiving
Do not begin to blame
Even when the times are hard
Fierce winds are bound to blow
God is forever able
Hold on to what you know
Imagine life without His love
Joy would cease to be
Keep thanking Him for all the things
Love imparts to thee
Move out of “Camp Complaining”
No weapon that is known
On earth can yield the power
Praise can do alone
Quit looking at the future
Redeem the time at hand
Start every day with worship
To “thank” is a command
Until we see Him coming
Victorious in the sky
We’ll run the race with gratitude
Xalting God most high
Yes, there’ll be good times and
    yes some will be bad, but...
Zion waits in glory...
    where none are ever sad!

I am too blessed to be stressed!

The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.

The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything.

Love and peace be with you forever. Amen.

An atheist’s most embarrassing moment is when he feels profoundly thankful for something and can’t think of anybody to thank for it.     ~~ Lives to Live By

I’ll part with this: A child’s letter to God ~~

Deaf Culture and History
A new group called Deaf Culture of Many Things American (DCA) was recently formed by Alice L. Hagemeyer at the Riderwood Village in Silver Spring, MD. 

DCA membership is open to Riderwood residents with interests in diversity, inclusion, and belonging.  The aim is to meet the two needs of residents and staff on the Riderwood Village campus. 
(1) to remove communication barriers between Deaf and non-Deaf individuals. 
(2) to offer quality “Deaf Culture” resources for observing annual Deaf events during the year (beginning later this year with Clerc-Gallaudet Week, December 3-10, 2023). 

FOLDA (Friends of Libraries for Deaf Action) of Maryland would be welcome to work with DCA on its mission which Mrs. Hagemeyer hopes to become a role model for Organizations Serving the Deaf (OSDs) in each state. 
 
Organizational Culture 
The three following Maryland OSDs are affiliates of the National Association of the Deaf (NAD).
Maryland Association of the Deaf  (Charity).

Maryland School for the Deaf, also a CEASD affiliate( (Education)  CEASD stands for Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf.

Maryland Governor’s Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, also a NASADHH Affiliate (Government) NASADHH stands for National Association of State Agencies of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
 
The Deaf Serving Senior Citizens in Maryland
Maryland Deaf  Seniors Citizens, Inc is an affiliate of the Deaf Seniors of America, Inc. an affiliate of the NAD. 

Maryland Deaf Senior Citizens, Inc. was founded on November 3, 1976, at a church in Silver Spring, MD.  The Mission statement is to improve the quality of life for senior citizens who are Deaf. One of its objectives is to provide seminars, town hall meetings, and conferences dealing with issues impacting their well-being and safety. 

MDSC also provides social activities intended to mitigate the isolation experienced by many members.  

March 13 – April 15 is National Deaf History Month.

What are positive sides of using smartphones for God’s glory?  
The following are some ways smartphones can be tools for our good and even God’s glory. Yes, we have be cautious about using the phone too much, but we must be wise based on God’s guidance.

1.  Watching video Biblical ASL clips.  This is one of the best ways our phone can assist to deliver the Word of God through various Bible apps.  However, hard copy Bibles cannot be replaced.  Bible online resources can provide regularly reading and viewing, nourishment.
     Examples:   ChristDeaf - YouTube
      Lutheran Deaf Mission Society - YouTube
      (Click these links to these websites.)

2.  Memorizing Scripture with signed or transcript memos.  Recalling God’s Word in our hearts is an excellent method for sanctification. Using an app can greatly enhance Scripture memory. Revisiting memorized parts on our phones allows us to immediately check our performance against the written Word to see if we memorized it correctly. 
     Example: ASLV - Deaf Missions

3.  Reading more books. While I was in seminary, some textbooks were converted into E-books, so I could study while traveling or on commuting trains.  A lot of wasted time can be redeemed as we read the books.  
      Examples:
       Concordia Publishing House   (cph.org)
      https://www.christianbook.com
 
3.  Connecting with friends and family. During my worship service, some members informed me about our fellow Christians’ life concerns.  Social media is excellent to connect with other Christians and mission servants. 

4. Learning His word through educational online lessons and resources to enrich our knowledge.
     Examples: http://www.christdeaf.org/bible.html
     http://deafjesus.org/deafpah
Smartphones can be a powerful method for strengthening our faith through the Holy Spirit.  Let’s consider how we might put them to work for our good and God’s glory. 
Next month, we will discuss Zoom vs. in-person worship services. 
 
~~ Pastor Andy

The Apostle’s teaching: Th is what Jesus taught His disciples.  We learn His Word to apply it to our lives. Luther emphasized that we should fear and love God, while being gladly to hear and learn His Word.  We should be thankful for God’s love and forgiveness, so we are ready to commit to His Word that provides our salvation. 

Fellowship: It is more than just coffee hour.  We have a oneness with others because of Jesus, so we are in fellowship with others.  We all receive forgiveness, peace, God’s love, and eternal life, so we are in fellowship to support each other. 

The breaking of bread: This means two things.  We eat with others so there is a bond. The other meaning is meeting Jesus in the bread and wine.  While coming to the Lord’s Supper in faith, we seek to have good relations with our brothers and sisters in the congregation.

Prayers: Jesus taught us the Lord’s Prayer. We pray that whenever we come together to meditate.  Our prayers should be based on the scripture instead of the poverty of our hearts.  It is essential to come together  to offer our prayers to God for the church, the nation, and specific needs of people we know.

~~ Pastor Andy

Sometimes God uses a hard prison sentence to poke His wayward children to get their attention and turn their hearts back to Him.  That is what happened to one inmate in the Bible named King Manasseh. 
     
Manasseh’s father Hezekiah had been one of the good kings of Israel who faithfully trusted God.  Hezekiah did all he could to lead his nation to love and worship God. But when Hezekiah died, his rebellious 12-year old son Manasseh took the throne and became morally and spiritually the worst king ever to reign in Jerusalem.  Manasseh’s crimes are so terrible that he is rarely mentioned in Bible story books.  He promoted idol worship throughout the nation and in the temple of God. He immersed himself in the occult.  He even sacrificed his own children to his pagan gods.

During the last few years of his reign, King Manasseh tried to undo all the damage he had caused. But it was too little too late.  His own son rejected his father’s new faith in God.  Fortunately, Manasseh was able to instill that faith in his grandson, Josiah, one of the most godly kings of Israel.

~~ Pastor Ron

The Deaf in Elder Culture  -  Maryland
The Riderwood Deaf Community (RDC) consists of ten ASL signing members who reside in the Riderwood Senior Living Community, located in Silver Spring, MD, Montgomery County.

RDC was founded in 2018 by the late Agnes D. Sutcliffe, a member of our church, with the purpose to serve the linguistic, cultural, and social needs of the Deaf residents of Riderwood Village.

Riderwood Village is an inclusive and diverse community of over 2,200 residents and over 1,000 employees.

RDC has five Deaf members who each once attended a state deaf school and also were two late deaf parents of one member (CODA). 

Four others – hearing with a Deaf heart – had a deaf cultural experience when studying, teaching, and working at such institutions over the years. 

Residents (deaf and hearing) who have taken more than one sign language class may be invited to practice their signing with RDC members.

RDC members are happy residents who also want to give back to Maryland. 
 
 
Deaf communities and library communities are in 23 MD counties and Baltimore in some ways! 

Maryland is the only state in the US where the Governor signed Deaf Culture and Digital Library (DCDL) into the state law last May 15, 2014.


Membership Organizations Serving the Deaf (OSDs)   
Maryland Association of the Deaf (MDAD) est. 1956 - National Association of the Deaf (NAD Charities);

Maryland School for the Deaf (MSD) est. 1868  (Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf (CEASD Education);

and MD Governor’s Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MDGOV) est. 2001 (National Association of State Agencies of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (NASADHH Government)

Some RDC deaf members are still active with the Maryland  Deaf Seniors Citizens, Inc. (MDSC) est. 1976, an affiliate of the Deaf Seniors of America, Inc.  (DSA) est. 1992.

CEASD, NASADHH, and DSA are also NAD affiliates.  NAD also has a section called “Deaf Culture and History.”

And many more nonprofit membership organizations like the newly established Maryland Deaf Community Center in Frederick as well as the government offices that serve the Deaf.


First RDC meeting of 2023
On April 15, 2023, RDC members met, and we agreed to share stories about deaf culture, and our rich deaf history with neighbors, their family members, staff, and workers.  E.g., The three first deaf historical events that changed America were in 1817 (deaf schools); 1864 (Gallaudet), and 1988 (the first victory of Deaf civil rights at Gallaudet. Deaf President Now which led to the signing of the ADA into federal law two years later.
 
The Deaf in many cultures, including education, heritage, literacy, mental health, prison, sports, and much more. 


A Birth Anniversary Celebration
Philadelphia is in Our Heart, the Deaf Way

On Sunday, July 2, 2023, RDC hosted a private birthday party at the Town Center at Riderwood to honor Anita Rice, one of its longest-living residents (15 years).  Anita’s close friends in MD joined us. 

Anita grew up in Philadelphia. She once went to Pennsylvania School for the Deaf as a student and later as a school aide, each role for a few years. 

Anita said she hardly knew who Laurent Clerc was until only recently.  Her late husband was a long-time leader of the Hebrew Association of the Deaf in Philadelphia and they had three deaf children. 

Flat Laurent in Maryland was also present to celebrate Anita’s 82nd birthday on July 2nd.

 
Deaf FUN FACTS
Laurent Clerc was a teacher of the Deaf for more than 50 years. He was never a school administrator except for a few months at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf in 1816.  Who is the current Head or Chair of the Board at the PA School for the Deaf?   

Annual Deaf and Related Events at Riderwood Village     

• International Day of Sign Languages on September 23, 2023
• International Day of People with Disabilities on December 3, 2023.
• International Day of Human Rights Day on December 10, 2023.
• Clerc-Gallaudet Week, Dec 3-10 on December 6, 2023.

To be continued.

By Alice L. Hagemeyer,
My Journey to the Nineties

My new life. Moved to Riderwood on my 89th birthday on February 22, 2023.

Today I become the person that I was always meant to be. I leave the past. I now have a chance to restart and just move forward.

What is Ascension Day?
We had Resurrection Day to celebrate.  Have you wondered about Ascension Day?  Which day do we mark that event?  This year it is May 18th!  Have you been aware of it?  Although Jesus was raised from the dead, His ministry on the earth didn’t end. 
The following 6 points highlight the significant of the ascension: 

1. Jesus continues to work after His ascension.
Jesus works from heaven through His people by the Holy Spirit to achieve God’s purposes. 

2. The ascended Lord Jesus enlists the Holy Spirit to assist His people. 
Before His ascension, Jesus told His followers,  

• “I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49)
  

3. Jesus’s ascension is His return to His Father.
Before/after His death and Resurrection, Jesus proclaims that His Father sent Him, and Jesus must go back to His Father:

• “I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”  (John 16:28)
• I am returning to my Father, to my God and your God.” (John 20:17)

There is no greater reunion in the history than Jesus’s homecoming to His Father! Jesus fully achieved His mission and glorified the Father on earth, and at Jesus’s ascension the Father glorifies the Son in heaven (John 17:4-5). Take heart that Jesus’s homecoming to His Father prepares the way for our homecoming to be with Jesus forever (John 14:2-4).   
 
4. Jesus’s ascension is His heavenly “inauguration” as King.
At Jesus’s ascension He became as the genuine King of the world. Based on the Apostles’ Creed, He “ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.”

Jesus’s kingdom cannot be terminated.  According to (Revelation 3:21), Jesus conquered and seated down with His Father on His throne, where He receives praise forever (Revelation 5:6-13).  Therefore, God’s kingdom has been inaugurated through the enthronement of Jesus, who now sits on heaven’s throne.

5. The ascended Lord Jesus is our heavenly mediator.
Jesus assumes the role as the unique mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5).  His death and resurrection confirm our forgiveness, justification, and reconciliation with God (Roman 4:25-5:1).

6. The ascended Lord Jesus will come back as King and Judge.
In Acts 1:11, two angels explain to the disciples, “This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” Jesus’s heavenly reign will one day be fully recognized on earth (Revelation 11:15; 19:10-16; 22:3).  Likewise, we ask for when we pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10)  Upon His return, the Lord Jesus will provide divine judgment.

~~ Pastor Andy

Do you recall a movie called, “We Were Soldiers” about a devout Christian?    
Here is the real devout Christian solider Lt Col. Hal Moore, pictured here.  While being severely outnumbered by 7-1, he led his unit to win the first battle in the Vietnam War, but lost some of his troops.  He lost 79 men; 120 were wounded, while 600 Viet Cong soldiers were annihilated.  In battle, and at other tough times, he called on God to help him, to protect him and his men, and to help him accomplish the mission.  He even encouraged his troops to honor God.  Veterans, thanks for serving the country.  Pray for the lost ones. 

Prayer for Honor
God of Heaven’s Armies, as I ponder about the fallen soldiers, my heart breaks for their loved ones. Honor them today with my prayer. Thank You for their sacrifice and I pray that their life termination will not be in vain. Amen.

~~ Pastor Andy

One step forward, two steps back
In 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the Maryland prison system closed all facilities to outside visitors, and suspend all programs and all religious services where inmates routinely gathered.

In May 2022 the prison system began to ease up on restrictions and we were finally able to resume our weekly Bible study with our Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing brothers in prison.  Then the Delta variant hit, and our programs were cancelled again.

By January 2023 Delta had faded and we were allowed back in.  After barely a month, our programs were suspended again as the institution responded to an urgent facility maintenance concern.

Three months later, we have now received word that the maintenance problem has been sufficiently repaired to allow us back in for Bible study.  If all goes well, we will have made our first return visit by the time you receive this issue of the Mustard Seed. 

During these long and frequent delays, prison rules prevented us from having any direct contact with the men in our program.  No phone or VP calls; no letters; no personal visits.  The Mustard Seed has been the only way we have to let them know that they haven’t been forgotten.

These frequent stops-and-starts have discouraged several men in prison from attending worship and Bible study.  Those who have remained faithful are praying that their friends will respond to the Holy Spirit’s “poke” to return to fellowship and renew their faith.

Please join them in that prayer.

~~ Pastor Ron

Reprinted from May 2014 Mustard Seed

MAY
With wide verdure the wide overspread,
And trees adorned with blossoms,
The paths of May slow to tread,
And forests of perfume.
~~ Farmer’s Almanac ~~

I’m “borrowing” this poem by Frank Crane and using it with a few adjustments to use as a tribute to honor our mothers:

Because you care, each task will be much lighter,
Each burden so much easier to bear;
And each new morning’s outlook better, brighter,
And each new day more blest because you care

For unswerving patience and unchanging
tenderness, the love of a true mother stands
next to the love of our Father in Heaven.
~~ Heart’s Blessings

Because you care, each joy will seem completer,
Each treasure doubly dear and true and rare;
And in my heart I’ll always find it sweeter
To want the higher things, because you care.

A true mother’s love and care becomes more precious as she and we age. (On Mother’s Day, look to your mother with much appreciation!)

All that I am, my mother made me.  ~~ John Quincy Adams

Someone Has Always Been There!
America’s Greatest Strength – Its People
By Alice L. Hagemeyer

Since I moved to Riderwood Village in Silver Spring, MD, last February 22, 2023, I have met many new neighbors – Deaf and Hearing alike – who are interested in my story about the first Deaf hero in America.  And his name was Laurent Clerc.  They were even more surprised that Laurent Clerc was also the first Deaf hero of ALL hearing Americans.

Did you know that America was about to celebrate its 41st anniversary as an independent nation, when the first public school for the Deaf opened on April 15, 1817? The first of its kind ever!

Years later, two famous hearing educators, Horace Mann and Samuel Gridley Howe got the idea from this Deaf school about using public funds to build the school for the hearing (normal) and for the blind respectively.

This Deaf school was co-founded by Thomas H. Gallaudet (Hearing) and Laurent Clerc (Deaf), the two first visionary leaders in American Deaf Education.

The rest is history!

The Riderwood Deaf Community (RDC)
RDC was founded in 2018 by the late Agnes Dunn Sutcliffe.  As of today (April 2023), we have eleven signing members.  Five deaf members attended State Deaf Schools in the 20th century - Indiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.  One deaf member attended a public school in Hong Kong and never learned ASL until after she entered Gallaudet.  Five are hearing with Deaf hearts.

Deaf Annual Events:
The opening of the first public school for the Deaf: April 15, 1817.  We just celebrated its 206th anniversary. 
We plan to celebrate three international days:

1. September 23, 2023 – Sign Languages (est. 2017) as a part of the International Deaf Week, the last week of September  (est.1958).
2. December 3, 2023 – People with Disabilities (est. 1992) and
3. December 10, 2003 - Human Rights (est. 1948).

Both December 3 and 10 are a part of the Clerc-Gallaudet Week, December 3-10 (est. 1974).

All three will be proclaimed by the general assembly of the United Nations this year as well as by the president of the US and other countries. 

Deaf Celebrities
The Riderwood Deaf Community (RDC) is interested in honoring the Deaf in Elder Culture by acknowledging books, artworks, and/or participatory activities at events by the Deaf in Heritage Culture, e.g. deaf club, deaf theatre, deaf church, and others.  We need help from the Maryland Association of the Deaf, an affiliate of the NAD (charities); Maryland School for the Deaf, a member of the Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf or CEASD (education) and the MD Governor's Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, a member of the National Association of State Agencies of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing or NASADHH (government).

Organizations Serving the Deaf (OSD) in Maryland may wish to acknowledge notable people of  past generations for giving back to Maryland and America over the years.
If you are interested to recommend names of future deaf celebrities for 2023 or 2024 to the RDC, please ask for more information via email – [email protected].

If you are interested to share stories for children and adults alike to celebrate another example of America’s greatest strength – its people, please let FOLDA know.  www.foldadeaf.net.  

Why is God always good all the time?
Do you wonder why God is good when an earthquake occurred in Turkey?  A church member had a tumor.  She has been on shuttles to hospital visits.  Others admonished her, “Thank God they found your tumor in time!  Isn’t God so good?”

Why did He permit the church member to go thru this ordeal in the first place, or why couldn’t have God prevent it before she got to this point.   A person lost his wife.  Instead of being surrounded by family for a funeral, he was isolated and left to question why he passed as tragically as he had. Yet, others pointed out, “Hey, isn’t God good to give you fifteen additional years with her?”  However, why God is good?  Because He stayed with us during our suffering.  He revealed the good and His hand of goodness in all situations, even in our grief.

God is good because God Himself states He is Good. The Bible doesn’t only mention that God does good things.  It states that God IS good. It’s not only what He does; it’s who He is—and who He is never changes. While the world changes, He is constant and doesn’t change.

What are the Biblical verses proving God’s Goodness?
“God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5.  To confirm that God is good indicates that God always acts in a true, noble, right, and good ways.  Goodness is integral to His nature.  He cannot act in conflict against His nature.  Righteousness and holiness are comprised of His nature.  He cannot perform anything that is either unholy or unrighteous. There is only One who is fully and truly good — God.   This good God invites us to seek him and to “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him” Psalm 34:8.

”For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations” Psalm 100:5.
 
God didn’t guarantee that our lives on earth would be always glorious without sorrow.  We will have trouble in our lives such as illness, accidents, and pain.  However, He promised that He has plans to help us and not to harm us.  He promised He would be with us and to save us in this collapsing world.  Being with Him will guide us over high and low cycles.

Consider what you have been through recently.  Have you gotten a new car, a new home, and a healthy baby?  Did you receive adequate money to cover what you need such as groceries and keeping your home warm?  Did you wake up today with your eyes opened?  If your answer is yes, then God is good.  He works out for each of us even in any major crisis.  His goodness is deeply embedded thru your trials and your joys.  He loves you so much that He will nurture you and sanctify you amply.  

Eventually, you will be eternally rewarded by Him.  God’s goodness is visible in His plan to save us from sin.  The Gospel represents “Good News.” In His goodness, God sent His Son to become the complete and innocent sacrifice, so we could be forgiven of our sins.  God does not intend “anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance” 2 Peter 3:9.

What is Holy Thursday? 
We know Good Friday and Easter, but what’s about Holy Thursday?  It is the Thursday before Easter in observation of Jesus Christ’s Lord Supper.  “Maundy Thursday” and “Holy Sheer Thursday” are also used. The word “Maundy” stands for “command” coming from the words of Jesus:  “A new command I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:34) The Latin translation for “A new command” is Mandatum novum.

That Thursday is a very famous eventful time in the Bible.  Judas left Jesus during the Lord’s Supper to begin his act of betraying Jesus.  Jesus showed tenderness more than Peter expected by washing the disciples’ feet.  Jesus said, “Do you know what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Sovereign —and you are right, for that is what I AM. So, if I, your Sovereign and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you and example.” (John 13:12-15)

Paul and the writers of the gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke stated: On the night He was betrayed, our Savior Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, saying, “This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the identical way, He took the cup and proclaimed, “This cup is the New Covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do it in remembrance of me.”  For every time, you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim Jesus’ death until Christ comes. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

~~ Pastor Andy

Families in Prison
Often when someone receives a prison sentence, that person’s whole family is also hit with a sentence.  Life changes for husbands and wives, sons and daughters, moms and dads on the outside when a loved one is incarcerated.  Sadly, too many families abandon one of their own when he or she is sent to prison.  Many prisoners receive no visits, no letters, and no one answers their phone calls.  But there are many families who try to keep their connections with a loved-one in prison, as their life at home becomes more of a struggle.

Financially, there is no money left after the family pays the legal fees are paid.  And with a family member in prison, the family must find a way to survive on half the income that they need.

Dads in prison grieve that their children a growing up without them.

One Deaf mom whose son is in prison felt she needed encouragement and support from other Deaf families impacted by incarceration.  She asked friends to help her find a support group she could attend.  They found a Facebook group that focuses on concerns of Deaf in prison.  And there is an advocacy organization called HEARD (Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of the Deaf) which is concerned about Deaf people in prison.  But this mom needed a group that was more personal, more interactive, where she could have live discussions with others in her situation.  Finding none, she started one.  She calls it, “Hope for Families.”

Now a small but growing group of people with loved-ones in prison meet once each month on Zoom, sharing and encouraging each other in ASL.  The email contact to join this group is:  [email protected].

The Confession of St Patrick
                                  Abridged

I bind [connect] to myself today
      God’s Strong Name:
      Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
I believe the Three-in-One God,
      The Maker of the Universe.
 
I bind to myself today Jesus Christ,
      God become man,
      baptized,
      crucified,
      buried,
      resurrected,
      ascended.
He will come again on Judgment Day,
and I, also, will rise with Him to eternal life.
 
I bind to myself today
      His holy angels who love and obey Him,
      His Apostles and Prophets
            who long ago announced His message,
      And all who offered their lives
            confessing His Name.
 
I bind to myself today
      The power of Heaven,
      The light of the sun,
      The brightness of the moon,
      The brilliance of fire,
      The flashing of lightning,
      The speed of wind,
      The depth of sea,
      The stability of earth,
      The firmness of rocks.

Today I bind to myself
      God’s Power to guide me,
      God’s Might to support me,
      God’s Wisdom to teach me,
      God’s Eye to watch over me,
      God’s Ear to hear me,
      God’s Word to speak through me,
      God’s Hand to guide me,
      God’s Way ahead of me,
      God’s Shield to protect me,
      God’s angels to keep me safe,
            safe against the devil’s traps,
            safe against all temptations,
            safe against my own sinful desires,
            safe against everyone who plans to hurt me,
                  few or many, near or far.
                       
Christ, protect me today
      against attacks on my body and soul,
      against Satan’s dark powers and false teachings,
      against every poison,
      against burning,
      against drowning,
      against death-wound,
That I may receive a great eternal reward.
 
Christ, be with me.
Christ, be in front of me.
Christ, be behind me.
Christ, be in me.
Christ, be under me.
Christ, be over me.
Christ, be near my right side.
Christ, be near my left side.
Christ, be in my home.
Christ, be with me during my travels.
Christ, be in the heart of everyone
      who thinks about me.
Christ, be in words of everyone
      who speaks to me.
Christ, be in every eye that sees me.
Christ, be in every ear that hears me.
 
I bind to myself today God’s Strong Name:
      Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
I believe the Three-in-One God,
      The Maker of the Universe.

Children in the Mid-1800s
About 10,000 abandoned deaf and hearing children in mid-1850, lived in New York City.  Their parents were either not living or they were struggling immigrants.
 
Some hearing children rode on the Orphan Trains to the Midwest to find a new home.  Deaf children were not allowed to ride due to their  being “handicapped.” Most deaf children would be placed at the New York School for the Deaf (Fanwood).
 
One man brought five deaf children to Washington, DC, trying to start a school.  Amos Kendal took charge of the children.  He donated two acres northeast Washington, D.C, and there opened a school on Kendall Green, which now serves as the campus of Kendall Demonstration Elementary School and Gallaudet University.
 
My library colleagues and I learned about such children from Henry Buzzard, who retired in 1979 as a School librarian, but continued to volunteer as an archivist and historian for the Fanwood school.  Buzzard donated papers – his research and lectures on the deaf between 1880-1987 to Gallaudet Archives:
https://udet.edu/archives/archives-collections/manuscript-collection/manuscripts-mss-59-buzzard-henry-1923/
Also see: https://kdes.gallaudet.edu/history-of-kendall

The Deaf of Elder Culture
Danvers, Massachusetts and Columbus, Ohio  
 
In 1882 the first home for the deaf and deaf/blind elders started in the state of New York. In 1901-1902 New England Home for the Deaf was eventually built in Danvers, MA.
 
Another one – Columbus Colony –  was also set up in Columbus, Ohio, in 1896.  These are the only two of such kind in America!
 
When visiting New England Home for the Deaf in 2003, I met several oldest living deaf people – Ages 90-100.  Several I have met before through the Gallaudet reunion.  95-year-old Ruth Clark, a graduate of the American School for the Deaf and Gallaudet, and 90-year-old Mary Johnson who learned sign language later and entered Gallaudet.  I enjoyed many stories told by several residents about their experience at the deaf school and much more.
 
Read more of their history here:
https://nehd.org/about
https://columbuscolonyelderlycare.org/about