Tennessee church leads the way in ministering to deaf people

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. -- Brian Sims was sitting in traffic when a car with a booming stereo pulled up next to him.

Feeling vibrations from the pulsating vehicle, the Baptist pastor who ministers to the deaf got an idea: creating a one-of-kind church exclusively for deaf people.

Today, the Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church has more than 30 speakers beneath the floor so congregants can feel the vibration of the music.

Many churches provide sign language for deaf and partially deaf worshippers, but this church in a Nashville suburb is unique because it was built specifically with a deaf ministry in mind.

"There is a hearing church, basically, on every corner, but there's not really any place like this," Sims said. "It's a place where the deaf know, 'This is for me,' that it meets their needs," Sims said.

The church has a loop system, which allows anyone with a hearing aid to tie into the sound system with the flip of a switch.

Each seat also is wider to give church members more space to communicate in sign language.

The Southern Baptist church has about 150 people who attend, with Sunday services that are now simulcast for 600 to 700 people in 16 locations across the country.

Sims said he wants the church to become a training ground for deaf pastors and church leaders, because most seminaries currently require deaf students to have their own interpreters and most can't afford such an expense.

The church held a pilot conference last year to train deaf pastors and leaders, with about 100 people from around the Southeast attending. A national conference is planned for this fall.

Joy Mangrum used sign language to sing the hymn "I'll Fly Away" during a service at the Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church in Brentwood, Tenn.

Texas architect Cynthia Stiles, who designed the church, said she couldn't find any structure like it as she was in the planning stage.

Stiles, who also is deaf, said she knew having a clear line of sight to the altar area as well as good lighting and music were crucial in the church design.

Often, churches that have interpreters for the deaf have carpets and pews which deaden vibration. Large pillars and other obstacles can obstruct views of the altar, and too many windows can cause a glare.

"If you're a deaf person, I think it makes the service more meaningful to be able to feel the music from the floor," Stiles said through an interpreter. "The [violet] coloring from the walls make it easier to see. The acoustics are easier to understand the message and to communicate better."

Janet Clark, 64, of Nashville, said she began to attend the Brentwood deaf church in the mid-'90s after she lost part of her hearing from an inner-ear disease.

"My husband and I were attending a hearing church," Clark said. "But when I could no longer hear the minister's sermon, my husband asked me if I wanted to attend the deaf church.

"At my former hearing church, I could hear nothing. But at the deaf church I can understand everything. So it is such a blessing to be in an environment where I can function and participate fully."

On the Net

• Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church: www.brentwooddeaf.org/