The 1st Deaf Eucharistic Congress is scheduled on the weekend of April 4 - 6, 2025 at the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Hundreds are expected to attend, according to Father Mike Depcik,the chaplain for the Deaf ministry in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.
The 2021 American Community Survey (ACS), shows that about 3.6% of the U.S. population, or
about 11 million individuals, consider themselves deaf or have serious difficulty hearing.
Statistics Show:
-Fewer than 8 out of every 100 Deaf people in the USA attend church.
-The native language of Deaf people in North America is American Sign Language (ASL). It is the third most-used language in North America.
-A number of mission organizations say the Deaf community is the largest unreached people group in North America.
-Deaf people who use ASL as their primary language have their very own culture, the Deaf-World
Guest speakers will be Jeanine Adkins and Deacon Pat Graybill.
Cost: $30 (includes light refreshments & lunch)
Schedule: 8 a.m. Door Open/Confessions in Basilica
8:15-9 a.m. - Registration - Light refreshments & coffee
9:15 - 9:45 a.m. - Opening prayer & Welcome
10-11 a.m. - Group split into two for Presentation A & B A: Jeannine Adkins - The Healing Power of the Eucharist
B: Deacon Patrick Graybill - Eucharist: Holy Ground
11:15 a.m. - Noon - Adoration 12:15 - 1:15 p.m. - Lunch/Confessions in Basiica
1:30 - 2:30 p.m. - Presentation A & B
2:30 - 3 p.m. - Confessions in Basilica
The planning committee for this event includes: Sr. Kathleen Schipani, IHM of
Archdiocese of Philadelphia; Laureen Lynch-Ryan, the Deaf Ministry coordinator in
Archdiocese of Washington, DC; Paul Kuplicki, Sr., the financial manager at St. John’s
Deaf Center in Archdiocese of Detroit, and myself from Archdiocese of Baltimore.
This Deaf Eucharistic Congress will be the first one of its kind - that is, it will focus
entirely on the members of the Deaf Catholic community (the Deaf, Deaf-Blind, Hard of
Hearing, Deaf and hearing pastoral workers who work with the Deaf, etc.)
On Friday, April 4, the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton will be open to Deaf
Eucharistic Congress participants who want to visit its museum and historical buildings
on the property associated with St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (e.g. the house where she died,
etc.). The shrine guides themselves will be Deaf. The participants can also have an
opportunity to visit the National Shrine Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes which is two miles
away from the Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. In the evening, people could dine in
one of many restaurants in beautiful historic downtown Frederick.
Saturday, April 5 will be the main day at the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
Our speakers for that day will be Jeannine Adkins of Wichita, Kansas who is notable for
her inspirational talks and Deacon Patrick Graybill, a nationwide well-known presenter.
On that day, we will also have adoration, procession and finally a closing Mass. During
that day, people will also have an opportunity for sacrament of reconciliation.
If participants choose to stay until Sunday, then they are invited to join for another Mass
with local Deaf Catholics at 10 AM in Frederick. After the Mass, they are invited to
brunch provided by the community of St. Ignatius Church. They could also take an
opportunity to visit downtown Frederick which has several interesting places to visit
such as Civil War Medicine Museum, historic St. John Catholic Church, etc. In addition,
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is only 20 minutes away from Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Sources: https://3adm.org/whydeafministry.php
file:///C:/Users/adore/Downloads/letterfromfrmichaeldepcik2.pdf
https://nationaldeafcenter.org/faq/how-many-deaf-people-live-in-the-united-states/
http://www.deafcathnyc.org/events-2/eucharistic-congress-catholic-deaf-community-april-5-2025/
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