Deaf Go is an extension of the Brentwood Baptist Deaf Church and The Deaf Theological Center. In fact, the genesis of the Deaf Go Bible was The Deaf Theological Center. Dwight Rogers, a graduate of the Deaf Theological Center, explains why this Bible is so important: “The Deaf navigate life visually and prefer to have icons for every story and passage in the Bible. At the Deaf Theological Center,
I had access to the school’s visual translation of the Bible. I could easily internalize the visual layout of the Bible’s stories. After I graduated, my family and I moved to India to serve as missionaries to the Deaf, but we no longer had access to Scripture in the Deaf heart language.”
The reality is that many Deaf people do not have access to God’s Word. What many hearing people may not realize is American Sign Language is quite different from the English language. ASL is a visual language with its own unique syntax. That’s why it’s imperative for the Deaf to have God’s Word available in their own heart language. The Deaf Go Bible app has an entirely icon-driven interface. Bible consultants worked hand in hand with graphic artists to prepare the perfect icons to communicate Scripture accurately and clearly for the Deaf. A team made up of Deaf men and women filmed Bible stories in ASL. This team continues to film stories so that by the time the project is completed, the Deaf will have a story-based translation of the Bible.
