Cyril Axelrod

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The Reverend Fr

Cyril Axelrod

OBE CSsR
Born
Sheftil ben Avram Abba

(1942-02-24) 24 February 1942 (age 81)
Johannesburg, South Africa
Alma mater Gallaudet College
Catholic University of America
St John Vianney Seminary, Pretoria
Church Roman Catholic Church
OrdainedNovember 1970
Congregations served
 Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer

Father Cyril Bernhard Axelrod, OBE , CSsR (born 24 February 1942) is a deafblind Catholic priest of the Redemptorist Order, known for his work with deaf and deafblind people. He has ministered to the deaf and deafblind around the world, including in South Africa, China and the United Kingdom. In 2014 he became the first deafblind person to become an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

Contents

Biography

Cyril Axelrod was born as Sheftil ben Avram Abba on 24 February 1942 in Johannesburg, South Africa. [1] He was born profoundly deaf to hearing parents who were Orthodox Jewish. [2] His grandfather was a rabbi, and his parents spoke Yiddish, with little knowledge of English. [3]

He attended St. Vincent's School for the Deaf in Johannesburg. [1]

As a young man he planned to become a rabbi, but after a difficult spiritual journey, converted to Catholicism in 1965. [1] From 1962 to 1965 he studied accounting and became a certified bookkeeper. [4] He decided to become a priest when he noticed fellow deaf people at Mass who could not understand what the priest was saying. [1] From 1965 to 1966 he traveled to the U.S., studying philosophy at Gallaudet College and Catholic University of America. [4] Axelrod trained for the priesthood at St. John Vianney Seminary in Pretoria, South Africa, and was ordained in Johannesburg in November 1970. [1] At the time, he was the second born-deaf person to be initiated. [5]

His new parish would consist of the deaf people throughout South Africa, using eight indigenous sign languages. [1] [2] He entered the Redemptorist order in 1975. [6] Axelrod was dismayed to find black deaf children in South Africa, some as old as 15, who were unable to read, write or sign as a result of discriminatory education policies. [7] Axelrod also encouraged the adoption of one universal sign language in South Africa to promote opportunities for black deaf South Africans. [8] Defying apartheid, he established multiple multiracial institutions, including a school for deaf children in Soweto, a hostel for deaf homeless people in Pretoria, and an employment center in Cape Town. [2]

He worked to have schools, community centers, and homes built for deaf people around the world. [3] In 1988 he traveled to Hong Kong and Macau, spending twelve years in Macau and setting up multiple services for deaf people there, including a center for deaf children and the Macau Deaf Association. [2] He would travel on missions in the U.S., Malta, and Australia, among other locations. [6]

Axelrod was diagnosed with Usher syndrome in 1979, which would mean he would gradually lose his sight. [1] He was completely blind by 2001, using finger signing to communicate. [1] He moved to London in 2000, where he studied braille and worked with the organization Deafblind UK as their Pastoral Support Development Coordinator. [3] He also qualified as a massage therapist. [9] In 2013 he made the news in South Africa when Comair staff would not let him board a flight alone because of his deafblindness, even though Axelrod had traveled independently for many decades; [10] Comair later offered to provide a guide to travel with Axelrod for free. [11]

Axelrod published an autobiography in 2005, And the Journey Begins, which describes his difficult childhood, his spiritual journey, and his pastoral ministry. [12] A book of his paintings was published in 2020, titled Light in silent darkness. [13]

Honors

Gallaudet College awarded Axelrod the Edward Minor Gallaudet Award in 1982 for his work in promoting "the well-being of deaf people of the world." [8] Axelrod received an honorary doctorate from Gallaudet University in 2001. [4]

In 2014, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) "for services to the development of deaf blind services in Hong Kong". [14] [13] Axelrod was the first deafblind person to have received that honor. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gallaudet University</span> Private university for those with hearing loss in Washington, D.C.

Gallaudet University is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing. It was founded in 1864 as a grammar school for both deaf and blind children. It was the first school for the advanced education of the deaf and hard of hearing in the world and remains the only higher education institution in which all programs and services are specifically designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students. Hearing students are admitted to the graduate school and a small number are also admitted as undergraduates each year. The university was named after Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, a notable figure in the advancement of deaf education.

Perkins School for the Blind, in Watertown, Massachusetts, was founded in 1829 and is the oldest school for the blind in the United States. It has also been known as the Perkins Institution for the Blind.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Usher syndrome</span> Recessive genetic disorder causing deafblindness

Usher syndrome, also known as Hallgren syndrome, Usher–Hallgren syndrome, retinitis pigmentosa–dysacusis syndrome or dystrophia retinae dysacusis syndrome, is a rare genetic disorder caused by a mutation in any one of at least 11 genes resulting in a combination of hearing loss and visual impairment. It is a major cause of deafblindness and is at present incurable.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deafblindness</span> Condition of little or no useful sight and little or no useful hearing

Deafblindness is the condition of little or no useful hearing and little or no useful sight. Different degrees of vision loss and auditory loss occur within each individual. Because of this inherent diversity, each deafblind individual's needs regarding lifestyle, communication, education, and work need to be addressed based on their degree of dual-modality deprivation, to improve their ability to live independently. In 1994, an estimated 35,000–40,000 United States residents were medically deafblind. Helen Keller was a well-known example of a deafblind individual. To further her lifelong mission to help the deafblind community to expand its horizons and gain opportunities, the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults, with a residential training program in Sands Point, New York, was established in 1967 by an act of Congress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redemptorists</span> Catholic missionary order

The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, abbreviated CSsR, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men. It was founded by Alphonsus Liguori at Scala, Italy, for the purpose of labouring among the neglected country people around Naples. It is dedicated to missionary work and they minister in more than 100 countries. Members of the congregation are Catholic priests and consecrated religious brothers.

Comair Limited was an airline based in South Africa that operated scheduled services on domestic routes as a British Airways franchisee. It also operated as a low-cost carrier under its own kulula.com brand. Its main base was OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, while focus cities were Cape Town, flying from Cape Town International Airport and Durban, King Shaka International Airport. Its headquarters were near OR Tambo in the Bonaero Park area of Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, Gauteng.

Tactile signing is a common means of communication used by people with deafblindness. It is based on a sign language or another system of manual communication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Maginn</span> Missionary and co-founder of British Deaf Association

Francis Maginn (1861–1918) was a Church of Ireland missionary who worked to improve living standards for the deaf community by promoting sign language and was one of the co-founders of the British Deaf Association.

Sophia Kindrick Alcorn was an educator who invented the Tadoma method of communication with people who are deaf and blind. She advocated for the rights of people with disabilities and upon retiring from her long career in teaching, she worked with the American Foundation for the Blind.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Braam Jordaan</span> South African author and film producer

Braam Jordaan is a South African entrepreneur, filmmaker, animator, and activist. He is an advocate for Sign Language and human rights of Deaf people, and a board member of the World Federation of the Deaf Youth Section. In 2009, Jordaan collaborated with the Canadian Cultural Society of the Deaf and Marblemedia on the first children's animated dictionary of American Sign Language, which allows deaf children to look up words in their own primary language of ASL along with the English counterpart. The dictionary allows both deaf children and their hearing parents to learn sign language together.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haben Girma</span> Eritrean-American disability rights advocate

Haben Girma is an American disability rights advocate, and the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Stephen Pazak</span>

John Stephen Pazak, C.Ss.R. is an American-born member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly known as the Redemptorists, who served as an eparch of the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church. He served as the Eparch of the Eparchy of Phoenix, which is based in Phoenix, Arizona from July 2016 until his retirement in 2021.

Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (KDES) is a private day school serving deaf and hard of hearing students from birth through grade 8 on the campus of Gallaudet University in the Trinidad neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Alongside Model Secondary School for the Deaf, it is a federally funded, tuition-free demonstration school administered by the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center at Gallaudet University.

The establishment of schools and institutions specializing in deaf education has a history spanning back across multiple centuries. They utilized a variety of instructional approaches and philosophies. The manner in which the language barrier is handled between the hearing and the deaf remains a topic of great controversy. Many of the early establishments of formalized education for the deaf are currently acknowledged for the influence they've contributed to the development and standards of deaf education today.

John Lee Clark is an American deafblind poet, writer, and activist from Minnesota. He is the author of Suddenly Slow (2008) and Where I Stand: On the Signing Community and My DeafBlind Experience (2014), and the editor of anthologies Deaf American Poetry (2009) and Deaf Lit Extravaganza (2013). Clark was the recipient of a 2020 National Magazine Award. He is a prominent activist in the Protactile movement.

Deafblind UK is a national charity in the United Kingdom supporting people with sight and hearing loss to live the lives they want. Founded in 1928, Deafblind UK has its headquarters in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire. The charity help people to live with deafblindness by making connections, and building their confidence and independence through a range of services and campaigns. Run by staff and volunteers, the current CEO is Steve Conway, who has been in position since 2018. The current chairman in Robert Nolan.

Anindya Bapin Bhattacharyya is an Indian American technology instructor for the deafblind. He coordinates the National Outreach Technology Development and Training Program at the Helen Keller National Center for DeafBlind Youths and Adults, traveling the country teaching deafblind people to use adaptive technology. Deaf from birth and blind at the age of nine, Bhattacharyya has been an advocate for deafblind individuals in the United States and beyond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John Vianney Seminary, Pretoria</span> South African Catholic institution

St John Vianney Seminary, Pretoria, South Africa, is the National Seminary for the Roman Catholic Church in South Africa. The institution is a training facility and House of Formation under the auspices of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC).

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Simmermacher, Gunther (9 March 2021). "Father Cyril Axelrod: New Ways of Communicating God's Love". The Southern Cross. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Siedlecka, Jo (6 December 2018). "Profile: Father Cyril Axelrod". Independent Catholic News. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 "A History of Deafblindness". Deafblind Scotland. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 "Axelrod, Cyril". Gallaudet University Library Guide to Deaf Biographies and Index to Deaf Periodicals. Gallaudet University. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  5. ↑ "Jewish-born deaf-blind priest awarded an OBE". The Tablet: the International Catholic News Weekly. 3 July 2013. Archived from the original on 10 July 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  6. 1 2 "Father Cyril Axelrod, CSsR. Deaf-blind Redemptorist Missionary". Redemptorist Conference of Europe. 9 April 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  7. ↑ Dewey, Caitlin (11 December 2013). "Is South Africa's 'fake' sign language interpreter a legacy of apartheid?". Washington Post. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  8. 1 2 Berger, Leslie (10 July 1982). "A Ministry Among the 'Most Abandoned'". Washington Post. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  9. ↑ "OBE honours a prince among men". Independent Online. 21 November 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  10. ↑ Maditla, Neo (12 August 2013). "Deaf, blind priest grounded by airline". Independent Online. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  11. ↑ "Comair to fly deaf, blind priest". News24. 14 August 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  12. ↑ "Speaking a language the deaf can hear and the blind can see". Times of Malta. 9 April 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  13. 1 2 3 "Father Cyril Axelrod was made OBE". Deafblind Information Australia. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  14. ↑ "No. 60534". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 2013. p. 25.

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