Miss-Delectable
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Taiwan Today
Unable to hear the sound of an organ or the amens of a congregation, worshippers at the Bo-ai Sign Language Church respond to the flashing hands of their deaf minister, Wu Hsin-tsang, with nods and smiles.
Wu was born deaf, and had an epileptic fit at age 15 that left him without hope. A classmate at the Chitsong School, Luo Shiwang, introduced him to Christianity, and after sincere prayers, his epilepsy was mysteriously cured without medication. With his wife, Chen Tzu-mei, always at his side, Wu graduated with a master’s degree from Taiwan Theological College and Seminary and became the first and only deaf minister on the island.
Wu says with gratitude: “My wife is truly God’s gift to me.” She has acted as her husband’s spokesperson and as a sign language interpreter, and in June of this year, TTCS awarded her an honorary master’s in theology in recognition of her assistance and contributions.
Baptized at age 17 by a deaf Japanese pastor, Wu became a missionary at age 23. He remembers that before he turned 19, he visited the Holy Land in Israel, and was looking at the statue at the place where Jesus asked Peter three questions when he heard Jesus speaking to him, saying: “Do you love me more than he did?” He nodded with tears running down his face, and Jesus then led him to take on the care of his deaf flock in Taiwan.
This episode gave Wu a strong sense of purpose in life. Wu says Taiwan has at least 120,000 deaf residents, but very few of them have the chance to hear the gospel. Each time he holds a worship service, he always works hard to make his gestures lively.
To explain the concept of “faith,” Wu uses movements like a kite, telling everyone that although a kite flies so high that it cannot be seen, just as God is high above mankind, the string attached to it, which represents prayer, can always be used to feel its existence. His congregation nodded and smiled when they saw this comparison signed.
“Deaf Christians are different from other Christians. I need to try to perform, to give examples, and help everyone understand the Bible.”
To get everyone to appreciate the meaning of the Bible verse “Let all who are heavy burdened come to Me, and I will give them rest,” Wu does an extemporaneous performance of a little skit, showing an elderly man carrying a heavy burden on his shoulder. The man meets a driver, who invites him to ride on his vehicle and takes the load off his back. Wu then explains that Jesus is like that driver, able to comfort those who are toiling.
After 20-odd years in teaching the gospel, Wu still has dreams. His greatest dream is to help the deaf congregation find a home in which to meet. “I want to shepherd those whom God has given to me, and willingly and happily serve as an example to them.”
Each time he thinks of Pastor Teng Kai-fu, who gave him that idea, Wu reminds himself never to let a weakness change his intention, but to constantly be watchful and encourage himself to remain steadfast in the face of frustration.
Unable to hear the sound of an organ or the amens of a congregation, worshippers at the Bo-ai Sign Language Church respond to the flashing hands of their deaf minister, Wu Hsin-tsang, with nods and smiles.
Wu was born deaf, and had an epileptic fit at age 15 that left him without hope. A classmate at the Chitsong School, Luo Shiwang, introduced him to Christianity, and after sincere prayers, his epilepsy was mysteriously cured without medication. With his wife, Chen Tzu-mei, always at his side, Wu graduated with a master’s degree from Taiwan Theological College and Seminary and became the first and only deaf minister on the island.
Wu says with gratitude: “My wife is truly God’s gift to me.” She has acted as her husband’s spokesperson and as a sign language interpreter, and in June of this year, TTCS awarded her an honorary master’s in theology in recognition of her assistance and contributions.
Baptized at age 17 by a deaf Japanese pastor, Wu became a missionary at age 23. He remembers that before he turned 19, he visited the Holy Land in Israel, and was looking at the statue at the place where Jesus asked Peter three questions when he heard Jesus speaking to him, saying: “Do you love me more than he did?” He nodded with tears running down his face, and Jesus then led him to take on the care of his deaf flock in Taiwan.
This episode gave Wu a strong sense of purpose in life. Wu says Taiwan has at least 120,000 deaf residents, but very few of them have the chance to hear the gospel. Each time he holds a worship service, he always works hard to make his gestures lively.
To explain the concept of “faith,” Wu uses movements like a kite, telling everyone that although a kite flies so high that it cannot be seen, just as God is high above mankind, the string attached to it, which represents prayer, can always be used to feel its existence. His congregation nodded and smiled when they saw this comparison signed.
“Deaf Christians are different from other Christians. I need to try to perform, to give examples, and help everyone understand the Bible.”
To get everyone to appreciate the meaning of the Bible verse “Let all who are heavy burdened come to Me, and I will give them rest,” Wu does an extemporaneous performance of a little skit, showing an elderly man carrying a heavy burden on his shoulder. The man meets a driver, who invites him to ride on his vehicle and takes the load off his back. Wu then explains that Jesus is like that driver, able to comfort those who are toiling.
After 20-odd years in teaching the gospel, Wu still has dreams. His greatest dream is to help the deaf congregation find a home in which to meet. “I want to shepherd those whom God has given to me, and willingly and happily serve as an example to them.”
Each time he thinks of Pastor Teng Kai-fu, who gave him that idea, Wu reminds himself never to let a weakness change his intention, but to constantly be watchful and encourage himself to remain steadfast in the face of frustration.