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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 82)
Johannesburg, South Africa
Alma materGallaudet College
Catholic University of America
St John Vianney Seminary, Pretoria
ChurchRoman 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.

Biography

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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

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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]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Simmermacher, Gunther (9 March 2021). "Father Cyril Axelrod: New Ways of Communicating God's Love". The Southern Cross. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Siedlecka, Jo (6 December 2018). "Profile: Father Cyril Axelrod". Independent Catholic News. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "A History of Deafblindness". Deafblind Scotland. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "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. ^ a b "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. ^ a b 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. ^ a b c "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.

Further reading

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