Rabbinical Inspiration
I don’t know how common all-deaf congregations are, but this is interesting.
It turns out her last congregation (actually I think her only one) where she worked for at least 20 years was a deaf congregation. Anyway, she taught our congregants the beginning of the "Shema" (Hear, oh Israel, the Lord is our G-d, the Lord is One ") using signs she developed with her congregation. Her sign for "hear" in this case was ( I believe) a gentle upward tapping over the heart with the open right hand, moving to the throat then slightly diagonally toward the right ear then up over the head while raising her eyes and head slightly.
