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Deaf from birth, Mary Profilio’s heart heard Jesus’ voice

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From the moment she took her first breath, Mary Profilio’s world has been shrouded in silence.

Born deaf, her world has been, at times, one of isolation and struggle.

“It has been difficult to access the world, especially in years gone by,” she told The Catholic Weekly through an Auslan translator.

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“My family tells me that there’s birds chirping, the waves at the beach. I don’t get to hear those sounds.”

But, in the depths of her heart, an unshakeable voice guides her: the divine voice of Jesus Christ.

“This is something that I believe. And I know Jesus is always there, listening to us,” she said.

Her faith was first given clarity by her loving mother, Philomena, when, as a child attending Mass, the words of the Gospel would literally fall on deaf ears.

Mary Profilio at the Ephpheta Centre. Photo: Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.

“We didn’t have interpreters. We were told to sit in Mass and be quiet and watch the priest, and not to chat between ourselves,” she recalls.

It was only when she returned home, through her mother, that the words and fruits of the Gospel would come alive.

“She would tell me about the Mass. I had more understanding because of my mother about Mass. She was just a saint to me,” she recalls.

At 77, Mary fondly remembers her childhood at “The School for Deaf Girls” at Waratah, near Newcastle, founded by the Dominican Sisters.

“I used to love going to my deaf school, because I had a lot of friends”.

But that all changed when at 18 she found a job in a bank.

“There were ‘hearing’ people around me. It made me feel different about myself and because of that, I felt like there was something wrong with me,” she said.

“I started to question my life and why I was deaf and how I was going to navigate the world as a deaf person.

“I think maybe that was a time where I pushed my faith down.”

But another voice urged her to push back against her doubts.

Mary prays the rosary with an Auslan interpreter and gathers for Mass with her community, celebrated by Fr Michael Lanzon, who has learned to sign. Photo: Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.

“My mum told me to stand up. Have strong faith in God and accept and trust in God’s will,” she said.

She met and married her husband, Bob Profilio, who learned to sign.

“He was very, very good to me. Suddenly my whole world opened up. We started a family and life was wonderful,” Mary said.

But her happiness would be short lived. While camping with her family near Ulladulla, her husband went snorkelling with two of his friends, and never returned.

“He loved the water; it was very early in the morning when he went snorkelling with two of his friends,” she said.

“He went under and according to the autopsy, he must have had some chest pains. His friends didn’t realise. When they came back, I asked them, where’s Bob?

“When he went missing the following morning, I walked to the beach, and I was talking to him while I walked along the beach. Where are you?

“We waited for a period of ten days. My children didn’t actually want to go home without their dad, but we had to.

“And I was very, very angry with God. Why did you take him? Because he was only 54.”

Ephpheta Centre
Last year the Ephpheta Centre even organised for Mary to meet Pope Francis in Rome. Photo: Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.

In the throes of her grief, her mother’s voice, once again, sliced through the darkness.

“She reminded me that I must accept and trust in God’s will. And I understood, it was time for him to go to God. It was time for him to go home. But I still do talk to him every day. I miss his hugs most of all,” she said.

Today, Mary is a proud grandmother and her five adult children are thriving.

Most fulfilling for her is the other family she’s found at the Ephpheta Centre, a Catholic Centre for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People in Punchbowl.

The centre takes its name from Mark 7:31-36, in which Jesus uses the Aramaic word to command a deaf and mute man to “be opened.”

Through the centre, which was established in 1979, Mary has been able to access the gifts of the Mass.

She prays the rosary with an Auslan interpreter and gathers for Mass with her community, celebrated by Fr Michael Lanzon, who has learned to sign.

“The centre has been fantastic at organising access to the Mass, through interpreters. And they have prayer groups that run every Friday, which I love attending. And the community here is very close-knit, we love and support each other,” said Mary.

Ephpheta Centre
Through the centre, which was established in 1979, Mary has been able to access the gifts of the Mass. Photo: Sydney Centre for Evangelisation.

Last year the Ephpheta Centre even organised for Mary to meet Pope Francis in Rome.

“It was one of the best moments of my life meeting him,” says Mary.

It was the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. Mary’s mother, who died in 2009 at the age 91, would have been proud.

“I hope that she’s proud of me. I wish she could have seen it,” Mary said.

Mary’s hope is for more members of the deaf community come to church.

“God is always here, always listening to us, always present. I’m keeping my faith strong and I’m keeping going because of it.”

The Director of the Sydney Centre for Evangelisation, Daniel Ang, said the Ephpheta Centre has been a remarkable community offering spiritual nourishment for 45 years.

“Mary’s story speaks loudly of the depth of faith and discipleship that people not only receive but bring to the Ephpheta Centre and the life of the archdiocese as a whole,” he said.

“There is so much energy and initiative among members and friends of the centre. It really is a true expression of Jesus’ invitation to ‘be open’ and a story that ought to be shared.”

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