Orthodox bishops in the United States have approved a dictionary of Orthodox Christian terminology in American Sign Language (ASL), aiming to make church life more accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing people.

The decision was announced at the 15th annual Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States, held October 3–6, 2026, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

According to materials from the assembly, the dictionary was presented by a dedicated working group that included sign language interpreters and other project participants. Savannah Foster, president of the Orthodox Christian Deaf Association (OCDA), also attended the meeting.

The initiative goes beyond translating individual words. The OCDA, working with church specialists, is developing signs for liturgical texts and theological concepts to ensure that translations are understandable to worshippers while preserving the meaning of Orthodox Christian teaching. The organization has outlined its work on its official website.

Another major topic at the assembly was the development of a common Orthodox catechism in English. The bishops reaffirmed the need to continue work on the text, which is intended to present the fundamentals of the Orthodox faith. Several church committees and working groups are expected to contribute to its preparation.

The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States brings together hierarchs representing the various canonical Orthodox jurisdictions serving in the country. These include representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Patriarchates of Antioch, Moscow, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria, the Georgian Orthodox Church, and the Orthodox Church in America.

The October assembly was chaired by Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, who represents the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Participants also included Metropolitan Tikhon, primate of the Orthodox Church in America; Archbishop Saba, head of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America; and bishops from Serbian, Georgian and other Orthodox jurisdictions.

The approval of the sign language dictionary marks a step toward improving access to Orthodox worship and religious education for deaf and hard-of-hearing people in the United States, while the ongoing catechism project seeks to provide a common English-language resource for teaching the Orthodox faith.