Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Wild Garden

Home
Pagan
Interfaith in Prison

Interfaith in Prison

Last updated on: January 7, 2014 at 11:03 am by Holli Emore

Interfaith in Prison 2014-01-07T11:03:54-04:00 Holli Emore

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

By Serge J-F. Levy 2013

Today I talked by phone for a bit with a chaplain in an Alaska prison. One of the inmates had contacted Cherry Hill Seminary about our new Pagan Life Academy print lessons for incarcerated Pagans, and I called the chaplain with a question. Our conversation surprised me.

Like many correctional systems around the country, Alaska was prompted by a lawsuit to institute improvements in their religious accommodation of diverse faiths among inmates. In the past, a contracted evangelical Christian group provided all religious services. Now, there are paid professional chaplains on staff (at least at this facility, and one hopes at the others), and they are trained to operate in a multifaith environment, regardless of their own personal beliefs.

What really pricked my ears, however, was to learn that this prison is using a curriculum which teaches participants about other religions. The Federal Bureau of Prisons (Bureau) Life Connections Pilot Program (LCP) was originally part of the President’s Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative under Bush (2004). Here’s what the Department of Justice says about it:

“The mission of LCP is to reduce recidivism and bring reconciliation to victim, community, and inmate through the study of secular reentry-related subjects (e.g., ethical decision-making, anger management, victim restitution) from the inmate’s religious or philosophical perspective. Participants are matched with volunteer mentors of their faith or philosophy who visit weekly and are linked with a church or like-minded group at their release destination in order to enhance community reintegration.

“Participants from the same faith study and pray together in small groups. They are led through a secular life-skills curriculum by a contracted spiritual guide of their faith, who discusses what their sacred text (e.g., Bible, Torah, Quran) says about the subject (e.g., responsible parenting, budgeting, marriage enrichment, religious tolerance, respect). They join their respective worship service in the general prison population; those of no designated faith engage in individual study during chapel times.” read more here

Inmates in LCP move to an all-LCP cell block, and “the rigors of the program prevent participants from working as much as the general population, thus sometimes cutting in half their monthly earnings.” The Alaska chaplain told me that their participants learn about all the other religions and attend different services to see what they are like. While I was unable to locate published results, sites around the country are being studied and some say that the program is showing recidivism rates of less than half that of non-LCP prison parolees.

(By Molly Moore — The Washington Post)

To my thinking, a prison is an intensely-concentrated microcosm of public society. Whatever may be lurking out there in the corners of the community will eventually turn up in a prison. Despite the high rates of recidivism (re-offending and being arrested), prison is a logical place for someone to do some soul-searching. People can, and many do, take their imprisonment as a place to catch their breath, think hard about past poor choices, and plan for a better future (inside or outside the walls). Many encounter order and structure for the first time in their lives; a fair number are fighting addictions. Prison is a bitter pill, no matter the crime, but it can be a lifesaver with the kind of help described in LCP.

Think what our world would be like if parolees re-entering our communities – starting jobs, moving into our neighborhoods, getting girlfriends or moving back in with their husbands and children – what would it be like if these people had learned the value of diversity, learned not to fear difference, learned to appreciate “the other,” and in the process developed their own spiritual practice. Come to think of it, think what our world would be like if all of us really learned these things.

It’s a new interfaith year and I’m grateful for this fresh inspiration.

Life Connections Program

prison

prisoner re-entry

recidivism

religious accommodation

Previous Post

January 2, 2014

What 2013 meant to me in terms of pagan interfaith

Next Post

January 14, 2014 Travelling Together

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Aline O'Brien posts Byron Ballard posts Carol Kirk posts David Dashifen Kees posts Drea Parker posts Holli Emore posts Jess Matz posts Molly Khan posts Uncategorized Xander Folmer posts

Select a Month November 2015 September 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I was beautiful and cunning, leading a rebellion against my father by stealing the hearts of Israel. Who am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Amnon Adonijah Solomon Absalom