Prison Ministry Is All About Volunteers, And Money.
About 75 percent of an estimated 2,000 volunteers in the prison system are religious or spiritual, according to prison officials.
According to www.stltoday.com prison ministries are disappearing due to lack of funding and dedicated volunteers.
(Quote from stltoday website) "There is nothing wrong with volunteers, but to really help people to become (productive) citizens again, they need structure," Taxman said. "They need duration, a long enough period of time to be exposed to something to learn new ways. Volunteers can't always expect those types of characteristics to occur."
Tom O'Connor, a chaplain and president of Transforming Corrections, recently studied the re-arrest rates of 3,000 men and their level of involvement in religious and spiritual programs, anything from Bible study to Buddhist meditation, during their first year of incarceration. He said the results, which he expects to present in November, showed that people who were more involved in the programs had fewer re-arrests. But he said offenders who are willing to attend religious services tend to have a lower risk of recidivism to begin with.
Wide variations exist in the types of prison ministries out there, including multiple faiths and spiritualities.
Jackie Toben, a nun in St. Louis who runs Let's Start, a support program for female offenders and their families, said she doesn't promote religion.
"We always want to be careful not to use faith as an excuse to not do other, deeper work that they need to do," she said. "Everybody's faith development is different. One size doesn't fit all. Coming on too strong with somebody who is not ready for that, it's not going to work."
Byron Johnson, author of the recent book, "More God, Less Crime," said reading the Gospels with a prisoner is just the tip of the iceberg.
"It doesn't matter how much religion people get inside prison if it doesn't carry over in the streets post-release," he said. "That conversion is going to lapse if somebody doesn't follow up."
A large part of his book focuses on the Texas InnerChange program, where a 2003 study found that just 8 percent of its graduates returned to prison. But the study did not include those who dropped out, were removed or were not allowed into the program.
"If they stick with their mentor, they make it," Johnson said. "That is the key." (End of Website quote)
What this means is that for any prisoner who wants to follow any spiritual or religious path, they must have the programs available. These programs cost money, which the Missouri Department of Corrections does not budget for. So, it is left up to spiritual organizations, churches..etc.. to find the money, the volunteers and to go through the necessary processes for their organization to be able to perform prison ministries.
This is where the greatest help is needed. Funding these organizations and churches so that they may bring the prisoners chosen spiritual study to them. No matter what faith or spiritual path you walk, having someone to help you along, especially in a prison setting, is key. Key for spiritual growth as well as reducing the recidivism rate in inmates who participate.
Unfortunately, most of the current programs are running out of time because they are running out of money. Please go to our "Donate" page, to see how you can get involved.
According to www.stltoday.com prison ministries are disappearing due to lack of funding and dedicated volunteers.
(Quote from stltoday website) "There is nothing wrong with volunteers, but to really help people to become (productive) citizens again, they need structure," Taxman said. "They need duration, a long enough period of time to be exposed to something to learn new ways. Volunteers can't always expect those types of characteristics to occur."
Tom O'Connor, a chaplain and president of Transforming Corrections, recently studied the re-arrest rates of 3,000 men and their level of involvement in religious and spiritual programs, anything from Bible study to Buddhist meditation, during their first year of incarceration. He said the results, which he expects to present in November, showed that people who were more involved in the programs had fewer re-arrests. But he said offenders who are willing to attend religious services tend to have a lower risk of recidivism to begin with.
Wide variations exist in the types of prison ministries out there, including multiple faiths and spiritualities.
Jackie Toben, a nun in St. Louis who runs Let's Start, a support program for female offenders and their families, said she doesn't promote religion.
"We always want to be careful not to use faith as an excuse to not do other, deeper work that they need to do," she said. "Everybody's faith development is different. One size doesn't fit all. Coming on too strong with somebody who is not ready for that, it's not going to work."
Byron Johnson, author of the recent book, "More God, Less Crime," said reading the Gospels with a prisoner is just the tip of the iceberg.
"It doesn't matter how much religion people get inside prison if it doesn't carry over in the streets post-release," he said. "That conversion is going to lapse if somebody doesn't follow up."
A large part of his book focuses on the Texas InnerChange program, where a 2003 study found that just 8 percent of its graduates returned to prison. But the study did not include those who dropped out, were removed or were not allowed into the program.
"If they stick with their mentor, they make it," Johnson said. "That is the key." (End of Website quote)
What this means is that for any prisoner who wants to follow any spiritual or religious path, they must have the programs available. These programs cost money, which the Missouri Department of Corrections does not budget for. So, it is left up to spiritual organizations, churches..etc.. to find the money, the volunteers and to go through the necessary processes for their organization to be able to perform prison ministries.
This is where the greatest help is needed. Funding these organizations and churches so that they may bring the prisoners chosen spiritual study to them. No matter what faith or spiritual path you walk, having someone to help you along, especially in a prison setting, is key. Key for spiritual growth as well as reducing the recidivism rate in inmates who participate.
Unfortunately, most of the current programs are running out of time because they are running out of money. Please go to our "Donate" page, to see how you can get involved.