History of Prison Fellowship

History: God's Story, Our Story

Since the birth of Prison Fellowship 33 years ago, God has brought us to the edge of great challenges that, from a human perspective, have threatened to engulf us. Instead, God opened up unimaginable vistas of opportunity to minister. Why did God work this way? Perhaps for the same reason Joshua gave to the Israelites who crossed the Jordan River: "He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God" (Joshua 4:24).This is our tribute to God's faithfulness. This is our story.

1976 - Watergate crook founds Prison FellowshipIn 1974 the Watergate scandal sent White House special counsel Chuck Colson to federal prison. A new Christian, he faced challenges and adversities that tested his faith and self respect. Paroled in 1975, Chuck could easily have opted to close the book on that dark time and move on with his life as inconspicuously as possible. But Chuck knew that God wanted him to hold onto his ties to prison and continue to identify with his fellow prisoners-despite the skepticism and scorn of Chuck's critics. So in 1976, with little more than a vision and the support of a few friends, Chuck began Prison Fellowship (PF) to proclaim to inmates the love and the power of Jesus Christ.

1977 - PF goes behind bars
At first-through the support of the director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons-PF began transporting dozens of Christian prisoners out of prison for intensive training through Washington Discipleship Seminars (WDS) held in the nation's capital. Those prisoners then returned to prison to evangelize and teach their "colleagues." But in 1977, PF ran into a hurdle when a warden from Wisconsin refused to furlough one of his prisoners to attend the WDS. Instead, he challenged: "If your program is so good, why don't you bring it inside the prison?" Chuck and his team were up for the task, and three weeks later, 93 inmates attended PF's first ever in-prison seminar in Oxford, Wisconsin. That seminar paved the way for hundreds of thousands of prisoners across the country to received biblically-based teaching through in-prison seminars and Bible studies over the past 33 years. That first in-prison event also reinforced the importance of training local volunteers to go inside prisons and build relationships with inmates. TodayPF's ministry relies on a volunteer network of more than 20,000.

1979 - Britain catches the vision, Prison Fellowship International takes offAs Prison Fellowship was getting off its feet, a member of the British Parliament, Michael Alison, heard about the revival that was beginning to take place in America's prisons. Impressed with what he heard, he challenged a consortium of prominent government, church, and corrections leaders to start a branch of Prison Fellowship in England. That act launched a movement to reach prisoners across the world with Christ's love. Today, under the leadership of its president Ron Nikkel, Prison Fellowship International is active in more than 100 countries worldwide.

1982 - Ex-bank robber reaches out to prisoners' kids, starts Angel TreeThe same year that Chuck started Prison Fellowship, a former bank robber named Mary Kay Beard was released from prison in Alabama. And as in Chuck's life, God graciously transformed the shame of prison into a golden opportunity for ministry. In anticipation of Christmas 1982, Mary Kay organized Angel Tree - a ministry to provide gifts to prisoners' children on behalf of the incarcerated parents. Beginning with 556 children the first year, Angel Tree has since exploded into a geyser of ministry opportunity, reaching more than [400,000] American children of prisoners and their families every year with the transforming message of Jesus Christ.

1983 - Justice Fellowship hits the stage
As PF was expanding its ministry inside prisons, its leadership saw firsthand all the signs of a justice system in chaos: overcrowded and violent prisons, neglected crime victims, communities shattered by crime. In 1983 Justice Fellowship (JF) was formed promote biblical standards of justice in our nation’s justice system. JF volunteers successfully implemented reforms across the country: victim-offender reconciliation programs, alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent offenders, victims’ rights legislation, and more. In 1995, former California legislator and ex-prisoner Pat Nolan took the helm of JF and has since spearheaded efforts to pass the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000, the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003, and the Second Chance Act of 2007.

1992 - Operation Starting Line sweeps North CarolinaIn 1991, North Carolina's Secretary of Correction Aaron Johnson was pondering the condition of his prisons and saw only one solution: spiritual transformation. In an unprecedented move, he invited PF into every prison in North Carolina to lead a contemporary version of old-time revival meetings. So, in the fall of 1992-using teams of professional athletes, musicians, comedians, and powerhouse speakers - PF's inaugural Starting Line evangelistic campaign swept through all of North Carolina's 90-plus prisons sharing the life-changing message of Jesus Christ. Since North Carolina, similar evangelistic events have spread to prisons all across the country. And in 1999 PF joined with other Christian organizations to launch Operation Starting Line - now an affiliation of 37 ministries committed to prison evangelism.

1997 - A new kind of prison ministry is born, IFIPrison Fellowship stepped out again in unfamiliar waters in 1997 to inaugurate InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI), a values-based reentry program founded upon the teachings of Christ. With the full endorsement of then-Governor George W. Bush, PF and the state of Texas partnered to launch the very first IFI program in a prison unit near Houston. IFI immerses its inmates-all volunteer participants-in spiritual, educational, vocational, and life skills training from an unmistakably Christian perspective. Today, IFI is active in both men's and women's prisons in five states: Arkansas, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, and Texas.After God parted the Jordan River, allowing the Israelites to cross on dry land into their new home, He commanded them to erect a memorial of stones. These would stand as a reminder of the miracles God had done for them, Joshua explained. Today we seldom use stones as reminders of God's provision. Instead, we preserve God's works in written accounts and photographs. But the reason remains the same: to remember that "the hand of the Lord is powerful." (Joshua 4:24). And by His hand He leads us.

http://www.prison-ministry.org/history/

PNCEA Association

Among society’s most forgotten are its incarcerated men and women, many of whom are lonely, angry, fearful, and discouraged. Most admit they made a poor choice that changed their lives. Many are remorseful; a few are not. All are faced with the choice to change their inner lives. Prisoners grapple with how to turn to God and with who will help them.



The inmates find themselves relating to family, friends, and community with caution, shame and guilt. Some no longer have the support of family, friends, and community. They are forced to reevaluate their priorities. Time becomes the focus for prisoners, as motivation and boredom fluctuate. Their thoughts often center on time for meals, recreation, their work or education detail, and perhaps time for chapel and religious activities.



Within society there are caring men and women who respond with great sensitivity to the inmates’ needs. Such a person was Fr. Thomas Comber, CSP (1926-1999), a Paulist Father, who founded PNCEA Prison Ministries in 1994 with outreach to 195 prisons. His efforts have led to a ministry that now reaches approximately 800 of the 4,500 prisons in the United States.


Fr. Comber was in all ways a priest with a mission. Always thinking of new ways to share the good news of Jesus, Fr. Tom was a joyful and sincere man who left those he touched with a lighter heart—and a stronger sense of Christ. Especially those in prison.



Fr. Tom began PNCEA Prison Ministries after retiring from active ministry. While living in retirement at St. Paul’s College in Washington, D.C., he responded to PNCEA President Fr. Kenneth Boyack’s request to answer letters from prisoners who wrote with questions about their faith. In three years, Fr. Tom’s efforts resulted in the creation of PNCEA Prison Ministries in 1994. He had a passion for serving those in prison, recognizing that in helping prisoners, he was serving Christ.



Fr. Tom was always busy. In the 36 years after his ordination in 1955, he served in four parishes and as a chaplain for students at UCLA. He spent nearly half his ministry—16 years—at Paulist Press where he was a tireless and creative promoter of Catholic books and literature. Later, while pastor of St. Lawrence parish in Minneapolis, he did double duty as publisher of the archdiocesan newspaper and tripled its circulation.



Then in 1991, he was forced to retire after the tuberculosis he contracted during wartime Navy service reoccurred. After a short period of recovery, Fr. Tom threw his efforts into prison ministry. Starting from scratch, PNCEA Prison Ministries grew under his care to serve 900 U.S. prisons. He began Let’s Talk! and ¡Hablemos! to reach prisoners more effectively.



Fr. Comber died at age 73 on September 25, 1999, after a two-year struggle with cancer. Not surprisingly, he worked until the last month before his death. He anticipated the prospect of heaven, where he had long set his sights. A Paulist priest for 44 years, director of PNCEA Prison Ministries for five years, and always tirelessly seeking effective ways to share the good news, Fr. Tom left this world better than he found it. May his life of charity and zeal inspire us to generosity and great things.



Since 1999, PNCEA Prison Ministries has continued its outreach to chaplains, volunteers, and inmates across the nation. We rely on the generosity of our donors and the support of foundations to provide this outreach. As we receive requests from prison chaplains who would like to receive our services, we include their prisons as funding permits.


PNCEA Prison Ministries serves the spiritual and religious needs of Catholic inmates in our nation’s prisons, as well as other inmates seeking to know about the Catholic faith and way of life. We provide this service through the chaplains and volunteers ministering in correctional facilities who receive the Bibles, newsletters, prayer cards, and other Catholic religious materials we supply for use in their work. Our material is available at no cost in both English and Spanish.

http://www.prison-ministry.org/

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No cause for alarm.

The sound of the alarm blaring from inside the church struck panic in my heart.  I had arrived at church early one Sunday morning, planning to spend a little time in peace and quiet before the congregetion arrived.  But I forgot to disarm the burglar alarm.  As I turned the key, the disruptive and annoying blasting of the alarm filled the building and no doubt the bedrooms of sleeping neighbors.
Anger is a lot like that.  In the midst of our peaceful lives, something turns a key in our spirit and triggers the alarm.  And our internal peace, not to mention the tranquility of those around us, is interrupted by the disruptive force of our exploding emotions.
Sometime anger appropriately calls our attention to an injustice that needs to be addressed and we are spurred to righteous action.  Most of the time, however, our anger is selfishly ignited by the violation of our expectations, rights, and privileges.  In any case, it's important to know why the alarm is sounding and to respond in a godly way.  But one thing is sure, anger was never intended to continue unchecked.
It's no wonder that Paul reminds us of the psalmist's warning: " 'Bed angry, and do not sin'; do not let the sun go down on your wrath" (Eph 4:26; Pslm 4:4).


Joe Stowell


Spirit of God, please change my heart and give me a new desire; Help me to be a man of peace who's not controlled by anger's fire.


K DeHaan