ARTICLES:
Is There a Biblical Basis for Jail Ministry?
by Cameron Abell, M.Div.
Director or Training for Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
Why should you — or anyone else — bother to minister to prison and jail inmates? Why bother to show care and concern to a segment of society that has thumbed their noses and turned their backs on almost everyone within that society? To most among the general public, the incarcerated are social outcasts. They are not the “type of people” that one would associate with or invite into their home. Many among the incarcerated know they are social outcasts and ...
Click here for the remainder of the article
The Chaplain's Pastoral Role in Jail Ministry
by W. Thomas Beckner, Ph.D.
ChapAssistant Vice President for Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
When you look closely at the list of tasks associated with each of the Critical Dimensions that have to do with in-facility ministry, one thing becomes clear: the pastoral role of chaplaincy is one that no other correctional staff person can fulfill. While you have the arduous task of serving as a broker for a wide variety of program services, your central goal should always be to function as a facilitator of change in the lives ...
Click here for the remainder of the article
What Inmates are Hoping For From Religious Volunteers
by Roger G. DePriest, M.A.
Mid-East Regional Director, Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
It is generally agreed that faith-based volunteer programs are far more effective in meeting the needs of inmates and in effecting substantive character change, than state-based/state-funded treatment programs. John DiIulio, a professor of politics and public affairs at Princeton University made this supporting statement: “It’s remarkable how much good empirical evidence there is that religious belief can make a positive difference.”1 Recently, ...
Click here for the remainder of the article
Biblical Counseling in an Inmate Environment
by Woody Fisher, M.A.
Chaplain, HenricoCounty Regional Jail, Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
In dealing with this topic, my approach will be to move from the general to the specific. To be thorough would obviously require a lot more space than I have here, so this will in no way be an exhaustive presentation. Rather, I want to present two major problems I have observed in my 11 years as a jail Chaplain. Then I will present some specific examples to illustrate the problems and to present a biblical method for dealing with them ...
Click here for the remainder of the article
Inmate Ministry from a Global Perspective
by Harry E. Fletcher, Th.M., D.Min.
Asst. Vice President for International Ministry Good News Jail & Prison Ministry
In the forward to the book entitled Revolution in World Missions, David Mains wrote, Internationals are the new wave of the missionary movement. Ted Esler, Vice President of Pioneers and former missionary to Bosnia wrote Some do great things in the pursuit of adventure; others have adventure while pursuing great things. It has been a great adventure and thrill to see God do a great thing in growing the international ministry of Good News Jail & Prison Ministry...
Click here for the remainder of the article