Spiritual Conviction

“In prison, those things withheld from and denied to the prisoner become precisely what he wants most of all.” ~Eldridge Cleaver, American radical intellectual and author (1935-1998)

“Could I speak with you a minute?” is never a comforting prelude to any conversation. I followed the president of our Catholic men’s organization out the door of the parish center to a secluded spot in the exterior courtyard. “The Executive Council met last week to discuss your ministry proposal,” he began hesitantly. “We had a really good discussion and there are a lot of us who support your idea.” (The unspoken “BUT” hung over the conversation like a mist.) “I’m personally in favor of what you’re trying to do.” “BUT, after all was said and done we voted not to support your KAIROS weekend.” My brain wasn’t processing what he had just said. I stood there, my head cocked to one side, blinking.

Over a month earlier I had brought our Deacon to a meeting to enlist the group’s help with a Detention Ministry weekend (*KAIROS). Our requests were modest: Prayers during the weekend, chocolate chip cookies (as many dozen as possible), semi-anonymous letters written to the detainees and a coloring book picture of Jesus to be duplicated and colored (semi-anonymously) by whatever children we could muster.

“But, Bob!” I finally blurted out. “The weekend is less than two weeks away.” “You’re leaving me in a tough spot here.” Bob’s conciliatory tone turned defensive, “I’m sorry Jim!” “But the Executive Council doesn’t think we should be helping convicts.” “Besides, what possible good can cookies and coloring books do anyway?” The words were out before Bob realized he had said them. I allowed the intervening silence to be my response. “I am sorry,” Bob said finally and he departed without further conversation.

The drive home was dismal. Earlier that week another “Christian” organization had bailed on my grand plan for much the same reason. “The mothers don’t want their children writing to felons,” the coordinator had shared. “I’m sorry.”

Now what was I going to do?

The next morning my mood had not improved much. I arrived at my job at the YMCA in a storm cloud of a mood. “What’s up with you?” Flo, the Membership Director finally asked. I relayed the long, excruciating version of my sad story. “We can have the “Child Watch” color pages for you and as for the letters why don’t you talk to teens in Youth and Government?” “They are always looking for projects.”

Three days later I was in front of the Youth and Government teens. They cranked out fifty plus letters that same evening. I added another ten and the coordinator, whose group had bowed out, produced a pile of letters her and her daughter had written.

On the Wednesday before the KAIROS weekend the Child Watch coordinator proudly presented me with a two hundred “crayon covered” pages, many with small hand prints traced on the back replete with hugs and kisses (x’s and o’s). Notes such as “Jesus loves you” were scrawled in various places. “We ran out of the copies you gave us,” the coordinator said apologetically. “So we used our own.” She handed me another pile of coloring book pages. Mickey and Minnie smiled up at me from the paper. “I hope these are OK?” she asked. “I’m sure they are OK,” I responded with a smile.

Teresa spent the previous weekend baking dozens of her favorite chocolate chip cookies. We bagged them in sleeves of a dozen each. Thursday afternoon I delivered my boxes of cookies, letters and crayoned masterpieces to the appointed drop off site. As I pulled out of the parking lot I realized the irritations of the previous week had all but faded. How precious little it had taken to make a difference.

Jesus never asked who was worthy of his attention. Whether it was a scoundrel of a tax collector out on a limb or ten lepers blocking the road shouting his name, Jesus treated everyone with the same grace, compassion and love. He lived and worked in the tough part of town, on the wrong side of the tracks rubbing elbows with society’s discardable people. His actions are a contemporary template for our approach to ministry.

Ministry is, or should be, based on who needs help as opposed to who deserves help. We tread on dangerous ground when we start passing judgments predicated on worthiness or deservedness. Thank God our God is loving and compassionate toward us and none of us get what we really deserve.

The parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us it matters not who is lying in the ditch. It matters even less what station in life we hold. What does matter is that we bring our gifts of time, talent and treasure to bear to help the people God puts in front of us. The Priest and the Levite head off to the safety of their church, but the Samaritan goes down into the ditch with his sworn enemy to minister to him. Not a comfortable situation.

Yet, it is not about what makes us look good, feel comfortable or what is socially acceptable that matters. Somehow it has become easy to ignore the over 7.3 million people in the US who are on probation, in jail or prison, or on parole; perhaps because they are not always in plain sight. As stewards we are called to go looking in the ditches to see who needs our help. After all, if we choose, not to go looking in the gutters and ditches of life; if we choose not to minister to the prisoner who would we be avoiding? Paul? Nelson Mandela? Daniel Berrigan? Sir Thomas More? Anne Frank? Max Kolbe? Dorothy Day?

If we “shouldn’t be helping convicts” who should we be helping? We are not simply called to “visit” Jesus in church; we are called to visit him in prison as well.

Dear God: Teach me to minister to all who are in need.

“In prison, you get the chance to see who really loves you.” ~Marion Knight, Jr. Co-founder of Death Row Records. (b 1965)

*Kairos Prison Ministry International is a Christian, ecumenical, volunteer, lay-led, continuing ministry to prisoners incarcerated in maximum or medium facilities.

© 2010 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.

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