Ministries in Motion
Prison Ministry
‘one of most challenging in our Diocese’
The Diocese of Florida contains more prisoners per communicant than any
other diocese in the Anglican Communion.
In the scene above, David Miner, Bishop Charles Keyser, the Rev. Sandy Tull, and the
Rev. John Owens were photographed outside Liberty Correctional Institution in 2008.
Inside prison walls, cameras are unwelcome; outsiders bringing caring ministry, on the
other hand, are quite literally a godsend.
On behalf of the diocesan Commission on Prison and Related Ministries (COPRM),
laity and clergy who are active in the ministry have shared some of the ongoing projects
and programs in the Diocese of Florida.
The mission of the Commission is
“To encourage, assist and equip the Church (that’s you) to respond to the pastoral and sacramental needs of the incarcerated,
their families, ex-offenders, victims, and those who work with the
incarcerated, as directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit.”
“We support this mission with a core group of clergy and laity who have been called
to shepherd our incarcerated brothers and sisters and their families,” say the prison
ministry members. “We are involved with prevention programs, intervention programs
for youth and adults as an intervention model and model for success for those who participate, and we provide support as well as a sacramental ministry to all.”
Prison ministry has been an active and structured ministry of the Diocese of Florida
since 1987. At that time, there were about nine prisons in the Diocese with approximately 8,000 inmates. Prison ministry became formalized with the passage of a Resolution on Prison Ministry at the 159th Diocesan Convention in 2002. By that time, prisons had increased to 22 in the Diocese; today, there are 33 correctional facilities; 28
jails and 11 youth facilities. The prison population alone has risen to over 33,000 - an
almost 400 percent increase - making prison ministry one of the most challenging ministries for our Diocese.
To answer this challenge, the Episcopal Diocese of Florida currently has four full
time, non-stipendiary priests. Additionally, other supporting clergy (priests and deacons) and laity bring this ministry into the prisons, jails and youth facilities within the
Diocese.
The Commission and the Diocese recognize six people as the founding „fathers‟ for
prison ministry in the Diocese. Of the six founders, Mr. Bill Ross continues active and
helping with prison ministry today. Five of these men have gone home to the Lord, but
their legacy lives on: the Rev. Paul Canepa, the Rev. Deacon Frank Sanders, the Rev.
Dr. Richard Turk.
The Diocese is indebted to these six men and their vision for making prison ministry
an active ministry for the Diocese of Florida, and a flagship ministry throughout the
wider Curch.
Activities of this ministry can be subdivided into four general areas:
Prison Ministry Inside the Walls,
Prison Ministry Outside the Walls,
Prison Ministry to Youth,
Prison Ministry Special Projects/ Prison Ministry Outreach.
All of these activities provide opportunities for parish and individual involvement
and support. The following reports will help you see, in part, what and where we are
involved.
The Rev. John Owens, co-chair COPRM
Prison Ministry Inside
As stated before, within the 25-county area covered by the Episcopal Diocese of
Florida are thirty three (33) prisons, twenty eight (28) jails and eleven (11) youth facilities; together these house over 33,000 inmates.
These individuals do not have the freedom or the opportunity to fully explore
their spiritual journeys, or to attend a simple worship service. All but one of the major
institutions has only one Chaplain, and these men and women are over worked and under resourced. As an example, Union Correctional Institute houses over 2,000 inmates,
with over 330 on death row, and has only one paid State of Florida employee, the chaplain, to minister to this population. These chaplains not only supply the spiritual needs
but often are forced to provide social service functions as well – “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.”
These chaplains, being part of the prison administration, are not completely
trusted by the inmates. For a prison chaplain there is no “Seal of the Confessional” and
therefore there are few confessions heard, there are few souls unburdened, and the chaplain‟s effectiveness as a spiritual guide is greatly weakened. These men do a fantastic
job, all of them push the envelope so they can be the best pastors possible to all in their
care.
For these chaplains, having outside laity and clergy who are willing to come and
share the Gospel and hold a service of Holy Communion is a real blessing, both to the
chaplains and to those men and women to which they come.
There are 17 established Episcopal communities behind bars within the Diocese; and
there is an Episcopal presence in 22 of the 33 correctional facilities. These include Episcopal services, cell front visitations, ALPHA, Bible studies; Disciple I, prayer and praise
services, and mentoring opportunities. These institutions include:
All Saints Chapel, Union Correctional; services and Kairos
The Community of St. Dismas, Baker Correctional; services and Kairos
The Episcopal Community of St. Teresa—
Wakulla Correctional; services and Kairos
The Episcopal Community of St. Teresa, Wakulla Work Camp; services
Brotherhood of St. Philip, Suwannee Correctional; services and Bible Study
Brotherhood of St. Philip, Suwannee Work Camp; services and Bible Study
Community of the Resurrection; Franklin Correctional; services
The Ministry at Florida State Prison (FSP); cellfront services
Sunday service at FSP
The Ministry on death row; Union Correctional – Deacon Ben Clance
Chapel of The Transformation, St. John's County Detention Center (women); services
All Soul's Community, Hastings Youth Academy; mentoring
St. Columba’s, Columbia Correctional; services and Kairos
St. Columba’s, Columbia Work Camp; services
The Community of St. Paul, Liberty Correctional; services
The Ministry at Gadsdon Correctional (women's); services
Jefferson Correctional; ALPHA and Kairos
New River Correctional; Kairos
Florida State West Correctional; Kairos
Putnam Correctional; Kairos
Mayo Correctional; Kairos
Madison Correctional; Kairos
Prison Ministry contacts:
Kairos Outside NE FL - Jackie Jones, [email protected]
Kairos Outside NW FL - (Jacksonville) Mary Macko, [email protected]
Kairos NW FL - David Miner, [email protected]
Kairos NE FL - Bill Chatfield, [email protected]
The Rev. Dr. Allison DeFoor, [email protected]
The Rev. John Owens, [email protected]
The Rev. Thomas Beasley, [email protected]
The Rev. Sandy Tull, [email protected]
Youth - Judith Ricket, [email protected]
Prisoners of Christ - Dan Palmer, [email protected]
Ready4Work; Operation New Hope - Bill Carroll, [email protected]
Hope Connection - The Rev. Deacon Ann Bowers, [email protected]
At Liberty Correctional, a cross with a history...
In February 2006, the Commission on Prison and Related Ministries in the Diocese of
Florida had just opened its newest congregation at Liberty Correctional in Bristol, Fla.
That congregation, known as the Community of St. Paul at Liberty, was begun with five
men; Alian, Bill, Michael, Cory and Billy. This new community was raised out of continued prayer by these five men who had prayed for two years that there would be an Episcopal presence on the campus. Once it was underway, many things were added to the physical worship space. An inlaid wooden cross, dedicated at the Eucharist on March 6, 2006,
was handmade by Joe Brusco, a parishioner at Trinity, St. Augustine, to the greater Glory
of God and to be used at Liberty. The Prayer Books were a gift from two sources, brothers
in Christ at Baker Correctional and from then-layman John Owens, involved with prison
ministry. With the love and prayers that helped to plant this new community, the prison
ministry gave thanks and blessings to all.
The Community of St. Paul at Liberty, now being served by Deacon Roy Lima, brought
the Diocese to seven communities being served: two in the Wakulla area, Baker Correctional, Union Correctional, Hastings, and the women in the St. John‟s County Jail, with
additional ministries at Lake Butler, Putnam and Columbia Correctional, and Kairos serving additional correctional facilities within the Diocese.
Added since 2006 have been the Community of the Resurrection at Franklin Correctional; Sewannee Correctional with an Episcopal service each Sunday in the Annex and
evening Bible study in the Main section. Two services are now held at Wakulla by the Rev.
Dr. Allison DeFoor; the Rev. Tom Beasley serves Baker Correctional; the Rev. John
Owens serves at Union Correctional; and Judy Rickett serves at Hastings.
Ministry on Death Row
For many years, as a layman and now ordained, Deacon Ben Clance has been with those
men on Death Row and in confinement at Florida State Prison, where as a lay volunteer he
baptized more than 150 prisoners into the Body of Christ. Ben was named Prison Volunteer of the Year in 2006 and again in 2008 by the Department of Corrections.
A Prisoner‟s Perspective: Excerpt - ‘Thy Will Be Done’
“...I sat up and silently implored God to hear me and answer. There I felt the divine whisper in my imagination,
“If you want to hear from me, work for me. Pray!” “As if a
switch were thrown I felt inspiration and energy course through me. With confidence I
turned to the Psalms. At random I chose one after another, four in all, and prayed those
Psalms.
“It was tender. It was intense. I felt I had broken through and released God's power into
my life. I received the peace and comfort I craved. God came through for me.”
--- From meditations by award-winning creative writer, then in Baker C.I.