-
Lesson OneBiblically-based Correctional Ministries4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson TwoLeadership and Spiritual Gifts4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson ThreeStrengths4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson FourThe American Criminal Justice System4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson FiveJuvenile Justice4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson SixBiblical View of Justice4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson SevenHistory of Corrections in America3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson EightUnderstanding Corrections3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson NineCorrections Sensitive3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson TenRestorative Justice4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson ElevenThe Role of the Church3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson TwelveMinistry with Families of the Incarcerated4 Activities2 Assessments
-
Lesson ThirteenCriminogenic Factors and Gender-responsive Strategies3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson FourteenCognitive Behavioral Principles and Trauma-Informed Care3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson FifteenEvidence-based Practices3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson SixteenChristian Formation4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson SeventeenChristian Ministry - Part 14 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson EighteenChristian Ministry - Part 24 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson NineteenChristian Ministry - Part 34 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson TwentyChaplains and Quality Program3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson Twenty-OneMinistry with Staff and Victims3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson Twenty-TwoIssues and Barriers to Reentry4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson Twenty-ThreeReentry Ministry4 Activities1 Assessment
-
Lesson Twenty-FourIssues in Corrections and Ministry3 Activities1 Assessment
-
Course Wrap-UpCourse Completion1 Activity1 Assessment
Participants 50
Discussion Questions
-
Describe your image of a criminal. What do you think has influenced your thinking? Has it changed over time?
-
I guess TV and movies have influenced my thinking, reinforced by the street violence in 2020. Images are of angry black young men, probably fatherless.
Today we see crime un-abated in stores and against innocent people. No sense of guilt or a moral conscience. The crime today seems so much more brazen and
“in your face”. -
The child to the left on my picture. It’s my brother. He was a year and half older than me. I visited him in many different institutions. I became a Special Education teacher because he was not educated under IDEA because it did not take effect until 1975. He went to the Lord in 1989 he was 33.
-
Growing up in NYC in a Christian home but also a son of Puertorican parents I saw different aspects of life and had family members in impoverished high crime areas. As a physician I worked at Riker’s Island and saw first hand the pain of inmates. I’m now involved in Jail ministry. To me the image of a criminal is complex since “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” The assistance to those incarcerated will be complex and need to be addressed. As I told a small group of men Sunday, “there are many men and women who could join you for their crimes but for one resort other-it could even be God’s mercy giving them another opportunity to trust in Jesus that they are out of jail instead of in jail. Criminals are often believers-this initially was a bit of a surprise to me but should not have been. They sinned in a way that is against a certain law and were caught. I sin each day, perhaps not violating a state or federal law and continue outside a correctional facility. Such is the mercy of God.
-
We are all “criminals” for all have sinned. Some have acted out their thoughts and emotions, while other just keep them in their minds, and others confess their sin and repent. Jesus said if we commit adultery in our minds it is the same as committing the sin physically. Much has changed in my minds over the 40 years I have been involved, I am more forgiving, although some of the crimes make it harder to work with inmates than other crimes. But I must remember, first God has forgiven me of all my actions and thoughts, second God can< if the inmate wants, forgive him/her of their thoughts and actions.
-
Someone who has likely suffered trauma, abuse, and neglect in difficult social settings. Many struggle with mental illness.
-
Share your top 5 strengths and a way you can implement each of them in your ministry.
-
1-I am a believer in Jesus Christ saved by Grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
2-I recognize and have been convicted of my struggles and character defects and am in recovery and healing through the work and power of God the Holy Spirit
3-I have a great desire to be involved with correctional Ministry and am already involved locally in jail ministry and taken a several hour course to be involved in Georgia State prison ministry.
4- I am a physician who has spent 40 years attending to the physical ailments of thousands of patients. In spite of this each one of these will eventually succumb to a physical disease and die physically. I would love to assist in making sure they spend eternity in the presence of almighty God through faith in Jesus Christ
5- I have had and have friends and family members in prison or jail. I would love to be able to assist more intelligently and with greater knowledge the family of these individuals as well as the affected inmate or prisoner -
1) Love – show Christ’s love to all. As a chaplain I am required to work with all faith communities. As a Protestant chaplain, initially that was difficult at first, but now I have developed a great relationship with men from all faith without minimizing who I am in Christ.
2) Being truthful with them. Sometimes it is hard because you do not want to turn them away, but when they realize you are not degrading them, thy will open up so you can counsel them.
3) Live up to what you say you will do. If you promise to call them over, make sure you do what you say. If you forget or get busy or ____, apologize and make it up to them.
4) Treat them with respect and they will treat you with respect. They have been disrespected their whole life, make them feel cared for/loved, make them feel like a man that can hold his head up no matter what he has done.
5) Make them laugh, just talk to them like you would a friend on the street. Find out their likes, if it is basketball and you know the game, talk it. Get their mind set out of prison for a while. Let them get to know you as a person, not staff. You will always be staff, but you can be human also. They get enough trash from the “shirts” as it is.
6) I am not in the institution just for inmates. Staff are as important. They have problems also. Talk to them, encourage them, ask them how they are doing. Makes a big difference. -
My number one strength as a prison as a substance abuse counselor is my ability and commitment to establishing a rapport with the Inmates. I start by treat them the same way as I treat everyone else. A second strength is, showing empathy to them. thirdly, While not excusing their crimes I acknowledge the shortcomings of the prison system, including the racial disparity. I also spend non-counseling time with them, talking sports, current events and general “small talk.” fourthly, I go the extra mile in helping them with day to day things that are not part of my “job.” lastly, I always stay positive and push hope as opposed to the negativity that surrounds them.
I was recently rewarded when I overheard an Inmate tell of the Corrections Officer that I was a “good dude!”
-
1. Listening – Being able to just sit down and listen to what a person is going through at that point in their life. Many people just want someone to listen to them. Giving them this opportunity can show someone that I do care about them and their journey.
2. Organization – I am a very organized person. By being this way it can be a model for someone to follow id they are not an organized person. Being organized is something I feel that is essential to a successful ministry of any kind.
3. Empathetic – This sort of goes along with listening. Understanding what another person might be going through shows that you care. By putting myself in another persons shoes, I can begin to understand what they may be going through.
4. Accountability – Being responsible and accountable is key to any successful ministry. By demonstrating this to inmates specifically, I feel is one of the most important strengths that can be implements.
5. The love for daily study in God’s Word. This is extremely important and can be modeled to show the importance of it.
-
What is cognitive behavioral education?
-
It is a therapy or method of assisting a person to cope with daily life. It helps the individual look at and change unhealthy patterns of thinking and unhealthy patterns of behavior. It deals with the present, to confront anxiety and fear, rather than avoid it. It is to assist in gaining a better understanding of their behavior and other behavior. It is to assist in learning and using problem solving skills to gain confidence in one’s own skills and abilities.
But without dealing with the past, the negative inputs, the self destruction behavior, and God’s Word, self will usually fail. In my prison there is little support, or confidence building programs. An inmate takes a program for 2, 4, 6, 8, weeks and then there is nothing. Back on the block with everyone else. There are few jobs that build up a person. And Covid has made the few programs we had mostly go away.
-
It is teaching people, in this case those in the prison system to change their thinking patterns. Many of them have negative and destructive thought patterns that have a negative impact on their emotions and behaviors. I tell the inmates that I deal with to challenge their negative thinking and employ positive self talk.
-
Education that treats individuals with dignity, mercy, and grace. It deals with changing the way a person thinks and behaves.