In the prison industrial complex, injustice abounds in many small and large ways. Resistance to progressive religious and spiritual views is a reality. Religious freedom is always put to the test.
None of this deters the CLF. Each time we read a testimony from one of our members in prison, we know just how much our ministry makes a difference in all of our lives.
Yet the reality is that religious programming in prisons is complex. All correspondence must be mailed. Inmates are frequently transferred to new facilities with little to no notice. Prison ministry is labor intensive! Here’s just a glimpse at what we did in 2018 alone:
Mailed & graded 163 “New UU” courses
Copied & mailed 157 reading packets
Mailed & graded course lessons for 68 members
Forwarded 1,761 pieces of mail between 327 pairs of pen pals
CLF’s members in prison receive:
- UU World subscription
- CLF’s Quest Monthly subscription
- CLF’s Worthy Now Prison Ministry newsletters
- Reading materials from Skinner House and Beacon Press
- Free-world pen pals
- Tapestry of Faith religious education correspondence courses, such as NewUU, Spirit of Life, World Religions, and A Holy Curiosity
As you can imagine, the CLF doesn’t conduct pledge drives with our members in prison. Yet we know their commitment to being part of this spiritual community is no less than ours in the free world.
One member in prison donated his entire monthly paycheck of $14.30 to us. That’s how much membership meant to them.
A grounding in UU principles and values vastly contrasts the fundamentalism that dominates religious programming in our country’s prisons and jails. Being part of the CLF congregation helps people who are incarcerated with their spiritual exploration.
Prison ministry is not the CLF’s work to do alone. It is part of a movement of love and justice that belongs to all UU congregations.
So we are asking your congregation to join us in this work as a satellite of the Worthy Now Prison Ministry Network. Your multi-year commitment or one-time gift will help to sustain a robust ministry with incarcerated UUs. We have the resources available for a share-the-plate Sunday or for your Social Justice Committee if financial support is your preferred way of helping.
Should you want to make your partnership even more effective your congregation may choose to engage as a satellite of Worthy Now Prison Ministry Network. Your satellite congregation can choose to manage and mail holiday cards, reading packets, correspondence courses, or if/when you are ready, start a thriving in-person/in-prison small group ministry in your local jail or prison using our approved curricula.
With any contribution, you directly extend the reach of Unitarian Universalism behind prison walls—member by member.
“I just want to thank the Church of the Larger Fellowship for sharing their vitality. It feels great, absolutely great, to know that I have not been forgotten.” — Svondo
Satellite Level |
Amount |
|---|---|
| Beloved Community (30 members*) | $4,500 |
| Keep the Flame (15 members) | $2,250 |
| Sanctuary (10 members) | $1,500 |
| Fellowship (5 members) | $750 |
*Based on an annual cost to the CLF of $150/member in prison