Remember all prisoners

By Emily Lyons, Chair of Saint Philip’s Prison Ministry

September is Prison Awareness Month in the Diocese of Arizona. To mark the start of the month, I invite you to meditate on the Prayer for Prisons and Correctional Institutions on page 826 of the Book of Common Prayer:

“Lord Jesus, for our sake you were condemned as a criminal: Visit our jails and prisons with your pity and judgment. Remember all prisoners, and bring the guilty to repentance and amendment of life according to your will, and give them hope for their future. When any are held unjustly, bring them release; forgive us, and teach us to improve our justice. Remember those who work in these institutions; keep them humane and compassionate; and save them from becoming brutal or callous. And since what we do for those in prison, O Lord, we do for you, constrain us to improve their lot. All this we ask for your mercy’s sake. Amen.”                   

Upcoming issues of Bell & Tower will offer information about how Saint Philip’s Prison Ministry is recognizing this special month but, in the meantime, here are some important dates:

Tuesday, September 10
Prison Ministry Committee meeting
Saint Philip’s Prison Ministry will meet at 7:00pm via Zoom. All are invited to join other volunteers. If you would like to attend, email me at elyons@arizona.edu for the Zoom link.

Sunday, September 15
Camp Genesis Sunday
Camp Genesis is a diocese-run summer camp that serves children and youth with family in prison. On this day, we ask that you remember the campers, their families, and the camp staff and volunteers in your prayers. More about how Saint Philip’s Prison Ministry supports Camp Genesis will be in next week’s Bell & Tower.

Sunday, September 22
Sunday Forum with Innocence Project Director, Vanessa Buch
At 11:30 am, Saint Philip’s Prison Ministry will host guest speaker Vanessa Buch in the Murphey Gallery.

Dr. Buch is a law professor, human rights lawyer, and the founder and director of the Innocence Project at the University of Arizona. We hope you will join us for what is sure to be an eye-opening conversation about the realities of our criminal justice system. Keep an eye out for more details about this event in upcoming issues of Bell & Tower.

Ongoing…
Project Angel Tree
As Prison Ministry volunteer Kyle Kim-Hays announced in a recent Bell &Tower article, Saint Philip’s will participate in Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree this coming Christmas season.

Angel Tree supports families affected by incarceration by providing Christmas gifts to children on behalf of their parent behind bars. In order to make Angel Tree a success, we need your help! There are many ways to help out—look for updates in Bell &Tower to learn more, or reach out to Kyle at k2hays@gmail.com.

If you missed the original article, click here.