Feb 7, 2010: National Day of Prayer for Criminal Justice Reform
Encourage your church to participate in the National Day of Prayer for Criminal Justice Reform and contact Bill Mefford for more information.
Churches throughout the United States will spend either part or all of their prayer time during their Sunday worship services on Feburary 7th to focus on criminal justice reform. Specifically they will lift up the need for a fair criminal justice system based on restorative principles that do not sentence people to unjustly long sentences or target certain racial groups, so that the families of the incarcerated can be strengthened and local communicates safely restored.
They will pray for the empowerment of churches to serve those directly affected by the criminal justice system, by caring for victims of crime, providing necessary programs for ex-offenders seeking to reenter society, supporting families affected by crime, and advocating for reform of the criminal justice system.
And, they will pray for the moral leadership and accountability of elected leaders to support legislation that reflects the values of restorative justice and will care for victims of crime, eliminate unjust and unsafe treatment in the criminal justice system, and provide for in-prison, reentry and prevention programs to avert future crimes.
Facts to consider and share with your congregation:
- With 5% of the world’s population, the United States hold’s 25% of the world’s incarcerated
- In the U.S., 1 in every 100 people is incarcerated and 2/3 of those in prison are black or Latino
- Black men serving sentences account for 4,618 per 100,000; Hispanic males were 1,747, and Anglo males were 773. This means that Black males were 6 times more likely, and Hispanic males twice as likely as Anglos to be held in custody.
- There are more than 8,000 reported incidents of sexual assault in prisons each year. The number of unreported incidents cannot be estimated.
- In 2007, 82.7% of crack cocaine defendants were African American despite the fact that only 18% of crack cocaine users in the U.S. are African Americans.
- Every year across the U.S., 200,000 youth are tried, sentenced or incarcerated as adults and on any given day, nearly 7,500 youth are locked up in adult jails, and 2,600 are locked up in adult prisons.
These are just some of the reasons why we know the current system is broken.
Therefore, we must pray for reform of the criminal justice system, for empowerment of faith communities to advocate for reforms, and for moral and accountable leadership by our elected leaders to bring about just and humane reform. Please email Bill Mefford and let him know if your church is participating and the city and state where you are located.
The United Methodist Church’s position on the criminal justice system is:
“In the love of Christ, who came to save those who are lost and vulnerable, we urge the creation of an entirely new system for the care and restoration of victims, offenders, criminal justice officials, and the community as a whole. Restorative justice grows out of biblical authority, which emphasizes a right relationship with God, self and community. When such relationships are violated or broken through crime, opportunities are created to make things right.” (Social Principles, ¶164H)
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I will be leading this prayer at the church I attend.I am a retired UM elder serving as a chaplain at the Greensville CC in Va. There needs to be prayer for the ending of the workplace harrassment so many chaplains suffer at the hands of the prison administrations.
Paul, I have a son who is a prisoner in The Federal Prison in Petersburg, convicted for viewing illegal material on his computer. No previous criminal charges or convictions. Five years hard time and five probation. He was given no second chance. A kangaroo court all the way and a Federal Judge with not an ounce of mercy. As is often the case, the real losers are family. I do pray for real justice in our penal system and for prisoners and staff to include chaplains.
As a church member of and the executive director for nonprofit, all volunteer, statewide organization advocating criminal justice reform at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church in East End Richmond, Virginia, I’ve requested a National Day of Prayer on Feb 7, 2010 as well as on a continuous basis. I’ve also forward UMC email to other organizations, faith based and concerned citizens.
Thank you for taking this prayer initiative for criminal justice reform. Feel free to call upon me and our organization Resource Information Help for the Disadvantaged (RIHD)