In a dim light…

Last Saturday marked the eighth anniversary of my work as a volunteer chaplain at a maximum security prison. Eight years which have transformed my life.

How did all this unfold?

I retired at end of ’96 from a career of engineering, manufacturing, and executive management.

Having retired, I went back to school to study theology.

Studying theology, I wanted a means to express what I learned.

To express what I learned, I majored in preaching.

Majoring in preaching required a venue for my internship

A venue for internship came to be a jail/prison environment

Working in a prison environment led to the lay chaplain role I am now in.

So, eight years of ministering to those in solitary confinement have given me the confidence to minster to those awaiting execution, have led to more impactful preaching at prison prayer services, have made me a more patient listener to those who struggle, have prepared me for a whole spectrum of emerging spiritualities, have been a blessing beyond measure.

Tags: death penalty, justice, personal, Preaching, prison ministry, theology

This entry was posted on May 7, 2009 at 4:47 pm and is filed under 2009, Ministry, Preaching, Spirituality. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.