At the end of our interview, Karl looked down at the floor, then back at me. “Everything I’ve done in my life was wrong, all I’ve ever done is hurt people, and He called me.”
Originally published in the Summer Issue of Heart of Texas Magazine.
Heart of Texas Magazine
Spiritual Renewal in the John B. Connally Unit: An Unlikely Awakening
By |
This spiritual renewal is led by volunteers. Connally has had a very active Kairos program for 16 years, and Kolbe has done many retreats in recent years. Church Unlimited (Corpus Christi) broadcasts their worship service in the chapel on Saturday nights and is very popular. The two Chaplains are passionate and dedicated to this renewal, and scheduling the chapel for the various programs and faith groups has become a significant challenge. They are aided by Field Ministers in a new program; carefully selected inmates attend a two-year seminary program in the Darrington Unit and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biblical Studies from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. There are currently five of these inmates acting as “Chaplain Extenders.” I have seen them counseling and praying with inmates through the small steel-grate covered window in each cell in the Seg unit. A new initiative in the unit is led by a Kairos volunteer who has created a group of 40 brothers in white to study Karen Armstrong’s “Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life.” He wants to see if they can build a community and adopt the Charter for Compassion inside. The Connally Interfaith Community was developed by a Catholic inmate and has held five annual retreats. The entire retreat is inmate-developed and led. The presence of volunteers is required by TDCJ rules, and those who participate come from various faiths and find unity not often seen in the “free world.” One question I am often asked when I talk about my involvement in prison ministry is, “Is it real?” My answer is, “Is your faith real? Because if it is, you belong in prison.”
