August 11, 2003

A new manual for individuals and congregational groups interested in jail and prison ministry will be introduced at a training workshop Oct. 3-5 in Chicago.

Discussions there will include: restorative justice, spiritual healing for incarcerated kids, women in prison, aftercare, capital punishment, and the myth and reality of prisons for profit.

Presenters will be Rev. John Nunes, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Dallas; Deaconess Lori Wilbert, prison chaplaincy, Northern Illinois District; Sandra Jewell, Trinity Lutheran Church, Kankakee, Ill.; and Eddie Ellis, Open Society Institute, New York.

The 80-page Criminal Justice Ministry: A Congregational Handbook for Jail and Prison Ministry features information on preparing a congregation for prison ministry, volunteer training, Biblical reflection and networking resources. Each workshop participant will receive a copy.

Both the handbook and training session are joint projects of The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synods World Relief and Human Care and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Americas Social Ministry for Congregations. Partial funding is provided by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.

Rev. John Fale, director of chaplaincy, pastoral counseling and clinical education, LCMS World Relief and Human Care, is among those scheduled to attend the workshop.

The weekend training will be held at the Clarion Barcelo Hotel near OHare International Airport. Download the registration application at http://humancare.lcms.org under Chaplaincy, Pastoral Counseling and Clinical Education.

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