Frederick Douglass Project Prison Visits

St. John the Baptist in Prison Visited by Two Disciples (1455-60, detail) by Giovanni di Paolo

Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For . . . I was in prison and you came to visit me." Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, . . . when did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?" The King will reply, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:34,36,40)

Dear friends,

In Matthew 25, Jesus identifies himself with "the least of these" — the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the prisoner — and then judges his followers' treatment of the least of these. The implication is clear and profound: when we visit prisoners, we visit Christ himself who identifies with the prisoner.

I visited prisoners in the Arlington Detention Center several weeks ago through a visit organized by the Frederick Douglass Project. It was a quietly powerful experience, and there are a few reflections at the end of this post.

I would love to encourage everyone in our church to consider joining a similar prison visit at least once if possible. This is such a simple way to obey Jesus' words in Matthew 25, and a formative experience for all of us. To that end, we're listing a few of the upcoming dates and locations to visit the DC and Arlington jails with the Frederick Douglass Project:

Arlington County Jail (Tuesdays from 5:30-8pm):

Sept 15

Oct 13

Nov 10

Dec 8

DC Jail (Mondays from 1-3:30pm):

Sept 14

You can sign up for a visit here and learn more about the Frederick Douglass Project (FDP) through their site. Please note, you need to sign up within about 10 days of a visit (there's some flexibility here) to allow time for the prison to process your information. More dates will be added in both locations over time.

I'd also encourage you to chat with Patrick Moore or Tom Schultz after church sometime to hear about their connection to FDP — they were the ones who recommended that Incarnation pursue this opportunity, and I couldn't be more thankful that they did.

I shared about my prison visit at the end of my sermon a few weeks ago if you'd like to hear more about the experience. And I'm thankful for this reflection from Emma Wen, a member of our vestry and our outreach team:

The visit was presented primarily as a way to get to know detainees at the Arlington County Jail (referred to as ‘inside participants’ by FDP staff), so I was surprised, and grateful, at how much I learned about the basic operations, culture, and workings of the local justice system from the staff. I was particularly struck by the deep intentionality of the leadership staff in their approach towards detainees, and their determination to treat detainees with dignity alongside the recognition that their jobs involved people living their worst moments or acting in extremely frustrating, and often violent, behavior. The tension and challenges of this were evident during our tour, but I came away hopeful over the work that is being done and how this outlook might serve as an example for other institutions across the country.

I also really enjoyed the conversation I had with the inside participants, which was facilitated by the FDP staff. At first, it felt quite intimidating to delve into serious topics with strangers as a deeply introverted person, but everyone in my small group was incredibly gracious and courageous in their willingness to open up to one another. Because of that, we found common ground over food, travel or a desire to explore new places, and family. It was just like getting to know a neighbor—and that is who these individuals are to me. While I'm still reflecting on the experience and conversations, this has been so far the greatest value of the visit to me: as an opportunity to get to know my neighbors in a real, tangible way as well as grow awareness and knowledge about our local justice system. 

Thank you for being a church that visits those in prison. It's a gift to be your pastor!

Warmly,

Amy