’Out of sight, out of mind’

Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me. (Matt 25:40)

I WONDER what the word ‘prisoner’ conjures up in your mind?

If you came on a walk with me as I visit people in their cells I think you would be surprised at what we find. Many have ended up in prison through a journey of tragedies and rejection. Most are from our poorest communities.

If we go into the cell of James we will hear a story that is similar to many others – brought up in care after being removed from a chaotic household, abused by a family friend, death of his alcoholic mother when young, suicide of a close friend in early teens, use of alcohol and then drugs to deal with the accumulating pain until a charge of assault lands him in prison. The broken person in front of us is not the picture of the ‘hard man’ we might have expected from what we read in the press. Or we visit Michelle, who turned on her partner after years of emotional, physical and psychological abuse. Her children have been taken into care. She feels totally alone and is struggling with suicidal thoughts.

In this month of Remembrance the Prisoners Week theme ‘Out of Sight Out of Mind’ challenges us not only to remember those in prison (Hebrews 13:3) – those who we put out of our sight and out of mind – but to do something about it. We are asking ‘who cares?’ about the 8,200 members of our communities locked up in prison. We are asking that we bring those in prison into sight and into mind. We are asking that we care when we hear that we have one of the highest rates of imprisonment in Western Europe. We are asking that we remember the families and the over 15,000 children affected by imprisonment of a parent. We are asking that we remember people when they come out of prison. And we are asking that we remember the victims of crime.

If you came on a walk with me as I visit people in their cells I think you would be surprised at what we find.

This year, in addition to the usual Prisoners Week activities in churches, family visitor centres and prisons, we are launching a social media campaign. A wide range of organisations and individuals involved in the Criminal Justice System have been invited to reflect on what ‘Out of Sight Out of Mind’ means to them and what they are doing about it or would like to see done. Throughout the year following Prisoners Week, regular blogs will be posted giving insight into the lives of prisoners, their families and those who work with them in different ways. Amongst others we will hear from prisoners, prison officers, prison inspectors, nurses, family members and judges. We will hear from organisations working with people in the community such as Bethany Christian Trust, Faith in Throughcare, Connect to Community and Junction 42. And through a series of video blogs released during Prisoners Week we will hear from chaplains, family visit centre staffand people who are currently involved as chaplaincy volunteers. There will be many ways to find out more about the issues raised and more importantly, pointers to how you and your congregation can get involved in supporting ‘the least of these’. 

The Rev Sheena Orr is Chaplaincy Advisor to the Scottish Prison Service and a Prisoners Week Trust Trustee.

More information and worship resources for Prisoners Week can be found at prisonersweek.org.uk. The National Prisoners Week Launch Service is on Monday November 18 at 6.30pm in Bridge of Allan Parish Church. All welcome.