Let the Cries of the Captives Come Before You: Discerning Theological Wisdom in the Modern Penitentiary (original) (raw)
Paper for the 2016 Society of Scholar Priests Conference. According to the contemporary Anglican theologian David Ford, “prophetic scriptural wisdom is inextricably involved with the discernment of cries.” In this paper, I examine how the project of “bringing theology home” could benefit from a renewed focus on attending to the cries of imprisoned men and women. I begin by offering a brief overview and critique of the rationale that led to the creation of the penitentiary system in the United States. In doing so, I draw attention to some assumptions implicit with the Book of Common Prayer rites for the Visitation of Prisoners published around the same time. I then turn to contemporary examples from my experience serving as a chaplain in a maximum security prison: teaching theology classes in which we discussed works like Augustine’s Confessions. I conclude with a reflection on certain insights and exchanges from two theology seminars conducted in the prison by David and Deborah Ford.
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