Alpha within a prison setting
First off, I would like to ask that my name be kept confidential. Yes, I have been in jail and papers, but my family does not need additional reminders. And the younger members of my family don't even know I spent time in prison. I also need the chance to recover, even though it is nearly a month after my release.
I attended the Alpha program within the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre. This was my only time in jail. The Alpha program there is, I understand, run similarly to other institutions.
I had been in Bible study prior to jail. As there was no Bible study group at my home church, I had attended a group with another denomination. I had missed their Alpha program by 6 months and had heard great things about it. With such positive comments, I had looked for an Alpha course in my neighbourhood but could not find one. I was enthusiastic about having a chance to attend, albeit in jail.
I had also made my mind previously about other things - choices which may have made my time inside more difficult in some respects. I had decided that I'd had enough of harming others. I would accept whatever sentence given and that I would not harm another. In Matthew 5:39 the Bible says, "Do not resist an evil person. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." I was beaten up twice in jail. I did not fight back and would do the same even now.
The Alpha program in jail was presented by volunteers on Saturday afternoons. Given the circumstance, there is no dinner program. The program starts with songs, then the tape is played. After the tape, the usual discussion happens. But inmates are committed, moved and released from jail frequently. Some may only hear one tape. Others would hear several tapes. Still others, though infrequently, may hear the entire set. The Alpha course is of value in that each video stands individually.
The course is entirely dependent on its volunteers and the guards of the institution. Either can destroy the program on a whim. Inmate culture sets a high store by promises. The leadership of the Alpha program must be sure to tell inmates of known cancellations before they occur. For instance, there was a three week hiatus when the only male volunteer was on vacation and the female volunteers could not present the program themselves.
The Alpha program, while I was there, was the only regular weekly program within jail. All other religious programs were either on a two week cycle or irregular visitations. People could work independently on Bible Study booklets but Alpha was the strongest regular religious support people get in jail. And inmates need to know that people cared and have the chance to interact with people outside of jail, restoring their soul.
To some inmates, the program is an opportunity to be used. They get out of their cell. They move freely within chapel. It looks good for parole. There are others who stand in front of a judge and say that they have found God - they are attending chapel regularly - then ask for reduced sentencing. But there are inmates who walk with God even though they are behind cold bars and walls.
To me, the Alpha program was important. I nearly lost my mind a few times within jail. Suicide was a worry. God was pretty much my only support as I stumbled through the valley of the shadow of death.
And God provided. He provided volunteers to present Alpha. He provided another inmate to let me know about Alpha when I arrived. And He prepared me for Alpha, leading another to invite me to a Bible group before jail.
Not many inmates take the opportunity to attend. Those who participate in their heart, in their soul, are trying to make something of themselves. They do not have many opportunities but when they can, how they can, they are reaching out to God. And in the end, if it helps even one inmate, the value is immeasurable. But I know that Alpha has brought people to God, even in jail, even repeat offenders, even murderers. Sinners in other words. Like me.
Should you bring God to sinners? Can you?
— February 2002
