Taking faith out of our prison system

My brother sent me a story from a recent New York Times that talks about the quiet dismantling of all faith materials available to prisoners. The reason..."a 2004 report by the Office of the Inspector General in the Justice Department. The report recommended steps that prisons should take, in light of the Sept. 11 attacks, to avoid becoming recruiting grounds for militant Islamic and other religious groups."

I read the article in stunned disbelief. The president of Prison Fellowship said it best, "It's swatting a fly with sledgehammer." The fear of religion being used for "radicalization" (what this really means no one knows besides acting violently...so am I radical if I decide to step out from the culture and tithe a portion of my income or read my Bible and actually believe it?) grows when only a meager few do anything destructive with their faith.

Faith has been shown to extend life and a critical element for American youth. If the secular world continues to define mainstream faith by its extreme fringe elements then faith will continue to get pushed out of public life regardless of its "benefits".

Restoration and Shalom

I have been going to some Sunday evening classes on Biblical history...fascinating stuff. We covered creation (Genesis) all the way through Solomon the first night then we moved through the remainder of the Old Testament until 63 BCE when the Romans arrived tonight. Thanks Dr. Nicholas for making it easier to understand much of the grand history.

So much was helped me realize my faith is deep rooted in a rich history. The Bible is littered with accounts many of us simply gloss over or have failed to read...passages that wake us up to the fact that this world (gritty and dark) is nothing new to God. Try reading the book of Judges and tell me it's Sunday school material. I found profound solace in the idea that God relentlessly pursues imperfect people because that's what I am...a man charged with good intentions but plagued by poor follow through.

Here are a few intriguing things I been learning ::

• The 10 plagues of Egypt were directly related to 10 deities of the Egyptian religion.

• When Moses came down from the mountain with the commandments it was actually 10 commandments and 600+ laws for the people of Israel to follow.

• We crave SHALOM (peace and wholeness) within this broken world and the question keeps being asked...can we live in shalom with other people, nature and ourselves?

• The history of Israel is a nasty roller coaster...a feeling of fulfillment one moment and then being undermined from within or invaded the next. What a ride 722 BCE until 63BCE!

Knowing the deeper roots of my faith continues to be both a challenge and an adventure.