Getting Out
A Restorative Approach to Prison Ministry
- Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
- Publisher: Resource Publications (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2020
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Publisher's Description
Prison ministry needs to be reevaluated. It just is not working. The typical approach to prison ministry is to lead an inmate to Christ to save his or her wretched soul from the pits of hell. However, what about the hell that a particular inmate will face upon release? Michael Bowe introduces a more wholistic approach that engages in the social gospel and restorative justice to address many of the concerns people face when leaving prison. He utilizes systems theory as an approach to address societal and family issues. Getting Out engages the reader with conversations and struggles real people face when leaving prison.
Endorsements (4)
“While most prison systems are officially titled as ‘correctional’ systems, the reality of overcrowding and woefully inadequate resources does not create an atmosphere which leads to the restoration of persons who have been released from custody. Dr. Bowe writes candidly of his own experience as well as provides insightful information and suggestions as to how prison ministry can be reformed to re-engage and reconnect previously incarcerated persons with the societal systems in which we live.”
“Getting Out urges a new and creative paradigm for prison ministry. Moving beyond a model that sees itself as bringing the individual salvation of Jesus to the incarcerated, Bowe recognizes the presence of Christ in the prisoner and the complexities of each person’s life. Integrating family systems theory with social gospel compassion and institutional analysis, Bowe offers a way forward for those who seek to minister effectively with those on their way out of prison.”
“Dr. Michael Bowe gets it. He’s been there. . . . Instead of ‘retributive justice’ where society takes its pound of flesh, he argues for ‘restorative justice,’ which seeks to restore men and women to usefulness in society. Restorative justice, he argues, will reduce recidivism and help inmates transition successfully from prison life to life outside the prison. Let us all hope the practice of restorative justice takes hold in Alabama and across the country.”
“Until we come to see people who are entangled in the criminal justice system as our wounded brothers and sisters who are in need of care rather than condemnation, our efforts to minister to people who have experienced incarceration and our attempts to reform our broken system are in vain. Michael Bowe knows this well. For his courageous witness of solidarity, I am most grateful.”
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