NCJ Number
185243
Journal
Social Justice Research Volume: 12 Issue: 4 Dated: December 1999 Pages: 315-322
Date Published
December 1999
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Research conducted in England and Wales focused on whether prisons in these countries provide equal opportunities and social justice in the area of access to religious and spiritual care for inmates who are not members of mainstream Christian churches and denominations.
Abstract
The study noted that the policy of the Federal Bureau of Prisons in the United States is to have equal respect for all religious faiths. In contrast, the Prison Service Chaplaincy of England and Wales uses only Christian chaplains and is effectively controlled by the established Church of England. The recent empirical research revealed that prisoners who belong to minority faith communities and new religious movements in England and Wales do not enjoy equality of opportunity to practice their religion. Volunteer visiting ministers meet their religious and spiritual needs. These ministers must rely on full-time Christian chaplains to facilitate their access to prisoners, meting rooms, and religious artifacts. This dependency gives rise to feelings of resentment, unjust discrimination, and marginalization among members of minority faith communities. The analysis concludes that discrimination against minority faiths and new religious movements in the prisons of England and Wales does not serve the interests of social justice. 18 references (Author abstract modified)