The Diocese hosts a group whose focus is criminal justice. The group offers a faith perspective on criminal justice matters and raises awareness of the issues. CJAG offers this bi-monthly prayer guide which we hope will be useful for personal and intercessory prayer in local parishes.
Do pass it on to those in your church who would be interested and encourage its usage. Welcome to the CJAG Prayer Guide for December.
Heavenly Father, we pray for all those who do not have homes, for those sleeping in doorways and parks, in hostels and night shelters, for those with no relatives or friends who can take them in and for those who are afraid and without hope. Bless all those who support those released from prison and who bring guidance, wisdom and care in such uncertain times. May there be opportunities and support systems for the successful reintegration of prisoners back into society.
May our collective compassion contribute to their transformation and rehabilitation and help us to create a society that embraces the potential for change. Help us to recognize their potential, celebrate their victories, and support their aspirations for a better future. Amen
Especially we pray for:
- The homeless and the record numbers of families now trapped in unsuitable accommodation
- Those released from prison without secure accommodation, and those living rough
- All those released that they may have the support they need not to fail in the community
- The demand on practitioners to find ‘move on’ accommodation for those initially released to Approved Premises
- A compassionate society that recognises the need to provide settled accommodation for those released to stop the reoffending cycle
- Victims of crime living in fear of being targeted by further offending
Prison overcrowding overwhelms staff and resources and means that prisoners are not being prepared for life outside. Several measures have been taken to reduce prison overcrowding including early release. Although there was an initial 1% drop in the prison population as a result, it is anticipated that the number of recalls, already high, will rise even further because of insufficient support for people when they are released (Recalls rose by 44% compared with the same period last year).
The number of people released homeless from prison jumped by 31% last year (13% of the total released). The number of women released from prison with no fixed abode increased by 48%. The number of men and women who were sleeping rough 3 months after being released was 45% higher than in the previous year. It is recognised that a settled home and job are key to ensuring that people do not reoffend after leaving prison, and that without a fixed address, work is hard to come by. People are 50% more likely to reoffend if they are homeless. Join us this month in praying for those directly affected by homelessness and insecure accommodation, both in the community generally and for those released from prison.
Download this prayer guide as a pdf
