Wendy Murchy
I am the chaplain at the Fraser Valley Institute for Women, which is a federal corrections facility for female offenders. My seminary training was instrumental in my receiving this appointment. The interdenominational aspect of the training at ACTS as well as the courses that I took in culture and world religions has prepared me to face this new world of corrections.
As you're aware, the government is very big on political correctness, and as a result I'll be working in an ecumenical setting with the expectation that all beliefs and all faiths are appreciated and encouraged. My experience in studying as well as six years of teaching world religions has given me a deeper understanding and a greater respect for the underlying principles of the major faiths of our world. That undoubtedly was a contributing factor to my appointment as the chaplain.
I'm truly excited about the opportunity to take the gospel message to work with me everyday. One of the neat things about my job is that everyone knows that I'm the Christian chaplain. And so when people come into my office or when they interact with me around the facility they expect that I'm going to minister to them from a biblical perspective. My desire is to communicate the hope and the love that Christ offers both to the inmates and to the staff.
Becoming a Light in the Darkness
By: Rev. Wendy Murchy
Chaplain- Fraser Valley Institution
If you told me three years ago that I would be a chaplain in a federal correctional facility I would have scoffed. Where I find myself today is the last place I ever expected to be. But God is a God of the unexpected and His plans are perfect. It brings to life the word of the prophet Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
In his book Knowledge of the Holy, A.W. Tozer writes, “God encourages us to trust him in the dark”. Prison is indeed a dark place filled with brokenness and hopelessness. There, those that our culture labels as “criminals” are hidden from the eyes of the world, dwelling behind the 12 foot high chain link fences topped with razor wire, their every move being constantly monitored, evaluated and recorded, where they can easily be stripped (figuratively and literally) of their dignity and the essence of who they are. For them the very act of living can look dark indeed. The misery behind these walls can be overwhelming. It was into this darkness that I heard the invitation of Jesus to “come”.
Often we enter into ministry thinking that we have so much to offer and teach those to whom we will minister. I don’t think that I was fully prepared for the lessons that the inmates would teach me. One of the most significant is that these women and men, prisoners of our justice system, are first and foremost, people. They have families and children and friends who love and support them despite what they have done. They understand laughter and tears, pain and hurt, rejection and isolation. Most of them desire to learn and grow and return to their communities and improve the next time around. They may not understand the conviction that the Holy Spirit can bring but they are cognisant of their mistakes and remorseful for the suffering they have caused. I understand that they are incarcerated for committing a crime. However, I have learned not to judge them by a moment in time but to realize that they had a life before their offence and that they can live a better life after their release.
One of my goals as I work with these women and men is to offer them that sense of dignity that was stolen away. One of my favourite stories in scripture is that of the woman caught in adultery, a “crime” worthy of death. But Jesus doesn’t condemn her. Rather he offers her forgiveness, restoration and hope for the future. Often, all people need is an opportunity for change. As I talk with inmates I remind them that prison is their second chance and that if they take advantage of the opportunities afforded them during their incarceration they will be able to succeed upon their release.
Dignity can be restored in a variety of ways. Inmates desire the opportunity to give back to their communities. Many of the women at Fraser Valley Institution are involved with projects that help various women’s shelter and support groups throughout the lower mainland. This past year I wanted to expand their horizons and got the institution involved with the Operation Christmas Child project which fills individual shoeboxes with toys, clothes, school supplies toiletry items, candy and lots of other fun stuff for children around the world who might not otherwise have Christmas. For an entire year we collected items for shoeboxes and I was overwhelmed at the response of the inmates to the project. They made clothes, handmade dolls and other toys and also gave of their limited finances to purchase many of the items that were needed for the boxes. But the greatest joy came in watching them on “packing day” when 6 women who rarely attended church showed up to help put the boxes together. They laughed with delight as they thought of the children who would receive the gift boxes. And they cried in pain as they thought about their own children and the fact that they would be away from them at Christmas. Each box was significant and was packed with much love and care. In the end we had 46 boxes, one representing each of the women in the institution. For the inmates these shoeboxes symbolized the good that they had to offer to their world. For me, they embodied hope for these women, a glimmer of light in their otherwise forlorn world. It was a reminder that God can use the most unlikely means to reach the most unlikely individuals..
Occasionally there are still days when I question God’s wisdom in calling me into a prison setting. But on most days I just give thanks that He saw fit to allow me the privilege of being His light and healing hand in the midst of the darkness.
