Annotated Bibliography

Bright, Laurie C., and Mary G. Graham. “Faith-Based Programs Give Facilities A Helping Hand.” Corrections Today 69 (2007): 137-139. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. 15 Apr. 2008.

At a minimum, at least one chaplain is available at every prison and many prisons are offering more than prayer services and religious studies. Evidence proves faith-based programs to change the behavior of prisoners and allow them to make their own decisions. The article highlights five studies of prisons around the United States using similar programs, and showing evidence of the behavioral changes in the inmates.
This article from Corrections Today is particularly useful because it actually shows five studies of different prisons around the U.S. Five studies, rather than just one, allows the reader to grasp the information and better compare them to each other, focusing on the similarities. Along with the studies, the article explains the process instead of assuming the reader already knows.

D’Amico, John. “Ask And You Will Receive: Creating Faith Based Programs For Former Inmates.” Corrections Today 69 (2007): 78-82. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. 15 Apr. 2008.

More than 70,000 inmates will be released from prison in New Jersey in the next 5 years. Unfortunately, the majority of them will return to their community with high rates of addiction, illness, and limited education. The article explains the issues affecting reentry and how to combat recidivism. It also explains the success that faith-based programs have had on prisons.
By not only focusing on the advantages of faith-based prisons, this article from Corrections Today explains some of the disadvantages, also. The article is not biased which will help the researcher make a wiser decision for an opinion. Many citations are listed which is very useful for research purposes.

Hoyles, Arthur. Religion in Prison. New York City: The Philosophical Library, 1955.

Religion first entered the prison system through the imprisonment of religious men. Observances of faith were given a place in prison routine by creating religious facilities for those who desired them. It soon became a part of prison reform, but it is said that out of all the convicts that pass through the doors of the chapel, not many of them find deliverance from their sin. The National Association of Prison Visitors to Women was formed in 1901 promoting an idea that Christianity can be offered in the form of sympathy and friendship. Finally, the idea of religion and psychology is presented in the last chapter.
The book Religion in Prison is helpful for many types of essays on prison systems because of its broad spectrum presented on the topic. It begins explaining the start of religion in prisons and goes through the years of the organizations and volunteer work that is formed. A chronological order of the topic helps researchers better understand the subject.

Mears, Daniel P., Caterina G. Roman, Ashley Wolff, and Janeen Buck. “Faith Based Efforts to Improve Prisoner Reentry: Assessing the Logic and Evidence.” Journal of Criminal Justice 34 (2006): 351-367. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. 15 Apr. 2008.

Prisoner reentry is one of the main criminal justice challenges in the U.S. society. Do faith-based reentry programs improve outcomes for released prisoners? Many questions are addressed such as what a faith-based program is, how the program reduces recidivism and improves behavior of released inmate, and what the issues are which affect the program. The insufficient funding for the program is explained at the end of the article.
The Journal of Criminal Justice article has many useful pieces of information. Although, it is extremely long, it never repeats information. The article has an organized outline that is easy to follow, and the information flows well. Citing facts from sources such as the U.S. Department of Justice throughout the article makes the piece credible and interesting.

Mears, Daniel P. “Faith-Based Reentry Programs: Cause for Concern or Showing Promise?” Corrections Today 69 (2007): 30-33. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. 15 Apr. 2008.

Faith-Based reentry programs present concerns and promises. Many words are defined before going into detail about the positives and negatives of the program. After explaining exactly what a faith-based program is, the author goes into detail about the issues concerning this program, along with the positive outcomes.
This article from Corrections Today is a useful article, but very hard to understand. The sentences do not flow and the words need to be defined. A lot of time must be spent to read and understand the author’s points, because they are not very straightforward.

Sifakis, Carl. The Encyclopedia of American Prisoners. New York City: Checkmark Books, 2003. 45-46.

Charles Colson, the founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries, ministered to prisoners, ex-prisoners, victims, and their families to promote biblical standards of justice to the criminal justice system. Many volunteers participated in the prison and community ministry. There is evidence that the work of ministries may have rehabilitative impact on released prison inmates and the inmates behind bars. “Do we want prisoners to return to society as predators or as producers.”
The Encyclopedia of American Prisoners pages on Charles Colson are extremely useful. It tells the history of faith in prisoners by explaining how the founder started the program. It also uses quotes from the inmates to prove that they are motivated by Colson to attend the ministries. The history of the faith in prison systems serves as a helpful starting point of an essay on this topic.

Swanson, Cheryl, Grantt Culliver, and Chris Summers. “Creating a Faith-Based Restorative Justice Community in A Maximum-Security Prison.” Corrections Today 69 (2007): 60-63. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. 15 Apr. 2008.

A faith-based honor dorm was placed at W.C. Holman Correctional Institution in Atmore, AL to promote peaceful resolution with conflict. Many requirements were needed in order to live in these dorms, yet the prisoners were able to design the living quarters. After six years the faith-based honor dorm became a management tool that is given an above average rating by most correctional officers. It shows that inmates can look after themselves with direction and proper structure.
This article from Corrections Today provides evidence that faith-based programs are beneficial to prison systems. By outlining the entire process of this experiment along with the requirements and privileges that the prisoners receive, the article answers the reader’s questions. Every statement presents evidence to back it up, which lessens the extra research required for the topic.