Mass Incarceration: Stories of Hope

Dear Preachers,

A commitment to the convergence of worship, preaching, and justice is also a commitment to walking with humility—as Micah 6:8 reminds us. We courageously answer the call to speak out and step up for justice, all the while knowing we are imperfect vessels who are going to get it wrong sometimes. About a year ago, I learned that some of our Doing Justice materials were getting it wrong.

After reading about an upcoming Micah Intensive on Doing Justice: Mass Incarceration, a Fuller student group dedicated to criminal justice reform reached out to help us understand that some of the language and implications in the announcement had been hurtful to system-impacted members of the Fuller community. I was deeply grieved to have caused this pain, ashamed to realize I didn’t even know this part of our community existed, and grateful for the opportunity to learn from these voices from the margins—the margins I’d helped to draw.

I am delighted today to introduce you to some of these extraordinary leaders who graciously agreed to help us update and improve the curriculum, including producing a video series where we get to hear and learn from them directly. We’re sharing those videos with you below. The new and improved
Doing Justice: Mass Incarceration curriculum is also available to Micah Group facilitators for use in your own ministry communities, or you can arrange a private Micah Intensive for your group where we provide the facilitator.

Justice work is always a work in progress. What a blessing it is when courageous individuals speak truth to power, helping us recognize our blind spots so we can progress a little further. I hope Jarret, Linda, and Sithy’s stories will be a blessing to you as well.

In courage and humility,

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