The mirror., 1895-10-24
The Prison Chaplain.


special problems of the prison today.
The public are familiar with the idea
of chaplain in the prison, although
probably they understand only imper-
fectly what his opportunities, limita-
tions, successes or failures may be. 1t
is creditable to the public that they |
have required chaplains so generally in
large prisons But the time has come |
when the chaplain question ought to
be more largely considered by the
church.
a chaplain today can be exceedingly
useful in prison. 1t is his own fault
if he is not of some use in almost any
reputable place of detention. Never
theless, as the view borrOWS enchant-
ment from distance, so things that are
only dimly seen or seen in glimpses
sometimes appeal to the imagination
as they would not if they were more
perfectly understood.
A chaplain can easily be of small use
in the prison. Preaching which is with
out the witness of God is of no more
use in the prison than it is outside.
And will God give the witness of the
Spirit on any different principle to
prison pulpit, than to any other? All
know that preaching outside which is
in trammels is not respected. This is
Just as true inside the prison as it is
outside.
One thing that people at large fail to
understand sometimes, is that prisoners
are very much like other people. Their
preacher must have one Master, just
exactly the same as other peoples
preacher. If prison officers are known
by prisoners to be careless men, and
the prison preacher is believed by them
to be in any sort of compromise with
those officers, they think no more of
him than the young men of Chicago
would think Of the same preacher
among them today, not one whit more.
If in the prison the powers that be are
, on wrong ground morally, the prison
preacher cannot compromise with them
and do good any more than the
preacher outside can be in bondage to
, secular influences and still maintain
the pulpit with any power.
a good preacher may rarely preach
7 sermon which especially bears upon
7 the leading men in his congregation
Ninety-nine sermons in hundred may
have no thought in particular of hum
f BILE men as distinct from leading meI
1 or of leading men as distinct from
e humber men, but if the hundredth ser
mon shows that the preacher is afrai(
t to apply the gospel to those leading
e men, the ninety nine other sermons art
/ very badly damaged Sensible peopl'
S do not want their preacher CONSTANT.
t hammering at special classes, but th'
y moment they see that there is any elias
l. which he dares not aim at, they make
note of it.
Prisoners are exactly like other mel
l. in such matters. 1t must be remem
II bered that prisoners are not in prisol
IL for breaking Gods laws, but for break
IS ing mems laws. Men outside can breal
l. Gods laws all the week and sit in tn
q broad aisle on Sunday. If two me
f. have broken the eighth commandment
g that fact is very essential, while tn
le fact that one Of them is amenable t
"a mems laws although the other is no
Is is of entirely secondary significance
'e If two men have alike defied God, tina
y fact makes them more alike than tn
le fact that only one of them has defie
n men makes them unlike.
" This is no apology for prisoners, bu
~ it is said in order to emphasize tn
~ statement which too few will believe
- that in many things prisoners are jus
% exactly like other men, and they mus
% . have just exactly the same preaching
u and just exactly the same kind of
:, preacher, and on whatever condition
Va preaching outside would amount
w. little. on those conditions it is vel
likely to amount to little inside.
ro The great difficulty in administerir
or prison is to get for officers men WI
# have great enthusiasm for the NOR
~ results that can be wrought ther
as We put a chaplain into the prison
ON preach to prisoners. This is all vel
~ well. But the need of some religion
or agency to be employed for the bene
an of the officers is greater than the net
Mt uf religious service for prisoners,
20 far as results are concerned.
res This does not imply that prise
lin officers are unworthy men. Not at a
ID. Ameng them are some of the noble
MS of men. 1t simply means that prise
~. officers need to have the gospel preach'
on to them just the same as all the rest