God and the Gangs

You’ve never attended a church service quite like this one. Under a blazing sun, hundreds of men flood into a courtyard rimmed with coils of barbed wire. White prison uniforms clash with dark tattoos covering their arms, necks, and faces—visible oaths of allegiance to Central America’s rival gangs. Read More

Ugandan Prisoner Finds Peace through Scripture

Thirty-year-old Chandiru* lives in Uganda. From childhood, she rebelled against her parents. She left home and married when she was only 17 years old. For much of her life, she says, she was a “hot-tempered, quarrelsome, fighting woman.” One day, Chandiru’s husband returned home drunk. Because Chandiru had… Read More

Answered Prayer: Inmates Find Freedom in Christ

Jack* sat in a group of men. He tried to draw a picture of the horrific things he’d seen and experienced—the things he’d done. The things that landed him in prison. He scratched at his paper with a pencil, leaving a crude sketch of the pain he held inside… Read More

A Flyer Friar

Fray Richard raps to a group of Catholic teens at a youth rally. Fray Richard can testify that he serves a God of surprises. When he took his vows, he just wanted to be a disciple of Christ serving the Catholic Church in Latin America. Read More

God Sets Prisoners Free Every Day

(Photo by Chris Leaman.) “I am more positive and understanding and a lot less selfish! There was a girl who came in my dorm and stole from me. I was mad at first but I read my Bible and let it go and (I) forgave her.” So said Lauren… Read More

Boundless Mercy

When you meet David Berkowitz, you're standing in the company of one of our nation's most notorious serial killers. David Berkowitz, the so-called Son of Sam, killed six people in New York City, injured others and sent a wave of terror through the city during the late 1970s. Read More

Boundless Mercy

When you meet David Berkowitz, you're standing in the company of one of our nation's most notorious serial killers. David Berkowitz, self-named the Son of Sam, killed six people in New York City, injured others and sent a wave of terror through the city during the late 1970s. Yet… Read More

Reformed ‘Son of Sam’ Addresses ABS

American Bible Society's God Sets You Free™ program hosted a Correctional Chaplain Conference in August at which the life-sentence inmate, David Berkowitz, was permitted to address those in attendance with the personal letter shown below. A Message to the Members of the American Bible Society I would like to greet… Read More

Making the Soul Strong and Free

A woman at Cameron County Jail in Brownsville, Texas, stands at her cell door, waiting to receive a Bible through the God Sets You Free™ program, American Bible Society's ministry to incarcerated men and women. Photo by Chris Leaman. “ . . . you will know the truth, and… Read More

God Set Them Free

A small group of inmates holds prayer during their Bible study. Photo by Chris Leaman. In the minds of many, prisons are one of the last places people go to find hope. Television news reports often show the poor living conditions, the overcrowding and general lack of humanity the… Read More