God loves them all?

75 years ago, when I was a tiny tot in Sunday School, we sang this little song:

Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world.
Red and yellow, black and white,
They are precious in his sight.

Then, when we grew up, we sang the adult version in our worship services:

In Christ there is no East or West,
No North or South;
Only one great love
Inside and out.

Those old songs are in my mind today, as the HFP team does its best to help those behind bars who struggle because of race, color, belief, nature of their crime, sexual orientation, gender issues. 

-An inmate tries to find some Wiccan connections on the outside.
-A young man writes: “my family are extremely religious and have always hated me for being gay."
-An African American claims discrimination is rampant, but cannot get a rights group to even respond to his complaints.
-An admitted sex offender prays for healing and a second chance.
-An Asian prisoner battles a serious illness alone because of a language barrier.
-A prisoner struggling with transgender issues faces unimaginable problems.
-Two Muslim women endure shameful treatment during Ramadan.

We’re not able to speak on behalf of other agencies and other ministries…I can only speak on our behalf.  We’re here for them all: red, yellow, black and white; Asian or American; gay or transgender; Wiccan or Muslim and yes, even the sex offender.  And while doing so, I can honestly admit how much we continue to learn by doing this.  AND, we continue to discover beautiful similarities among people whose differences seemed so dramatic and unsettling! 

May God give us open minds, so that we can keep our doors open.

As I understand it, God loves them all.

We’re trying to reflect that.







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