By
Cecilia Rupell
We are all more than our
worst deed.
These words are spoken daily,
by Sisters Kathy Claflin SSJ and Kathleen Rooney SSJ—both prison chaplains. As
Sisters of Saint Joseph, they bring the charism and mission of the
Congregation—unity and reconciliation and love of the dear neighbor without
distinction, to places of great hopelessness and despair—prisons.
Sister Kathy is missioned to the Baltimore Central Booking and
Intake Center. This facility houses women who have been arrested, but not yet
convicted and sentenced. Today, 163 women are divided between two dormitories.
Approximately 160 miles northeast of Baltimore, Maryland, Sister Kathleen
spends her days in Clinton, New Jersey, at the maximum security prison, Edna
Mahan Correctional Facility for Women (EMCFW). It is the only women’s prison in
New Jersey and it houses 613 women, from all backgrounds, between the ages of
20 and 70.
Cold and foreboding, prison is an unattractive place. Upon
entering the building, everyone, be they staff, volunteer or visitor, must
first empty their pockets, walk through the metal detector and be
physically
frisked. For Sister Kathleen, the greatest challenge of her ministry is the
environment. “When you minister in a prison, YOU are in prison,” Sister
Kathleen explains. “The rules and protocols that must be followed, especially
in maximum security where I spend most of my time, can be very disturbing and
disruptive. I need to keep my focus on why I am there and that God is with me.
I can’t put my eyes on the darker side of the system.”
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| Sr. Kathleen Rooney, SSJ |
Both sisters credit their years as teachers as the perfect
foundation for prison ministry. “I spent 30 years living and teaching in the
Western and Northern sections of inner-city Philadelphia,” says Sister Kathy.
During summers, she volunteered at a rural Catholic Home for Delinquent Girls.
“I feel these ministries with the marginalized were good training grounds for
the role prison chaplain.”
Sister Kathleen shares, “My years in secondary education as a
religion teacher prepared me so well! At times I have to laugh at
myself—teaching high school teenagers religion prepared me for prison
ministry,” Sister Kathleen shared. “Many of the women at Edna Mahan are like
teenagers emotionally, psychologically and socially.”
The SSJ mission: “We live and work so that all people may be
united with God and with one another,” could not be more needed than by the
imprisoned,” says Sister Kathleen. “Many of the women feel alienated from God
because of their crimes. They are in need of reconciliation with those they
have harmed—be it their victims or their own family members. They are in dire
need of self-forgiveness. My ministry is focused on that unioning—with
themselves, with God and with others. That is my aim in everything I do, be it
one-on-one spiritual counseling, facilitating a weekly prayer group, or giving
a homily at a Communion Service.” The majority of her meetings, groups and
classes are in maximum security, comprised of seven housing units across the
compound. “On the days I am at the prison, I facilitate two Restricted Housing
Unit (RHU) Interfaith Services two times a week (RHU is for women who have
broken a prison rule or are charged with an action against another inmate or
officer). I also see women individually in RHU. As this is a restricted area, I
am always with an officer and can speak to individual women only through her
cell door.”
The most rewarding part of being a prison chaplain is her
relationship with the women. Sister Kathleen shares, “We talk about things that
matter—their hopes, their fears, their struggles in the facility, their
families, their joys. There is no time or desire for superficial conversations.
I like these women—I do not fear them or judge them. By my presence as a sister
chaplain, I hope the women will know that they are not forgotten, they have
value and importance and that God loves them unconditionally. We are all more
than our worst deed.”
Sister Kathy believes the Congregation’s Generous Promise
(initiated at Chapter 2014) to work for
the poor, marginalized and vulnerable
is lived daily in prison ministry. Many of the women she meets with are dealing
with domestic violence, anger management, prostitution, unemployment and lack
of education. The message she gives is that this doesn’t have to be their only
story. Sister Kathy explains, “When someone comes in and it is her first
offense I tell her, ‘Don’t let this one thing define your whole life.’ For one
in prostitution, I tell her, ‘You are more beautiful and precious to God than
this.’ ”
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| Sr. Kathy Claflin, SSJ - Photo by Cristina Diaz |
Women must ask to see the prison chaplain. Sister Kathy says,
“They want to see me because I provide hygiene items (donated by churches, SSJs
and the Archdiocese of Baltimore). They also come for prayer and spiritual
counsel, which is heart to heart. Many women want me to pray with them,
especially on days they are going to court. Each meeting with Sister Kathy is
an opportunity to be one on one. “When they are in the dorm, they have the
tough appearance, but with me, they can let down their guard, cry and say where
they truly are.” For initial meetings, Sister Kathy does a personal inventory
to learn who they are, where they come from and with what crime they have been
charged. “I have a 25-page resource packet of Baltimore City services for
shelter, medical assistance and for substance abuse, so they don’t end up back
on the streets.”
Sister Kathy shares,“ When I hear their stories, it rips my
heart out.” With her index finger and thumb separated by an inch, she says, “As
Pope Francis said when he visited prisoners in Philadelphia: I am only this far
from the person on the street. It is only through God’s graces and the
advantages that God has provided in my life that I am where I am—I could be that person. Sometimes, I come home to the sisters and
I tell them there are a couple of women I saw that day that I wished I could
bring home so they could start a new life. They just didn’t have opportunities.
Part of the program is to be able to help them, to be able to make a difference
and it’s a day at a time. For most of these women from the inner city, the
environment in which they live remains the same from generation to generation.”
She is optimistic about the State and City Police Department working together,
especially to help the homeless find housing and to meet other needs. The goal
is to prevent them from returning to the same place, situation and mindset
before prison.
“We are always trying to provide something that can renew their
inner spirit,” says Sister Kathy. “I always tell them, ‘It’s important that you
become healthier in mind, body and spirit and invite God in with you on your
journey.’ A scripture passage I use with them all of the time is from the
Gospel of John, ‘You
shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.’ I try to explain how they can be interiorly free even though
there is a lot of chaos around them. When these women invite God in, they can speak
the truth of their heart. When they meet with the public defender/attorney or
the judge, they know that they are speaking God’s truth from their heart and
they can have that sense of peace. Whatever the legal system decides—that’s
another piece. Always be right with God.”
Our sisters, ministering as prison chaplains, have met with
hundreds of inmates. Some of those meetings leave lasting impressions. In
Sister Kathy’s early days at the Baltimore City Detention Center, she met
periodically with a woman whose mother was sick. “I was able to make contact by
phone with her sister who said the mother was doing a lot better. Two weeks
later I learned that her mother had died,” shared Sister Kathy. Prison
chaplains inform prisoners of family members’ deaths. “Because she was in
lockdown (prisoners committing a violation are placed in lockdown), she arrived
in my office with her arms behind her in handcuffs. When I started telling her
about her mother, she was crying, naturally. Because of the handcuffs, she was
unable to wipe the tears running down her face. It broke my heart. I took
tissues and wiped the tears from her face. This moment made me think of the
Stations of the Cross when Veronica wipes the face of Jesus. As I was wiping
her tears away, I felt as if she were the face of Jesus for me.”
Another story Sister Kathy shared reminded her of the scripture
passage of Jesus healing the blind man. “One of the things included in the
hygiene items is Dollar Store reading glasses,” says Sister Kathy. “I was touched
by a woman who came in and said she needed glasses. I gave her a pair of
reading glasses and said, ‘See if these work.’ I turned my back to her to reach
for more hygiene items and all of a sudden I hear this sobbing, and she said,
‘Oh! Thank you, thank you. You don’t know what this means to me. People think
that I’m stupid—it’s just that I can’t see. Now, people will know that I’m not
stupid.’ This woman had been homeless, living on the streets and couldn’t
afford glasses. I think of her every time I hand out glasses. They cost $1, but
they changed her whole life.”
Sister Kathleen shares one of many stories, “For the first time
in years, the Bishop of Metuchen, Bishop Checchio, (recently installed as the
new bishop in the Diocese) came to the prison to celebrate Mass. The women were
awed! The bishop spoke to and greeted each woman individually. His homily was
pastoral and loving. When the Mass was over, one of the women, crying, with
tears streaming down her face, said to me, ‘I thought we had been forgotten.’
Those words broke my heart and have not left me. When I was in prison you
visited me. (Mt. 25:36) I know now, more acutely, why Jesus included this action in his words on the final judgment.”
visited me. (Mt. 25:36) I know now, more acutely, why Jesus included this action in his words on the final judgment.”
