The Diocese of Gloucester is delighted to be part of the community of sponsoring organisations that have developed the resources for this year’s Prisons Week Campaign (10 – 16 October 2021).
Built around the theme of Respair – the return of hope after a period of despair, the prayer leaflet, following a tradition of lament, encourages a prayer journey from a dark place of pain, suffering, fear or sorrow to somewhere that the light can get in. Using scripture and prayers from people affected and engaged with different aspects of the criminal justice system, there is an encouragement to reflect on the events of the last 18 months and to pray for all impacted by imprisonment; prisoners and their families, victims of crime, chaplains and prison staff, police, probation and the judiciary and organisations and churches supporting people on release.
The resources for Prisons Week are available at https://prisonsweek.org and include the prayer leaflet and a powerful supporting film ‘Consider the Raven’ (below) written by Louise Alexandra Erskine and performed by Poetess Jess.
In addition, there will be details of an online discussion on Tuesday 12 October from 7 pm – 8.30 pm chaired by The Right Reverend Bishop Rachel Treweek, Bishop of Gloucester and Bishop to Prisons, on the theme of Respair.
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