Serve Time In Jail...Or In Church?Follow

http://www2.wkrg.com/news/2011/sep/22/serve-time-jailor-church-ar-2450720/



Initial thoughts:
1. Obvious issue is that "church" is the only alternative.
2. Obvious answer is to include secular options: community service was my first thought, as the campaign is called "Restore Our Community." My second was "counseling" if the goal was to "change the lives of many people heading down the wrong path."
3. Totally lawsuit worthy without some changes.
4. Assuming there's a non-religious and/or community service option, this sounds like a fantastic program. I would rather pick up trash once or attend a service once a week than go to jail and be fined for something like smoking dope.

Solves about the same amount of problems as jail time.

I don't see why not, although other options should be available, too.

From my perspective, it HAS to have a community service option, with any charities, institutions like nursing homes, or public institutions being able to bid for convicts to work on something "worthy" or community building/beautifying.

As to the church option, I think churches should be able to bid for convicts to work in their charity wings. Simply attending services I have a problem with as an alternate to jail time. Firstly, I think it puts proselytising into the Justice system. Secondly, if the idea is to make the criminal become a better person, via making them reflect on good behaviour, and their personal relationship to the universe, then this is something that jails, or penitentaries, ought to be doing already, or doing better than they are now. Aren't there prison chaplains and services? Not that I think prison time is better than community service for petty crime.

If the aim is to get petty criminals to reflect and become better people, and avoid expensive and hardening jail time, I'd go with a mix of practical community service, and secular ethics/philosophy classes. If religion is covered, cover a selection of varied religions equally.

Edited, Sep 23rd 2011 12:12pm by Aripyanfar

Interesting thought experiment actually. If I had to choose between jail and attending weekly services, where would I go? I'm interested in the Sufi sect of Islam. It seem to have a lot of very progressive and philosophical aspects to what I know about it. But I don't know Sufism in depth.

I also like a LOT about Bhuddism, except I don't swallow the re-incarnation bit. Luckily, Bhuddist priests and nuns don't insist on someone believing all aspects of Bhuddism, such as reincarnation, to be able to be a fully practising Bhuddist. They like people to have sceptical and inquiring minds, which is good.

The more esoteric reaches of Hinduism appeal too, but that really takes me back to Bhuddism, probably. The esoteric reaches of Taoism are also very intellectually/spiritually attractive, although the popular form of the religion gets mixed up in a lot of magic/superstition. The "good stuff" to me about the Tao is the stuff about letting go and trusting in the Universe.

Thinking about it, although many western classes turn yoga into excercise classes, the better ones include visualisation and vocalisation as you move, and meditation, and historically these are really a practical form of practising Hinduism. Depending on the script of certain visualisations/meditations they are identical to being religious practices, as they have to do with connecting to the wider universe, and different spiritual planes. So theoretically if you get a properly taught yogi teacher, a yoga class should qualify as a church service.

More of a radical red state social experiment.

According to Superpages.com, you have your choice from the following spread of religious institutions:

9 Baptist Churches
9 Non-Denominational/Evangelical Churches
2 Roman Catholic Churches
2 Methodist Churches
1 Pentecostal Church
1 Presbyterian Church
-or-
1 Episcopalian Church

No entries for temples, synagogues, mosques, shrines, etc.

Edit: the OP mentions churches in "North Baldwin county" so there may be more options outside the city limits.

Edited, Sep 23rd 2011 11:48am by Jophiel

Like Irish Catholic, and Protestant, and Lutheran, and Congregational, and Pietist, and Mormon, and ...

You know. Diversity.

Edited, Sep 23rd 2011 1:00pm by lolgaxe

One thing I just thought of: what happens if you're already a weekly church goer? Are you SOL?

The more I see of this, the more inclined I am to agree with Elinda.

I'm with Elinda on this one. I fail to see how going to church is useful in any meaningful way.

I'd be all for a community service option, and churches often provide services that require workers. My mother, for instance, is the parish coordinator for her church, which operates the largest food bank in the area, and she has many court-ordered community service members who help out there. But they are in no way expected to engage with or support the religious institution, nor are they pressured into it by anyone with authority in the church (who would also stop anyone else from pressuring them, if they were aware of that happening).

If this community wants to consider "helping serve food at church picnics" a community service, then fine. But attending a religious service should never be an alternative to anything law-related, as far as I'm concerned.

Not to mention the fact that this will become EXTREMELY murky when it gets to things like gov't recognized religious organizations. Wicca is a gov't-recognized religion. But I doubt that this law would be willing to consider a weekly service as a legitimate alternative.

Eh, I think it strays too much into mandatory christianity, given the kind of options for religious services in the area. If there was three options

1) volunteer for local non-religious community service organization once a week

2) go to a religious service once a week

3) jail

I think it would be better, because while I do think that some good can come out of going to church (depending on the church) there are also a lot of people with valid issues about religion that should be respected.

I mean, what if the person is gay and already experienced a lot of discrimination from churches? Why should they have to go to jail because they experienced discrimination from these institutions and are uncomfortable with revisiting that while people who fit better into the mould get a get-out-of-jail-free card?

Can I weekly attend a church of my own creation, where I'm the pastor? And if not, are they infringing upon my right to freedom of religion?