The OCPM Learning Center: Bring the Light of Christ to a Jail or Prison Near You
Picture this: you and a few other people from your church are hearing Christ’s call in Matthew 25:36 in a new and deeper way (“…I was in prison, and you came to Me”). With the blessing of your priest, you form a ministry team. You are actively praying and discerning together. You’ve maybe even identified […]
Giving Back What I Received: Amanda’s Testimony from Repeated Incarceration to Prison Ministry
I am a product of prison ministry. I often try to distance myself from my past; however, I do not want to be like the healed leper who, after he is healed, does not share what the Lord did for him. I want people to know what Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry can really do for […]
Meet the Monk Who Transformed His Brokenness into His Ministry
Before Rassophore Monk Michael was called to monasticism and before he was called to prison ministry, Michael struggled with addiction. “A big part of my story is addiction. Before I came to the monastery, I had no inner relationship with Christ, so I began to devise my own sorts of idols. More than anything else, […]
OCPM Releases its First Book for the Public, Hitting the Shelves on Bright Monday
Years in the making, OCPM is excited to announce the release of its first book intended not primarily for the prison audience but for those of us on the outside. Suffer with You: Lessons on Forgiveness from Prison is a collection of four essays from people on various sides of the U.S. prison system, all […]
You are Invited to Unexpected Grace: An End-of-Year Address from Our Executive Director
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, “How did you get involved with this?” Almost any time I am representing OCPM somewhere, I am asked this question. As you can maybe imagine, I did not grow up with the Executive Director of Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry on my list of future careers, and when I began […]
“The Church Came to Me!”: Bring Christ to Prison this Thanksgiving
“It felt like the whole world was there to celebrate. There was no time more joyous.” This is Justin’s childhood memory of Divine Liturgy on Pascha at his home church in Philadelphia. But life had many sharp turns for Justin. At 29 years old he committed a serious crime and was sentenced to 7 years in […]
“It is Like a Dream”: On the Grace of Simply Showing Up
This reflection was first shared as a letter from the Executive Director of OCPM, Nicholas Petrogeorge. Recently, I had the blessing to visit a rural prison in Virginia, alongside my priest. The prison is very far from any Orthodox church, but we made the time to visit two men, both serving life in prison, who […]
“Offer Yourself to God as a Doer.” Fr. John Chagnon on the Universal Appeal of Prison Ministry
Fr. John Chagnon of St. Ignatius Antiochian Orthodox Church in Madison, Wisconsin, has had a heart for people in prison for many years, ever since he personally knew Fr. Duane Pederson, founder of Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry. “I had a natural attraction to both him and his work. He clued me into what prison ministry […]
Your Church is Nearer to the Prison System Than You Probably Think: A Reflection for Prison Ministry Awareness Sunday, July 27, 2025
When The Prison Policy Initiative, a team of experts on cutting-edge research around the U.S. prison system, released its annual “big picture” report in 2024, one statistic stood out to us more than any other: 113 million adults in the United States have an immediate family member who has been to prison or jail. Perhaps from […]
If the Church is a Hospital, OCPM is the Emergency Room: A Reflection from Nicholas Petrogeorge, Executive Director
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, If the Church is a hospital, I have begun to think of OCPM as being the Emergency Room. Let me explain. Recently, I spoke to a woman whose husband had committed a serious crime. When she learned about the crime, she was absolutely shattered and afraid. She felt she […]