OCPM is committed to longterm relationships, meeting the needs of our brothers and sisters while inside the prison system and after his or her release.
While people in prison have many spiritual and emotional needs, there is perhaps no greater need than having a consistent, loving, Christian presence in their lives. Many people in prison lack a human embodiment of the unconditional love of Christ. For this reason, OCPM utilizes our Prisoner Spiritual Support Managers (PSSMs) to maintain relationships between people in prison and the Church. Each PSSM has a set caseload of Orthodox or inquiring people in prison whom they care for during the the duration of that person’s sentence, through prison transfers, and even after his or her release.
Our approach is unique: developing relationships with people in prison over months, years and even decades in order to see them grow spiritually in the long term. By maintaining relationships with Orthodox and non-Orthodox prisoners, OCPM is then able to refer local priests and laypeople for in-person visitation and, after release, integration into supportive parish communities.
The OCPM Clergy Corps is a team of Orthodox priests and deacons committed to visiting people in prisons and jails near them. The Clergy Corps provides visitation, pastoral counseling, and the Holy Sacraments.
Each member of the OCPM Clergy Corps is placed with at least one person in prison, whom he is responsible for visiting at least four times annually, all the while working with a Prisoner Spiritual Support Manager (PSSM) to meet this person’s evolving needs.
Furthermore, through periodic retreats and ongoing education, the OCPM Clergy Corps fosters a sense of brotherhood toward a more fruitful and sustainable prison ministry nationwide.
OCPM offers a 8-part course of study in Orthodox Christian theology as an introduction to the Orthodox Faith and preparation for Baptism and Chrismation. Each course uses materials published by OCPM, which we send freely to anyone in prison wishing to enroll.
Part 1: A Seeker of Truth, Saint Hilary of Poitiers
Part 2: The Preaching of the Apostles, Saint Irenaeus
Part 3: An Introduction to the Ecumenical Councils
Part 4: Orthodox Christian Intro to Catechism
Part 5: A Treatise to Prove that No One Can Harm the Man Who Does Not Injure Himself
Part 6: Liturgy & Scripture
Part 7: Study of the Great Feasts
Part 8: Orthodox Faith (4 vol. set)
OCPM partners with the St. Athanasius Academy of Orthodox Theology, an academic community of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. Students who are ready to take their education and their faith to the next level can study with us entirely from prison.
This program is open by invitation for referral from a clergy for someone in prison who is prepared and ready for more rigorous study.
Our correspondence ministry was begun by Father Duane Pederson and the letters are known as a “visit-by-mail.” Due to David C. Patton’s long-time contribution to the correspondence ministry through the mailing of his publication, Dynamis, to people in prison and a generous grant from the Dynamis Foundation, this aspect of OCPM’s ministry is now known as the David C. Patton Correspondence Ministry.
OCPM sends thousands of personalized letters known as “visit by mail” that directly address each person in prison’s unique situation and spiritual needs. In addition to letters, OCPM also sends Bibles, spiritual books, icons, pamphlets, and the Dynamis newsletter. We understand prisons have various and stringent rules for mail, so OCPM is careful that all of our materials adhere to these guidelines.
For people in prison wishing to correspond with us, please reach us at:
276 5th Avenue
Suite 704 – 3036
New York, NY 10001
We understand being released from prison comes with its own set of struggles. We believe the high recidivism rate in the United States, the percentage of prisoners who return to prison after the end of their first sentence, is a result of so many prisoners being left alone after their release. This is why OCPM maintains relationships with prisoners often long after his or her release. Each prisoner’s Spiritual Support Manager works directly with him or her to help navigate the obstacles of daily life after re-entry.
Finally, the Spiritual Support Manager will seek out and train local parishes to insure as smooth a transition as possible into a new home parish.