Prison Ministry in the local jails and VA state prisons

Prison Ministry is facilitated through a network of parish-based volunteers from throughout the diocese who offer spiritual and emotional assistance to the imprisoned, including those who are being released, and to their victims and families.

Catholic Charities supports the efforts of the parishes to hold ministries in regional and state jails within the Diocese of Arlington. Our volunteers also support Kairos Prison Ministry at four locations.

Catholic Charities assists with recruitment of volunteers, provides missals and hymnals and other materials, hosts a Christmas Mass in Jail with the Bishop, assists with arranging for priest visits, and supports the Jail Ministry Program Coordinators in their work at the locations below. Catholic Charities serves as a focal point to answer questions from members of the diocese on prisons, friends in prison, and related inquiries. Catholic Charities ministry also acts as a conduit to share pertinent information among parish groups.

Upon request, Catholic Charities will provide talks to adult and youth religious education groups. Each year, we provide Christmas cards for the incarcerated to use to send to their loved ones. We will also work with jails within the Diocese to initiate prison ministry programs.

Current locations of Jail & Prison Ministry Programs by location and by Parish (Feb. 2017)

At these locations, Jail Ministry Volunteers of the parish and local community bring the message of hope and the unconditional love of God to the inmates, sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the ministry of presence, celebration of liturgies, reception of sacraments, study of faith and Holy Scripture. Volunteers provide opportunities of witness to the Faith and evangelization to the unbaptized and those that seek union with the Catholic Faith. Each location has various schedules, times and needs.

Bill Hall is the Catholic Charities Coordinator of Prison Ministry. For information regarding locations, times, opportunities, and the application process for volunteering inside the jails and prisons, please calll him at (703) 841-3832.

Welcome Back Backpacks

Catholic Charities is currently providing backpacks to those leaving jail. These backpacks demonstrate our love for our brothers and sisters. They contain toiletries and other needed survival items. We also include hand-written welcome notes, religious materials, and a gift card for the recipient. Donations for this project gratefully appreciated. We rely on groups to hold backpack drives to support this effort. For information on this service project, contact volunteer@ccda.net. 

Partner with us!

There are other organizations we would like to reach out to see how we can work together to create a network of services to our brothers and sisters re-joining us in the community. Volunteers are needed to help us with this effort.