Dear All Saints Family:
Kurt Johnson and Audrey Moruza are involved in Kairos Prison Ministry International (Inc.), a nonprofit Christian ministry serving those affected by incarceration in the U.S. and nine countries outside the U.S (myKairos.org). Kurt serves at Augusta Correctional Center (for men) (ACC) and Audrey serves at Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women (FWCC).
Founded in 1976,
“[t]he mission of the Kairos Prison Ministry is to share the transforming love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ toimpact the hearts and lives of incarcerated men, women and youth, as well as their families, to become lovingand productive citizens of their communities…
“We in Kairos believe:
- The Bible is God’s authoritative and inspired word for our faith and our lives.
- In the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- In the deity, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
- Friendship with God is a free gift, for God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
- The love of Jesus Christ motivates His followers to provide food for the hungry, drink to the thirsty, welcome to the stranger, clothes for the naked, and visits to the sick and those in prison.
- In sharing the love and forgiveness Jesus Christ with all incarcerated individuals, their families, and to those who work with them inside and outside the correctional institution.”
Kurt and Audrey are involved in the program called “Kairos Inside.” This program is “dedicated to incarcerated men and women. The program strategy is to bring positive and negative leaders of the institution together for a 3 1/2 day Weekend event after which residents establish small Prayer and Share groups within the institution and Monthly Reunions with the support of the Chaplain.” Such weekends occur twice per year per facility. Incarcerated individuals may attend only one Weekend as a Participant during their incarceration but they may volunteer in other roles.
At FCCW the next Weekend event will occur over Oct 11-14 and at ACC it will occur over Oct 18-22. The half-day (Thursday evening) has the theme of “Encountering Kairos.” It is deliberately planned as “a time of reducing anxiety (for both the Participants and the team) and beginning to build comfort levels.” The Inside teams offer cookies as an Agape gift on Thursday evening, and unlike all else in the facility, they are not formally rationed. Each team member at FCCW brings enough cookies that, put together, there are enough that every resident and staff member is given 1 dozen. This year Audrey must bring 105 dozen cookies to make her share. At ACC team members provide cookies for participants only, and Kurt’s wife Erin and their children competently handle that share. Other equally important Agape gifts consist of Scripture-based posters (for both facilities); placemats (ACC only); and prayer vigil.
Kurt and Audrey would be very grateful for your help with providing these Agape gifts on the approaching October Weekends. You can help in the following ways:
- Sign up electronically on the Prayer Vigil list at http://www.3dayol.org/
Vigil/GetVigil.phtml?pvid= 14752&commid=1646; - Join our after-church art session on Sunday, October 7 to make placemats and posters based on God’s love for each and all of us (all materials provided);
- Bake 8 dozen cookies at home for an hour.
- At 8-15 minutes for each cookie batch and baking 2 dozen at a time, the math says that it would take a single person between 7 and 14 hours to produce 105 dozen.
- But if 12 people could volunteer to bake at home for 1 hour, each producing 8 dozen cookies, it would be more cheerful work, these volunteers would be critically important material contributors to the Weekend event, and Audrey would be very, very, very grateful.
- The cookies are regulated as to ingredients, size and packaging, so please refer to the 2 documents for requirements:
- If you or your family can commit to cookie-baking, please contact Audrey directly by September 30 at
- Audrey.Moruza@VDOT.Virginia.
gov - (434) 975-4828 (leave a message if necessary)
- amoruza@gmail.com
Cookies baked at home for the Kairos Weekend at FCCW can be brought to church on October 7 or to the ASAC Agape supper on October 10. Please freeze them if more than 3 days will pass between baking and delivery to All Saints. Thanks for reading about this mission opportunity!