17 Dec, 2009
Freedom for the prisoners
U.S. Said to Pick Illinois Prison to House Guantanamo Detainees
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is expected to announce on Tuesday that it has selected a prison in northwestern Illinois to house terrorism suspects now being held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, in a major step toward shutting down that military detention facility.
An administration official said President Obama had directed the federal government to proceed with acquiring the Thomson Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison in a rural village about 150 miles west of Chicago.
Mr. Obama declared shortly after his inauguration that he would close the Guantánamo prison — a signature component of the Bush administration’s counterterrorism policy — within a year. But dealing with the roughly 200 detainees at the prison has proved difficult, and he is widely expected to miss that deadline.
In May, Mr. Obama proposed bringing some detainees to a facility inside the United States, including some who officials have decided are too difficult to prosecute and too dangerous to release. They would continue to be held without trial as “combatants” under the laws of war.
Under the proposal for Thomson, the Bureau of Prisons would buy the facility and improve its security. Most of the prison would house ordinary high-security inmates, but a part would be leased to the Defense Department to hold terror suspects.
Story and photo courtesy of — The New York Times.
Luke 4:17-19 (NIV)
The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Question — What do Jesus and Guantanamo Bay have in common?
Answer — When most people first heard what they were all about they didn't like what they heard.
It's pretty easy to understand why most people don't like the idea of a prison that operates outside of the established legal system, imprisons people that haven't been convicted of a crime, and practices a myriad of dehumanizing and violent interrogation techniques, but for most of us it's really hard to understand why Jesus might have provoked a similarly negative reaction from the people first exposed to his message. However when you read today's God Story from Luke 4 that is exactly what happened. In fact the people of Nazareth were so upset they actually tried to throw him off a cliff! (Luke 4:29)
After Jesus finished reading from the scroll of Isaiah, he proclaimed that HE would be the one to free the prisoners, preach good news to the poor, release for the oppressed, and sight for the blind - "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." (Luke 4:21)
So what was it that infuriated people so much about Jesus' proclamation? As we continue to read Luke's account of the story we find our answer. Jesus told the people of Nazareth that they simply weren't up to the challenge; they wouldn't accept his radical, revolutionary, life altering, world changing way of life. (Luke 4:23-27)
The question is are we up to the challenge any more than the people of first century Nazareth?
As the United States government transfers prisoners from one cell to another will Christians respond by working to build real alternatives to prisons and incarceration? Will Christians offer true and lasting rehabilitation to those who have committed crimes and are in desperate need of forgiveness and grace? It's a tall order indeed, because it requires more than relocating those who've committed crimes, it requires the relocation of ourselves. Christians must hear the words of Jesus and respond by relocating themselves to the places of the world where the poor, prisoner, blind, and oppressed are dying for the hope and love of Jesus.
- Write a Christmas card to a prisoner.
- Educate yourself about the Christian witness to the state in regards to prisons, torture, and the death penalty.
- Ask a Christian friend how they are embodying Jesus' mission to the poor, prisoner, blind, and oppressed.
- Invite a friend along as you serve the poor, prisoner, blind, and oppressed in your community.
- February 2012 [5]
- January 2012 [18]
- December 2011 [20]
- November 2011 [15]
- October 2011 [15]
- September 2011 [14]
- August 2011 [22]
- July 2011 [19]
- June 2011 [21]
- May 2011 [20]
- April 2011 [20]
- March 2011 [21]
- February 2011 [20]
- January 2011 [21]
- December 2010 [21]
- November 2010 [21]
- October 2010 [21]
- September 2010 [22]
- August 2010 [21]
- July 2010 [22]
- June 2010 [20]
- May 2010 [18]
- April 2010 [21]
- March 2010 [23]
- February 2010 [19]
- January 2010 [22]
- December 2009 [22]
- November 2009 [21]
- October 2009 [22]
- September 2009 [21]
- August 2009 [20]
- July 2009 [21]
- June 2009 [22]
- May 2009 [18]
- April 2009 [15]
- March 2009 [7]
- February 2009 [17]
- January 2009 [20]
- December 2008 [23]
- November 2008 [19]
- October 2008 [22]
- September 2008 [22]
- August 2008 [19]
- July 2008 [22]
- June 2008 [11]
- May 2008 [19]
- April 2008 [22]
- March 2008 [21]
- February 2008 [18]
- January 2008 [20]
- December 2007 [18]
- November 2007 [15]
- October 2007 [19]
- September 2007 [18]
- August 2007 [12]
- July 2007 [12]
- June 2007 [9]
- May 2007 [11]
- April 2007 [10]
- March 2007 [11]
- February 2007 [14]
- January 2007 [7]
- December 2006 [4]
- November 2006 [13]
- October 2006 [17]
- September 2006 [11]
- August 2006 [16]
- July 2006 [10]
- June 2006 [3]
