Learning By Going Inside

This story of the beginnings of a career in prison reform, is an example of the interplay between spirituality and mental health practices. Through anecdotes of actual experiences inside prison, Father Chinlund communicates a sense of life “inside” as it is for the most motivated prisoners. There were many in the prisons he visited who turned their incarceration into a good thing, transforming their prison cells into something like monastic cells.Stephen Chinlund, an Episcopal priest, was Chairman of the New York State Commission of Correction, responsible for advising the Governor on corrections policy, from 1976 to 1981. In 1981, he conceived and developed a prisoner-family program. From 1986 until recently he was Executive Director of Episcopal Social Services in New York City. Correspondence to Stephen Chinlund, 445 West 19th Street, New York, NY 10011, USA; e-mail: stephenchinlund@yahoo.com.