by Moira Cullings
moira.cullings@theleaven.org
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — It’s a moment that’s stuck with Little Sister Stephanie for nearly a decade.
She and her fellow Brothers and Sisters of the Community of the Lamb were visiting the Kansas Juvenile Correctional Complex (KJCC) in Topeka with Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann.
As the archbishop prepared for vespers, Little Sister Stephanie noticed how beautiful his vestments were.
“He told the inmates that these were the vestments that he would wear when he goes to visit the pope,” she said.
“And I remember that the young men were really touched to hear that,” she continued, “because they know about the Holy Father. They know who he is.
“They were really moved to hear that the archbishop would give them the same honor that he gives the Holy Father.”
Archbishop Naumann has made an annual visit to KJCC, a medium- and maximum-security complex for young men and women, with the Community of the Lamb since 2013.
It’s just one of the prison facilities in northeast Kansas he made a priority to visit during his time as archbishop.
Father figure
The stark contrast between the archbishop and his surroundings wasn’t lost on Little Sister Candice during her first visit to KJCC.
“I remember thinking that this big, tall bishop and his fancy vestments [are] going to be very intimidating,” she said. “That’s what I had expected for the youth.”
She was impressed by how natural their interactions with him turned out to be.
“They really wanted to ask questions that were from their heart,” said Little Sister Candice. “I remember that they weren’t shy.
“I think it’s also because once he starts talking to them, they see that he’s really like a dad or a grandpa.”
Archdiocesan photographer Jay Soldner has witnessed many powerful moments between Archbishop Naumann and people from all walks of life.
Those interactions are no different inside prison walls, he said.
“The archbishop acts the same way he would if he were at a school or any other event, visit or venue,” said Soldner. “He just is who he is. He doesn’t fake anything. He doesn’t act any differently.”
Showing up to prison with the archbishop has certainly been a unique experience for Soldner, who’s accompanied him to KJCC and the Lansing Correctional Facility (LCF).
“Walking through the yard at Lansing, with everyone out of their cells enjoying recreation time, was surreal,” he said. “The entire experience as a whole is quite an emotional ride.”
The photographer has witnessed Archbishop Naumann singing “Happy birthday” to a 14-year-old boy, who Soldner could see wiping his eyes through a small glass window of the door he was confined behind.
“Once, he was speaking to an inmate at Lansing,” said Soldner. “At that time, the inmate had a little more than a year left in prison.
“[The] archbishop told the man to come visit him when he’s out.”
Steadfast supporter
Long after the archbishop walks out of a prison, the ripple effect of his visit continues.
“I hear from the youth afterwards about how important and special it makes them feel [that] a Catholic archbishop will take time out of his busy schedule to come and spend time with them,” said Father Joseph Chontos.
Father Chontos has served as KJCC’s chaplain for the past 20 years.
He ministers to the residents’ spiritual and religious needs by distributing religious materials, hearing confessions, providing pastoral counseling, making death notifications and more.
“Much of my time each day is spent making chaplain visits to the living units,” he said, “and that can be three to four hours each day.”
Archbishop Naumann has been a key supporter of the priest’s work.
“He regularly asks about how the ministry is growing and developing,” said Father Chontos. “He has always expressed his belief in the importance of the ministry to the incarcerated juveniles who come from all over the state of Kansas.
“He always thanks me for inviting him to ‘my parish.’”
During his visits, the archbishop welcomes questions from the youth.
“They can be very impulsive,” said Father Chontos. “So often, they don’t always think first before they ask a question or make a statement. And yet, the archbishop takes it all in stride and makes them feel comfortable and relaxed in what they say or ask.
“He is good at bringing humor into the context of his answers and his visiting.”
Father Chontos said the young people are also eager to visit with the archbishop individually.
“So many are estranged and distant from their religion or church,” he said, “and are nonpracticing in whatever religion with which they identify.
“They always ask the archbishop to pray for them, for their families — especially sick family members — for their cases and for their own personal needs and struggles.”
Second chances
During a recent visit to LCF, John Hewitt overheard Archbishop Naumann tell the men that his father had died.
Although the archbishop didn’t share the detail that his father was murdered, Hewitt felt the moment was poignant.
“It reminds me of St. Pope John Paul II, who went and forgave the man who shot him,” said Hewitt. “It’s beautiful.”
Hewitt has been the director of the Donnelly College Lansing Correctional Program for the past three years.
The program offers men the opportunity to earn their associate’s degree in applied science and business. Since it was created in 2001, around 39 men have graduated.
The number of participants has skyrocketed in recent years since the U.S. Department of Education launched the Second Chance Pell Experimental Sites Initiative in 2015 to provide grants to people in state and federal prisons.
The archbishop has been supportive of the program, clearing his schedule to attend its graduation ceremonies at the prison.
“He walks around, he greets each of [the graduates], and talks to their families,” said Hewitt, who believes educational opportunities like Donnelly’s program can make all the difference.
“Statistically,” he said, “that’s what most programs show — that out of people that finish degrees, the higher the degree, the lower the recidivism rate.”
Mercy of God
It’s been around 10 years since Archbishop Naumann asked Deacon John Stanley to serve as prison ministry coordinator for the archdiocese.
“His support and commitment have been amazing,” said Deacon Stanley, who is responsible for recruiting volunteers for each of the prisons and larger jails within archdiocesan borders.
“He has given me a budget to assure the inmates have rosaries, Bibles, missals and devotionals,” said Deacon Stanley.
“He has encouraged prison officials to allow retreats, and — most importantly — he has committed himself to celebrate the Mass and sacraments of initiation on a regular basis at each of the prisons,” he added.
The archbishop offers the sacraments of initiation to the men at LCF and women at the Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF).
Deacon Stanley said those who are incarcerated see him as their shepherd, and that his visits are often life-changing.
“The inmates know that the volunteers are not compensated,” said Deacon Stanley, “and they come to share their love of Jesus Christ and his church.
“The visits are a way to show the inmates that they are a part of the body of Christ.”
They also offer mercy to those rejected by society, said Little Sister Hallel.
“We have this great opportunity in the United States to be able to go into these jails, these prisons, and meet these people,” she said.
“Maybe society has pushed them aside, has kicked them out,” she continued, “but the church goes to them and shows them that Jesus hasn’t pushed them out, that God’s mercy is still there for them.”
Sister Stephanie believes Archbishop Naumann teaches the incarcerated a valuable lesson: “that there is a freedom within themselves that is beyond the locked doors of the prison,” she said.
“God gives them this freedom,” she continued, “even though they are behind locked doors.”
Father Chontos said many forget about the sanctity of the lives of those who are incarcerated.
But not Archbishop Naumann.
“The archbishop’s commitment to minister to incarcerated people shows how seriously he takes the corporal work of mercy to visit the imprisoned,” he said, “and to highlight the value of that Gospel call.”
