One night this spring, at the James A. Lynaugh Prison Unit in Fort Stockton, TX, a prisoner knelt in his cell and said a prayer. While it is not uncommon for inmates to pray, this prayer was very specific. The man asked God to grant him some kind of opportunity to deepen his faith, that he might know God’s love for him. The next day it was announced that a group of college-aged men and women who were traveling as pilgrims with the Most Blessed Sacrament from Indianapolis to Los Angeles, would be making a stop at the prison. As soon as he heard this, he applied for one of the available 65 slots to attend a period of Eucharistic Adoration, followed by Mass. As one of 1,400 inmates at the facility, his chances were slim. So, when he received word that he would be among those attending, he was overwhelmed. “God spoke to me right then and there… I had just prayed for the Lord to show me His love and the next day I got the answer.”
According to an article in The Pillar, the pilgrims arrived at the prison on June 9, accompanied by Bishop Michael Sis of the Diocese of San Angelo and some local Catholics involved in prison ministry. These volunteers host Communion services at the prison every week, unless they can find a priest who is available to offer Mass. Through their efforts, a community of devout Catholics has emerged among the inmates. Remarking on the pilgrims’ decision to make a stop at the remote facility, the volunteer remarked, “The Lord is coming inside the prison to visit the prisoners because they cannot go outside to see Him, and that is so beautiful.”
Officials made the gymnasium a temporary chapel with prisoners separated from pilgrims by a row of tables. When all were gathered, Bishop Sis processed through the gymnasium with the Eucharist, placing the Host in a monstrance on the makeshift altar. He joined two other priests who were hearing inmates’ confessions, with the one hour allotted extending to two. The pilgrims watched as the men went to adore the Eucharist after receiving absolution. “It was so beautiful to see these [men] come before the Blessed Sacrament. They were wearing these white uniforms and my first thought was: ‘Wow. I am looking at the image of a pristine soul that has just been washed by the mercy of God…. Seeing their joy and freedom convinced me that I need to go to confession too.” During the Mass, Bishop Sis preached on the unifying nature of the Church. “We are one. Whether you are inside of these prison walls or outside, we are united in the Eucharist, in the mystical body of Christ, the Church.” The Mass continued, with the inmates and pilgrims singing together familiar hymns and reciting familiar prayers. “It was like the boundary between us was gone. We were all just people worshipping God.” Reflecting on the experience afterwards, one pilgrim said, “At the prison, we saw a microcosm of what we have been seeing at all of our other stops throughout the way. Every person that the Blessed Sacrament encounters is being liberated from spiritual captivity. How appropriate is it that we had the gift of being able to witness this freedom in a literal [prison].” What happened that day at Lynaugh Prison was remarkable, for it revealed so beautifully how the Eucharist humanizes, heals, and unifies us poor sinners while bringing us together into Holy Communion with the Lord, Our God.
posted 6/21/25
The Parish of St. Cecilia-St. Gabriel 