In Philadelphia, over 20,000 people are released from prison each year. They need housing, employment and accompaniment as they navigate life outside of prison. But neighborhoods are not equipped to receive them.

At Mennonite Central Committee East Coast’s Day of Service on Jan. 19, Martin Luther King Day, about 80 people gathered at the PAX Center in South Philadelphia to pack prison care kits and to hear keynote speaker Lori Banfield encourage churches, organizations and individuals to practice sacred neighboring.

Banfield, executive director of Redemption Housing, an MCC partner, described sacred neighboring as “presence with a purpose” that helps “to foster a restored dignity in the process of civil reintegration.”

The anointing is on the church, not the government, to practice this ministry of reconciliation, she said.

Philadelphia has 2,200 churches that have an opportunity to be sacred neighbors. Churches could help “before the walls” with prison prevention. Congregations can also help “behind the walls” through projects like MCC’s prison care kits, and they could help “beyond the walls” with transportation, housing and food pantries.

Banfield encouraged participants, many of whom represented at least 11 congregations, to consider how they might best serve. The work is more than willing hands and feet. It involves spiritual preparation, too.

In Acts 12, Peter was in prison, and the church was praying for him. He miraculously escaped. “Prayer does have the power and authority to release and liberate,” Banfield said in her keynote address.

But people must be positioned to receive. When servant Rhoda told the church that Peter was outside the door, no one believed her, even though they were praying for Peter. Churches need to be ready to answer the knock. Sacred neighbors don’t just wait to respond. They are proactive.

Rudi Niessen, warehouse coordinator at MCC, demonstrated how to pack a prison care kit. He urged participants to pray for the inmates who would receive the kits. Juan Marrero, executive director of Crossroads Community Center, offered a message about Martin Luther King and a prayer be­fore everyone assembled the kits, which go to inmates in Philadelphia prisons. Participants packed about 500 kits.

The kits contain an undershirt, underwear, socks, toothpaste, soap and deodorant. Women’s kits include sanitary pads. Not everyone can afford these items at the prison commissary. Prison jobs do not pay much, and inmates with families who can add funds to their spending accounts are fortunate.

Marrero said the kits “keep someone from getting hurt” or prevent someone from hurting someone else. In an interview, he said even prison guards request these kits. Guards notice that inmates fight with each other less when supplies are plentiful.

MCC East Coast has packed prison care kits on Martin Luther King Day since 2018. The project began in 2015 through connections with Kingdom Builders, a group of Anabaptist pastors in Philadelphia that wanted to address gun violence, and Crossroads Community Center, a Mosaic Conference-related ministry, which serves Philadelphia’s Fairhill community.

The MLK Day of Service allows MCC to raise awareness about mass incarceration. “We can’t take everyone on a prison learning tour,” said Hyacinth Stevens, MCC East Coast’s executive director, referring to MCC’s previous tours. But people who pack kits can learn about the challenges that inmates and returning citizens face.

MCC has worked with Redemption Housing for several years. Redemption Housing provides immediate transitional housing for returning male citizens. The organization also has a housing program for those who have been out of prison for a year or more but need help with reintegration.

Banfield said MCC has been a huge help to Redemption Housing. The partnership has brought greater awareness to Redemption Housing, and MCC has helped with funding for food relief and led advocacy training for staff and volunteers.

“Partnerships like Redemption Housing remind us that transformation is possible,” Stevens said. “Together, we can build bridges, nurture communities rooted in hope and share God’s love and compassion.”