Unusual Passover Service Held inside Prison Walls

 Editor's note: The following is an account from Mr. Judd Kirk and Mr. Steve Nutzman, ministers in the Detroit, Mich., area, of a very interesting and very unusual baptism and Passover service that recently took place in the Detroit West church.

DETROIT, Mich. - Our first visit with Jack Walker was last fall, right before the Feast of Tabernacles.

Jack seemed to be a strong prospective member, yet one factor set him apart from other PMs. Jack has been a prisoner at Jackson State Prison for almost six years!

It was quite an experience to talk to him about why he was there, how he got interested in the truth (he first heard Mr. Armstrong on the radio in the late '30s; then a fellow prisoner reintroduced him to the truth in 1968), and it was obvious to see that he sincerely was sorry for the crime he had committed and now wanted to live according to God's laws.

On subsequent visits, we answered his many questions about church doctrines and baptism. There was no doubt about it, Jack was ready for baptism.

But would it be possible to baptize him while in prison? Other prisoners could be sprinkled into a Protestant church by the prison chaplain, but would one of God's ministers be allowed to immerse him completely into a tank of water inside the prison walls?

We wrote a letter to the prison chaplain explaining the situation, asking him to take into consideration Mr. Walker's extreme sincerity and the importance of the matter.

Thankfully, the chaplain wrote back saying Jack could be baptized the very next Sabbath! This was extremely encouraging for us all and certainly an answer to prayer.

That Sabbath the chaplain helped out tremendously as he made all the necessary arrangements for the baptism.

Jack was baptized I an old bathtub (filled with cold water, much to his surprise) located in the laundry room of the psychiatric ward!

So, as strange a situation as it was, God honored this baptism and Jack found himself overjoyed with the thought of having the heavy burden of his earthly crime and sins forgiven.

Jack realized, of course, he was still a ward of the state and as such would continue serving his prison term for years to come.

He has mentioned, though, there is the possibility his sentence could be reduced, and in a year or two he could be released.

We certainly pray this will be the case.

Before leaving the prison, we wanted to see if there was any way at all for Jack to take the Passover by himself, which was just eight days away. This presented quite a problem for several reasons. First, no alcohol is permitted in the prison (not even in minute amounts) and no gifts (including unleavened bread) can be given to the prisoners except during the Christmas season.

So when we asked the chaplain about the Passover, we hoped somehow they would approve Jack taking the Passover by himself, if prison rules allowed it, that is.

His reply astounded us both. He said Jack could not take the Passover by himself. But if one of us wanted to come out and take it with him, then that would be fine with the prison and himself!

This really bowled us over as we never expected to be allowed actually to come out and take the full Passover service with him!

But this door was dramatically opened to us, and all the prison guards proved to be very helpful in arranging a private room for us and taking care of the necessary security procedures the evening of the Passover.

It was a tremendously moving experience to be with Jack the night of the Passover.

We, found ourselves in an office room with a guard waiting outside the door (for security reasons) surrounded by thousands of prisoners in countless prison cells.

Yet, even in this type of circumstance, we were able to partake of the Passover in privacy and with much feeling.

Carefully, the tissue paper was removed from the unleavened bread and wine poured from a pill bottle into paper cups. A nearby drinking fountain supplied ample water to fill a wash basin the guards allowed to be taken into the room.

During the service we realized how thankful we could be for what this ceremony pictured, and to understand that someday all those in the prison cells could come to realize the meaning of the Passover for themselves.

Afterwards, Jack couldn't get over the fact that tens of thousands of brethren around the world were observing this same Passover and how he longed to be with them someday, under much better circumstances.

We're certainly praying that proper legal action can be taken soon in order that Jack can be set free, as it is less than ideal, to say ·the least , to be a Christian while in prison. 

Because of his unusual circumstances, Jack deeply realizes that God has opened his mind to the truth and forgiven him of his earthly and spiritual crimes. Jack now looks very thankfully to his future in the Work and in the Millennium.

What an encouragement for those of us who are really free on this earth to see this man's very optimistic and positive attitude in spite of his seemingly difficult situation.

Yet, how many of us would tend to get discouraged if faced with his problems? For instance, he has no privacy during the day, and if he is going to pray on his knees, he must wait until "lights out" to do so.

Also, could you and I face the future and continue to grow, knowing that it might be years before we set foot outside the prison walls as a free man?

Yet, he must continue to keep his record spotless if he is to have parole possibilities in the future. This means living an orderly, disciplined and productive life, day after day after day.

So Jack now finds himself a Christian behind prison bars. Instead of focusing on his plight and problems, though, he continually counts his blessings (of being a begotten son of God, of having good health, of realizing that thousands around the world are paving the way for Christ's return, and of contributing his part in the Work).

He just doesn't let his difficulties blind him of his God-given blessings.

Jack has been a definite inspiration to those of us in the Detroit churches, and his life has made us realize even more that God can call anyone on this earth, no matter where he is or what his circumstances may be.  - By Judd Kirk and Steve Nutzman