Introduction

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me... He has sent me to proclaim freedom to the captives."
- Jesus of Nazareth

Welcome to "Freedom for the Captives."

I am a theology graduate student, and I have a growing burden for those that society considers least. Over the past few months, I have been volunteering as a tutor and chaplain at a local juvenile detention center, and I've decided to start writing about my experiences there.

This blog is part of an assignment that requires the integration of my coursework with practical application. This blog is a reflection of my time volunteering with youths who are spending days, weeks, months, and even years in detention. More than anything though, this blog is a cry of my heart as I seek to share the sorrows and joys of children who find themselves broken.

I went back and forth about what to call this blog. "Captives" is a strong word and one that seems to imply innocence. Can we really call these kids captives? Most of them aren't being wrongly held. Most of them are guilty of the crimes that put them there, and most of them need to be in detention. That doesn't mean that these kids aren't captive though. They are captive to addiction. To broken families. To violence. To pain. To generational sin. To corrupt social systems. They're captive, and they need the freedom that Jesus is offering.

I need that freedom too. I need freedom to realize that we're all in need of God's grace. To know that there is a unique blessing among the poor and oppressed. To share life with someone who isn't like me. But also to come to terms with just how alike we are.

I think they and I both find some of that freedom by sharing our lives with each other.

I'm learning how to hope, and this blog is part of that...

I hope that I can carefully and thoughtfully enter into the lives of the kids I meet.
I hope that I can be humble enough to learn from them.
I hope that this blog is a way for others to see the humanity of these kids.
I hope that we can learn to define people by the image they bear, not the mistakes they've made.
I hope that we can all be moved to participate in the reconciling work of our Triune God.
I hope that we can learn to hope.

So that's what this blog is. I'll certainly do this clumsily, but I think it's going to be worthwhile nonetheless. Thanks for joining me!