Being in a new environment always carries challenges, but in the juvenile justice system those challenges are amplified. Since his admission to a youth center, Johnson* struggled greatly with anxiety. He was not only the newest member of the program, but also a different race from the rest of the young men, making him a target. Rather than give in to their demands, Johnson had been involved in a couple of altercations, none of which he knew how to handle well. The situation left him fearful to even leave his room.
What Johnson needed was not simply behavioral management or a stricter environment. He needed someone to meet him where he was.
A System That Cannot Do It Alone
More than 50% of youth in the United States juvenile justice system have a diagnosable mental health disorder. Many face depression, a substance use disorder, or anxiety, like Johnson, and these conditions do not disappear after detention. Government has recognized the need for behavioral health resources in the justice system and has taken steps to offer youth access to a variety of resources that address their mental and emotional needs in addition to their physical ones. Youth programming is a central part of these efforts, offering opportunities for youth to interact with the broader community and reducing the isolating effects of incarceration.
Yet government programs, however well-designed, can only go so far. Youth programming in the juvenile justice system is generally divided into two categories: non-religious and religious. Even within institutional settings, government protects the religious rights of incarcerated individuals through the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. This policy recognizes the role that religion plays in rehabilitation and prohibits institutions from placing arbitrary or unnecessary restrictions on religious practice. From this policy comes the unique role of the prison chaplain, tasked with meeting the spiritual needs of individuals in the justice system in ways that no government program alone can replicate.
Chaplaincy and the Role of Spiritual Care
Chaplain Evans* has been serving as a chaplain at an Illinois juvenile detention center for five years. In addition to coordinating spiritual programming for the youth, he works as the volunteer coordinator for the facility and mentors youth one-on-one. A Christian himself, Chaplain Evans meets youth where they are, regardless of their religious background, while trusting in God to open doors for deeper conversation. As he puts it, “[I] look for the Lord, if he opens conversations down the road, cool. If he doesn’t, okay, but I just leave it to him for more deep conversations when someone’s going to ask me something more personal about their relationship with God.”
This approach—patient, relational, and attentive to the whole person—reflects a vision of care that goes beyond what formal systems are designed to provide. Addressing spiritual needs alongside physical, mental, and emotional ones is essential for the well-rounded support of youth in juvenile justice centers. Drawing from his experience ministering to young men, Chaplain Evans sees how faith creates opportunities for conversations that other programming simply cannot reach, particularly around identity, responsibility, and what it means to become a man. The chaplaincy position allows him to speak directly about what God expects of men in ways that other programs do not. “Faith brings all those things in a very unique conversation that doesn’t come into any other groups where they’re talking more about relational healing and responsibility, and some things that correlate but [are] not as close to the heart.” In the leadership class he teaches, Chaplain Evans talks with youth about what it means to be a good father or a husband, conversations that resonate deeply with young men who are asking those questions for the first time.
Faith also provides a new lens for youth encountering frustration and setbacks. When youth come discouraged by a mistake they have made, Chaplain Evans points them to the redemption found in Christ. He encounters youth who, after learning what God expects of them, “really [try], really fail, but then come to the understanding of, oh, that’s why we need Christ.” Chaplain Evans considers the privilege “not only seeing people succeed, but seeing people who really mess up, and the beautiful connection that youth can have after that, that they maybe get with God.”
The Call from Matthew 25:35-40
Through the relationships that he cultivates around faith-based conversations, Chaplain Evans exemplifies Jesus’ command to care for those in prison from Matthew 25:35-40. Not only do youth feel seen and heard, but for many, these conversations are the first time they have genuinely considered what it means to be a follower of Christ. Many incarcerated youth are at a pivotal moment in their lives, growing in their understanding of who they want to be and who they want to follow. Investing in youth who have encountered the justice system is one of the most caring acts Christians can perform, and one that fully embodies the call of Matthew 25.
What the Church Is Called to Do
With the chaplain as an example, Christians are called to desire to care for and engage with incarcerated youth. Government’s role is to enact policies that support youth mental, emotional, and spiritual health, creating the conditions in which programs like chaplaincy can exist and flourish. But civil society’s role is distinct and equally essential. Churches, families, and community organizations are positioned to offer what formal systems cannot: sustained relationship, presence, and formation at every stage of a young person’s encounter with the justice system.
Chaplain Evans offers three practical ways Christians can respond. The first is advocacy, specifically, awareness of local sentencing policies and the disparities that exist across counties for similar offenses. As an example from Illinois, “the judge in Kane County could give a 20-year sentence. A judge in Cook County can give a 10-year sentence. The judge somewhere way South could give a 30-year sentence. And sentencing guidelines seem to be much more fluid, so when two kids arrive [with] similar crimes, one’s getting out in three years, one’s getting out in 30 years.” In becoming more aware of sentencing discrepancies, the chaplain encourages Christians to reflect: “When I hear about the judges and what they do, am I comfortable with it? Do I feel like we’re a just area?”
The second is employment. Chaplain Evans hopes that more Christians would be willing to take the risk of offering youth a job. As he puts it, “From my perspective on the inside, there’s been no better thing to happen here than these jobs as far as seeing the kids step up, how excited they are about it, how it then helps them with impulse control, because that’s something that they really don’t want to lose.” For youth in prison, the opportunity to have a job in the real world not only motivates them, it also places them in a more favorable position after release, giving them valuable work experience they can point to as they reenter their communities.
The third is presence. Church involvement in a youth’s life after release is, in Chaplain Evans’ view, essential. While many churches are already actively involved in offering Bible studies to incarcerated youth, there is an equal need for churches to invest in the lives of youth reentering their community, showing up, making themselves known, and staying engaged beyond the walls of the facility. In particular, he encourages Christians to reach out to the aftercare department and “be there as a church to help youth who are coming home and let them know we have youth group, we have this, we have food helps. That would be a need that I would see really grow.”
If we believe that faith in Christ has the power to transform lives, that belief must show up in how we engage with the most vulnerable. Johnson’s story did not end in that room. As his faith grew, so did his courage. He began to pray, step out of his shell and grow in his involvement in the facility. That kind of transformation does not happen through policy alone. It happens through people, and the church is uniquely called to be among them.
*Names marked with an asterisk have been changed to protect privacy.
Anastasia Lau is studying Biology at Wheaton College. She is passionate about global health and working with justice-involved youth.
Graphic by Center for Public Justice / Source Photo by Pgiam from Getty Images Signature, accessed with Canva Pro.
