COVID-19 shut down access to most U.S. prisons including the Arizona State Prison Complex in Yuma where Shannon Gunderman volunteers with a group of Jehovah’s Witness ministers.

Without warning, inmates were cut off from a robust Bible education program that included weekly Bible-based discourses, audience discussions, individual Bible studies and video presentations.

Within weeks, Jehovah’s Witnesses pivoted their in-person ministry and activities around the country to virtual meetings and preaching through letters, telephone calls and videoconferencing.

These changes reaped unexpected and amazing results, as their prison ministry illustrates. Jehovah’s Witnesses continue to build a spiritual lifeline into their local correctional facilities in whatever way they can.

Prior to the pandemic, Witness volunteer ministers visited the prison facility on a weekly basis conducting small group meetings for worship within each prison unit, and occasionally baptizing someone into the faith. When the prison facility went into lockdown in March 2020, Gunderman was determined to continue providing spiritual encouragement to the inmates, realizing that an alternate program for regular spiritual support would be needed to tide the inmates over.

Through a carefully composed monthly letter, Gunderman and fellow Jehovah’s Witnesses share Bible verses and related scriptural information to approximately 30 to 40 inmates who have shown interest in the Bible’s message. In addition to Bible-based information, the letter includes personal comments from congregants.

Each month congregation members are notified that a letter is being sent to interested inmates, and if they would like to forward a comment to the inmates they may. The comment is then sanitized to comply with applicable guidelines, and it becomes part of the letter so that it results in an “interchange of encouragement,” says Gunderman.

The results have been surprising. “We thought we were encouraging them, but then we got all these letters back in return that encouraged us,” Gunderman explains.

“One [inmate]…lost his 3-year-old daughter” relates Gunderman, “so we sent him a letter just telling him how much we were feeling for his loss.” Although confident in the positive power of the monthly correspondence, Gunderman eagerly anticipates the day he can visit inmates face-to-face again. In-person communication and contact are difficult to replace, so “we’re really hoping to get back there soon” states Gunderman.

Jehovah’s Witnesses’ value of life is their compelling motivation to produce videos, supply literature and write letters proactively — whatever it takes to reach inmates with the Bible’s message. Everyone deserves the chance to learn Bible truths.

To learn more about Jehovah’s Witnesses and their activity, go to jw.org.