In Wakita, Oklahoma, officials are planning for a privately-run, faith-based prison that will tout an all-Christian staff. The facility would be voluntary for inmates nearing the end of their terms.
Classes in literacy, General Educational Development requirements and life skills would be offered, and Wayland University, a Christian college in Plainview, Texas, has agreed to put a satellite campus in the prison.
"They don't have to go to church, or Bible study, but they have to participate in the curriculum, which is Christ-centered," Robinson said.
…
If constitutional challenges arise, he said, the American Center for Law and Justice, a major Christian law firm, has agreed to represent the ministry for free.
Making it completely voluntary is a step in the right direction. But this would be a publicly financed facility created for the distinct purpose of offering Christian rehabilitation. The Tulsa World article does not make clear, but if there is no secular alternative – if inmates are faced with the choice of a religious program or no re-entry program – then it's not much of a choice at all.
