congregation itself into an agent of reconciliation and healing. In both, the returning citizen will join the family (or congregation) that is already engaged in overcoming stigma and healing wounded spirits. This model is a great fit for a congregation that is serious about family ministry and demonstrates it. You can send a signal to the returning citizen that “This is a place that cares about my kids” or “This is a place that’ll help me be a better parent” or “This is a place where I can work on restoring my broken relationships.” Advantages of the Whole Family Support Model It’s available as a turnkey ministry. You don’t have to do all the hard work of establishing relationships with prisons or developing a curriculum from scratch. These are tested approaches that you can implement out of the box. It’s “stickier.” Because returning citizens can join in where the family is al- ready accepted and engaged, stigma is reduced and belonging is easier. It can play to your existing strengths. Because this approach is focused on the whole family, the range of ministries can broaden into areas where you may already have strengths, experience, and strong leadership—children’s ministry, youth ministry, Bible studies, marriage and parenting support, etc. Challenges of the Whole Family Support Model Toe-dipping ministry can easily become static. The long-term goal of ef- fective ministry isn’t to be a feel-good experience for your members for a few days during the Christmas season. It’s to change lives and to make a real im- pact. This can be a good place to start but probably isn’t meant to be your final destination. All-in transformation can easily remain merely aspirational. The Healing Communities approach demands a lot and may feel impractical for many. In many cases, it might be better understood as a step that a congregation might eventually make after much more experience in reentry ministry. Many returning citizens don’t have a family to consistently worship with. S ometimes (as with families where there’s been a divorce), family members find themselves shuttling between different households and different congre- gations. It can be challenging to establish continuity and maintain relation- ships. Though it has the potential to be “sticky,” family ministry can also be, and often is, messy.
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