On this year’s Prisoners Sunday (October 12), we especially remember the legacy of Pope Francis and how he showed love and mercy to those in prison.

At the start of the Jubilee year, Pope Francis opened five Jubilee doors. The second door was at a prison in Rebibbia, Rome.
The Holy Father spoke of the door representing all our hearts and said by opening the door we also open our hearts, whether or not we are in prison.
He said we have an opportunity to “fling open the doors to their hearts and to understand that hope never disappoints.”  
This jubilee year is about hope and Pope Francis reminded us all, particularly those in prison, not to lose hope.

Prisoners’ Sunday is the national day of prayer and action for prisoners and their families. We also pray for everyone impacted by the criminal justice system, including those who work inside it.

Pact president Cardinal Vincent Nichols invites all Catholics to join him in supporting Prisoners’ Sunday.
He said: “Pact supports people throughout England and Wales, whatever their beliefs. Pact’s work is varied and includes care for children whose parents have been sent to prison, as well as offering practical help to people leaving prison, who are trying to make a fresh start and put their past behind them.”

This year, 14 Catholic cathedrals will hold a Prisoners’ Sunday or Prisons Week Mass – Southwark, Birmingham, Cardiff, Westminster, Arundel and Brighton, Clifton, Hallam, Hexham and Newcastle, Leeds, Nottingham, Northampton, Salford, Shrewsbury and Wrexham.
Many parishes will celebrate their own Prisoners’ Sunday Mass this weekend.

Prisoners’ Sunday is an opportunity for everyone as a Church, and as communities, to pray for those affected by imprisonment.

It allows Catholics and other Christians to think about how they can support men and women in prison and their families to make a fresh start.
It also marks the first day of the ecumenical Prisons Week, a dedicated week of prayer across our Christian communities.

Pact has posted out a Prisoners’ Sunday pack to every parish in England & Wales. It contains a poster, bidding prayers, information about our work and second collection details.

As the leading Catholic charity in prisons, Pact has been helping people in need for 125 years, supporting prisoners, their families and their children, offering them hope and the chance to turn their lives around. Pact believes everyone can make a fresh start, whatever they may have done.

We ask parishes to consider taking up a second collection to support Pact’s work in the year ahead. Your support means we can do more for prisoners and their families.
You can choose a nearby Sunday for the second collection or in this year of Jubilee, there is also the opportunity to remember prisoners on the Jubilee of Prisoners, Sunday December 14.

For more information about Pact’s work, visit prisonadvice.org.uk.