tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45554277050066219502024-03-13T06:35:52.658-04:00Priest-behind-the-WallsMy name is Father Todd Boyce. I'm a priest in the Missionary Society of Saint John the Evangelist (Anglican Church in North America). I'm also a full-time prison chaplain. What you'll read in this blog are my questions, prayers, and reflections on helping men in a very awkward situation. May God bless you as you read, and may God guide me as I attempt to help men worth saving.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-47889557082591681302010-05-09T21:18:00.003-04:002010-05-09T21:21:26.124-04:00Archived Homily: “The Journey to a Place called Joy: Why Opening the Door for Love will Bring Glory to Jesus”Some time ago – as I was out and about, taking care of errands – I stopped off at McDonald’s to grab some lunch. I went into the drive through and placed my order. A young lady read back what I ordered and asked if it was correct. Then she asked me one more question. She wanted to know whether I’d like to donate a dollar to the Ronald McDonald House.
It caught me off guard. I wasn’t used to thatUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-32005565814493653772010-05-07T15:15:00.002-04:002010-05-07T15:18:02.649-04:00Archived Homily: “The Journey to a Place called Joy: The Hammer of God’s Answers falling on the Anvil of Our Questions”Brothers, have you ever been afraid of the unknown? Have you ever asked God to stop rocking the boat? Have you ever encountered a problem so big that there was no human solution for it? I remember, as I was growing up in Michigan in the early 1980’s, the fear and anxiety that gripped so many of the people I knew – especially my family. My father worked in the automotive industry for almost all ofUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-55144041371509253702010-04-28T00:46:00.001-04:002010-04-28T00:48:32.209-04:00Archived Homily: “The Journey to a Place called Joy: Bridging the Gulf between God’s Promises and What We Can See”John Lennon penned some words that used to disturb me a great deal – that is, before I walked through a place in my life that I hope never to see again; before I experienced first-hand the kind of doubts, fears, and imaginings that can push one to the brink of disbelief. He wrote, “Imagine there’s no heaven; it’s easy if you try. No hell below us; above us only sky. Imagine all the people living Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-1759252609020053792010-04-16T21:23:00.003-04:002010-04-16T21:33:22.116-04:00Archived Article: “Unexpected Grace!”It’s amazing how something so very simple – something you and I take for granted each day – can be transformed into an instrument of God’s grace. It’s amazing how a simple handshake can be turned into something extraordinary. But that’s what happened today.
I was asked to go to one of the Segregation Dormitories today to meet with an Inmate who’s been in some trouble inside the prison. What you Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-9960136504961232102010-04-11T21:58:00.007-04:002010-04-16T21:26:33.408-04:00Archived Homily: “When the Past Pops Up: Why the Lord Reminds Us of His Call, Watches Our Reaction, and Helps Us Deal with It”Well, Brothers, I’ve done it now! The events of the past week in my own life provide the backdrop for today’s homily. Evidently, the Lord painted a bull’s eye on me and said, “Okay, son, here’s the message; now preach it!” So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to share with you what’s been going on and what the Lord is trying to say.
But first, there’s something you need to know about me. I have a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-78389324084758784532010-01-31T23:28:00.004-05:002010-04-16T21:26:45.935-04:00Archived Homily: “The Wine of Transformation: How the Contemplation of Heaven Changes Us”Brothers, there are some sermons over which I labor. There are some that the Lord shows me in an instant. And there are some that – well, there’s no other way to put it – bubble up within me. Sometimes the Lord will use a movie, a bumper-sticker, a song, or a funny story to show me how to preach the text at hand. This time he used a wonderful little novel, “The Enchanted April,” to show me an Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-829734220988376942010-01-18T23:12:00.002-05:002010-04-16T21:26:59.924-04:00Archived Homily: “Why? Because the Need Is so Great!”Brothers, we’ve made it through another Christmas; we’ve witnessed the birth of our Savior, the coming of the Magi, and, today, we witness the Baptism of our Lord. I don’t know about you, but I’m tired. Yet, even in the midst of that tiredness, I’m excited about today because – like the Feast of our Lord’s Nativity and the Feast of the Epiphany (the coming of the Magi) – there is a great truth toUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-61283577702833661352010-01-14T00:07:00.001-05:002010-04-16T21:27:15.737-04:00Archived Article: Making a Real Difference - Part 1(This article was printed in the August 30, 2009 edition of SpiritAlive! and was seen by the brothers at that point.)
Brothers, I read something online the other day that I need to share with you. It’s all about taking our talents, our mistakes, and our desire to be transformed in a direction that will bless the Lord and those around us. Now I can’t speak for the people talked about/interviewed Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-7336022031283577692009-12-01T23:37:00.002-05:002010-04-16T21:27:37.930-04:00Archived Article: Something’s Happening!I’ve noticed something happening over the past few weeks during Mass. I’d like to ask your prayers that it keeps happening. Whenever and wherever a relationship with our Lord is begun or strengthened, it’s worthy of our prayerful support.
This past Sunday, October 11, it happened again. Hands were raised in worship - and not just during the singing. I glanced up from behind the Altar as I was Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-8348861170486199252009-10-19T12:40:00.003-04:002010-04-16T21:27:54.865-04:00Archived Article: This Transitory Life(This article was printed in the August 16, 2009 edition of SpiritAlive! and was seen by the brothers at that point.)
The life we live, brothers, is the life of those longing, pushing, hoping, and praying to be fully born into Glory. As I sit in the quietness of this day and look about me, there is nothing I see that is not passing away; there is nothing I see that I cannot do without; Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-91847222034075806702009-10-06T01:15:00.003-04:002010-04-16T21:28:16.910-04:00Archived Article: Inaugural Mass for The Fellowship of Saint Joseph a Blessed Event!What a day this was! God's favor was upon us, and I know that your prayers availed much!
This afternoon at one o'clock the Fellowship of Saint Joseph (a prison outreach ministry of the Missionary Society of Saint John the Evangelist) celebrated its first Mass! I wasn't quite sure what to expect - in fact, I wasn't quite sure that the fliers posted in the dorms would stay up, be read, and acted Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-44619611443823151022009-10-06T01:14:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:28:35.295-04:00Archived Article: The Fellowship of Saint Joseph - Who We AreLike Saint Joseph, we vow to serve Jesus the Christ. By the grace of God, we will strive to order our lives in humility; we will listen to the voice of the Church; we will serve our families, our friends, our enemies, and each other; and we will allow our brothers to pick us up when we fall.
Like Saint Joseph, we may not understand the entirety of God’s will for our lives. Even so, we will seek Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-72313656909598031672009-10-06T01:13:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:28:52.964-04:00Archived Article: Some Food for Thought...and Much Prayer!Thanks to your prayers and several wonderful interactions I’ve had with folks over the past few weeks – not to mention the grace of God at work in many ways – I think I’m ready to move forward with the Fellowship of Saint Joseph-behind-the-Walls. As I’ve prayed, reflected, and sought the advice of trusted people, the way has become much clearer for the start-up of ministry behind the walls.
To Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-90064932730430268952009-10-06T01:11:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:29:15.090-04:00Archived Article: A New Day Has Dawned!The smell of incense, the sounds of a pipe organ played in the English style, the chanting of the Psalter, voices raised in song proclaiming the “Faith of Our Fathers”, the people devoutly kneeling in their pews as the Body and Blood of Jesus are raised before them at the Altar – the sights, sounds, and smells of Solemn High Mass. I’ll never forget it as long as I live: Hands raised in worship, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-22061195629338354912009-10-06T01:10:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:29:31.038-04:00Archived Article: Pray for Me, Please!!!I had the pleasure of spending some time talking with my colleague in the Prison Chapel yesterday. I unburdened my heart to him about the things I’ve shared with you in this blog. In the midst of our conversation it became clear to me (thanks to the prodding of the Holy Spirit and the faithful witness of my colleague) that my heart needs to break for the Inmates I serve before I can preach the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-55194472274917795372009-10-06T01:09:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:29:50.715-04:00Archived Article: I Want You to Know SomethingI want you to know something. It's something we, as believers, take for granted. It's something that new believers - like the men I serve in prison - feast upon. It's something that the world is longing and yearning to know - even if it's afraid to ask. It's this: Jesus loves you!
You can take that to the bank. You can save it and treasure it. You can glow in the truth of it. But, when push Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-59277632151349171972009-10-06T01:08:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:30:06.865-04:00Archived Article: A Pastoral ConcernI am profoundly concerned for the spiritual health of Inmates who have given their lives to the Lord. I am concerned that many, maybe even the vast majority of them, have laid hold of God’s promise of forgiveness without also undertaking the examination of their past – an examination without which no new life in Christ can truly be formed, at least not properly formed.
There is indeed good Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-42178772850667179502009-10-06T01:06:00.002-04:002010-04-16T21:30:21.157-04:00Archived Article: Hardly a Day Goes ByHardly a day goes by in which I am not confronted by the competing challenges I face in prison. On the one hand, I am called of God to be a priest, a shepherd. On the other hand, I have been called to serve there as a chaplain. While these are not mutually exclusive callings in most settings, they are there. The reason for this is not found in what I’m called to do in either role. Rather, it’s Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4555427705006621950.post-37589154868181631012009-06-11T11:59:00.005-04:002010-04-16T21:30:36.439-04:00Archived Article: Allow Me to Introduce Myself...Hello! My name is Father Todd Boyce. I'm an Anglican priest in the Missionary Society of Saint John the Evangelist (a missionary society of Anglo-Catholics within the Anglican Church in North America). I am currently serving as full-time Institutional Chaplain in a state prison and as Vicar for the new Fellowship of Saint Joseph Behind-the-Walls - a community of Anglo-Catholic believers within Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0