Charles Colson, who founded Prison Fellowship Ministries in 1976 in the wake of his conviction on charges related to the Watergate scandal, will be in the Valley on Friday and Saturday for a graduation and a conference.
His visit will be sponsored by Prison Fellowship Ministries-Arizona, which is active in every Arizona prison, and Phoenix Seminary.
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Colson first will address 27 seminary graduates on Friday at Bethany Bible Church, 6060 N. Seventh Ave. On Friday and Saturday, he will attend the "Teaching and Touching" Conference at Scottsdale Bible Church, 7601 E. Shea Blvd.
The conference will focus on how Christians can emulate the life of Jesus by effectively "teaching" about Christ's life and message and "touching" others through direct ministry, said Bill Anderson, executive director of Prison Fellowship Ministries-Arizona.
The conference will also feature addresses by Daryl DelHousaye, seminary president and senior pastor at Scottsdale Bible and Mary Kay Beard, formerly a "Ten Most Wanted" fugitive of the FBI, who founded the Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree Project, which provides Christmas gifts to prisoners' children.
Gospel Hall of Fame artist Sherman Andrus will perform.
Several workshop sessions will be held at the conference, led by seminary staff and local churches.
For his own part, Colson has worked with churches of all kinds to reach prisoners, ex-prisoners, crime victims and their families. Prison Fellowship Ministries has focused on reconciling criminals with communities.
Anderson said that in Arizona, Prison Fellowship conducts hundreds of weekend seminars, provides Christmas gifts to 16,000 children, reaches 7,000 inmates a year and attracts 3,000 volunteers.
He said studies have shown that inmates using Prison Fellowship's programs reduce their rate of returning to prison to single digits. Nationally, more than 51.8 percent of prisoners return to prison within three years, according to a U.S. Department of Justice Report.
Under state contracts, Prison Fellowship actually operates at least portions of prisons in Texas, Iowa, Kansas and Minnesota.
In Iowa, the arrangement is the object of two lawsuits filed by Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, which claims that it forces fundamental Christianity on inmates seeking better treatment.
Contact the reporter at mike.clancy@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-8550.
