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Religion and the Criminal Justice System (CJS): A Socio-Historical Overview

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Sexual Crime, Religion and Spirituality

Part of the book series: Sexual Crime ((SEXCR))

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Abstract

This chapter gives a socio-historical overview of religious provision in the criminal justice system (CJS) as delivered through chaplaincy services in prisons and secure hospitals. Beedon critiques the evolution of chaplaincy provision in these contexts, noting the mixed motives—humanitarian and social control—underlying such ministry from its inception. He shows how secularisation and exposure to other faiths post-war has expanded the religious horizon to include, albeit in a contested way, the spiritual search for transcendence outside of institutionalised religion. Beedon attributes religion’s current status in the CJS to be largely derived from concerns around human rights, equality and radicalisation and argues for a perceptual shift from a transactional tolerance of religion, faith and spirituality towards a deeper appreciation of their intrinsic humanising value.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    David Kirk Beedon

Authors
  1. David Kirk Beedon
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Correspondence to David Kirk Beedon .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

    Belinda Winder

  2. Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

    Nicholas Blagden

  3. HMP Whatton, Nottingham, UK

    Kerensa Hocken

  4. Psychology & Counselling, Bishop Grosseteste University, Lincoln, UK

    Helen Elliott

  5. Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

    Rebecca Lievesley

  6. Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

    Phil Banyard

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Beedon, D.K. (2019). Religion and the Criminal Justice System (CJS): A Socio-Historical Overview. In: Winder, B., Blagden, N., Hocken, K., Elliott, H., Lievesley, R., Banyard, P. (eds) Sexual Crime, Religion and Spirituality. Sexual Crime. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-26040-8_1

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