Date: December 25, 2013
Rockford Register Star
By: Alex Gary
ROCKFORD — A Catholic bishop. In jail. On Christmas.
That's where David J. Malloy was today: celebrating the liturgy with about 30 prisoners at the Winnebago County Jail.
The leader of the Catholic Diocese of Rockford is believed to be the first bishop to do so.
Rockford Reachout Jail Ministry had been working with the diocese for several months to have Malloy preside at Mass in the jail, Director George Hofstetter said.
About three weeks ago, Malloy's staff called to ask if the liturgy could be on Christmas.
"I'd never dreamed of asking him to be here on Christmas," Hofstetter said.
Of course, he had to make a special request to Winnebago County, which tries to keep staffing light on holidays so more personnel can be home with their families.
There were other little things.
"To have Mass, you have to have wine," Hofstetter said. "That's a Catholic requirement, but wine is contraband. So we needed permission."
Hofstetter said the county "bent over backward" to make the liturgy happen, and several guards volunteered to work for extra security.
Mass was celebrated in one of the jail block common areas. About halfway through, Malloy switched from English to Spanish to connect with the diverse population.
"About a third of the guys who attended don't speak English well, and you could see it meant a lot to them to hear the bishop in Spanish," Hofstetter said.
Reachout, founded in 1975, offers counseling, chapel services, study classes, discussion groups and other services to more than 2,000 inmates and their families a year. The group has more than 100 volunteers and provides services on a budget of about $120,000; all its revenues come from grants and donations.
Catholicism is the largest denomination in Winnebago County, with nearly 60,000 adherents in 2010, according to a census by the Association of Religion Data Archives. Evangelical Protestants were next, with slightly less than 56,000.
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