AN INMATE SHAVES THE head of another detainee.
At a table, four others play cards.
BISHOP THANH THAI NGUYEN CELEBRATED A SPECIAL MASS AT THE SANTA ANA CITY JAIL ON DEC. 24. HE IS PICTURED WITH DEACON MODESTO CORDERO, OFFICER M. MONREAL, FRED LA PUZZA AND GARTH MEADE. PHOTOS BY KIERNAN COLIFLORES/DIOCESE OF ORANGE
A few inmates are on the phone – old style ones mounted on walls.
Five other detainees walk into a multi-purpose room in a general-population module at the Santa Ana City Jail and take a seat before a makeshift altar.
INMATES AT THE SANTA ANA CITY JAIL ATTENDED CHRISTMAS EVE MASS, WHICH WAS CELEBRATED BY BISHOP THANH THAI NGUYEN AND ATTENDED BY SEVERAL DIOCESAN REPRESENTATIVES.
It is early morning, and Auxiliary Bishop Thanh Thai Nguyen and a handful of other Diocese representatives are prepared to begin the Nativity of the Lord Christmas Vigil Mass for the inmates, all wearing tan jail smocks over bright orange T-shirts and who share sparse, two men cells.
Before Mass begins, Deacon Modesto Cordero, director of the office for worship for the Diocese, asks the five who among them plans to receive Communion.
One inmate tells Deacon Modesto he needs to have his confession heard first. Bishop Thanh obliges.
Music ministry volunteer Garth Meade then launches into an acoustic guitar version of “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” and Mass is underway.
ON HIS HEART
The Diocese’s Office of Restorative Justice/Detention Ministry held five Christmas Eve Masses at Santa Ana City Jail in 2024 – an annual tradition organized by ministry director Fred La Puzza.
The Santa Ana City Jail primarily houses detainees accused of or sentenced for federal crimes. Men and women detained for state misdemeanor and felony offenses also are temporarily housed into the jail.
The average stay is four months to eight years, jail officials said.
“We wanted to come and bring a little Christmas cheer to you guys,” La Puzza told the five men before Mass.
La Puzza began his ministry with incarcerated populations in 1988 as a volunteer leading Communion service, Bible studies, and one-on-one visits at Juvenile Hall.
Meade has been involved in the music ministry for incarcerated minors and adults for nearly three decades.
“This ministry has been on my heart for a long time,” Meade, a parishioner with his wife, Nancy, at La Purísima in Orange, said. “The inmates really appreciate when we visit. They have a real desire for God but just don’t know how to get it done – just like us sometimes.”
NOT FORGOTTEN
Bishop Nguyen said during his opening prayer: “Christmas is saying to us, ‘We have a God. And that God is madly in love with all of us.’
“So, no matter what we do, whatever we wear or who we are, God is madly in love with us, and He sent His son Jesus to be a baby in Bethlehem to grow up and to teach us about love.”
One inmate, with a tattoo on the back of his neck that read, in fancy script, Lil Hoodster, volunteered for both readings.
In his homily, Deacon Modesto said: “This day reminds us that even amid our struggles, God is with us…whether we are free or behind walls, whether we are filled with joy or carrying burdens, His love knows no boundaries.
“He loves you. And He comes to offer you peace – even here.”
Deacon Modesto talked about how in the time of Isaiah (the first reading was from the Book of Isaiah) the people of Israel were living in exile, longing for freedom and restoration.
“They needed to hear that God had not forgotten them,” he said. “In the same way, you may feel exiled – cut off from loved ones, from freedom or even from hope. But the message of Christmas is that God has not forgotten you. He is with you, and He offers a peace that the world cannot give.
“For many of you, this may feel like a season of darkness – cut off from family, freedom or a sense of purpose. But remember, Jesus is the light that no prison, no mistake, no sin can extinguish. Open your heart to His light today and let Him bring hope to your soul.”
ALL WILL BE OK
Meade led the men in more songs, including an a cappella version “Happy Birthday” to the infant Jesus. The Mass ended with a rousing “Feliz Navidad” singalong, complete with handclapping. The inmate who gave his confession to Bishop Nguyen and received Communion – he has a wife and a 7-year-old daughter – said how grateful he was for the opportunity to celebrate Mass behind bars.
“I’ve been here for four months already, and I haven’t attended church for a very long time – more than 10 years,” he said. “I took this opportunity to come here.
“I got reconnected with God in here, just reading the Bible and missing my family and talking to my family, and I came to understand what I did was my fault, and that I was wrong.
“I asked God for forgiveness, and He calmed me down and because of this opportunity I have confessed my sin to the bishop, which makes me feel very light.
“I want to thank him and everybody for giving us this opportunity. I’m going to go call my family now and tell them what you guys did for me and that I know that everything’s going to be OK.”