Don't miss " Jails for Jesus" in the November/December issue of Mother Jones:

President Bush wants faith-based programs to take over social services. But what happens when evangelical Christians try their hand at running prisons?

....Aided by friends in high places -- such as the White House -- legislators in Kansas, Iowa, Texas, and Minnesota have, in the last six years, turned over portions of their prisons, and corrections budgets, to the politically powerful evangelical Christian group, Prison Fellowship Ministries.

....The largest prison ministry in the world, PFM sends more than 50,000 volunteers into prisons in every state with the goal of "declaring the good news of Jesus Christ to those impacted by crime." The Ministries' "Angel Tree" program has presented more than 4 million children of inmates with Christmas presents and evangelistic materials. The goal is clear....