The Aleph Institute - Prison Programs

Thousands of Jews in state and federal institutions face unique challenges in maintaining their Jewishness. Away from home and community, Jews in prison are often challenged in the ways they can observe the religious practices that are central to their heritage.

Aleph has created and implemented a host of highly-acclaimed programs for Jews who are isolated due to incarceration. Aleph has become a well-respected and potent spiritual force in the corrections field, helping thousands of Jews and their families on a national level.

For over fifteen years, The Aleph Institute has provided a host of services to incarcerated Jews of all backgrounds. Aleph's regular newsletter for inmates, The National Liberator , gives them spiritual and practical guidance on a regular basis. Among Aleph's other services:

Religious Educational and Ritual Materials

Aleph ships prayer and study books, magazines, audio and videotapes to thousands of Jewish men and women in prison on a regular basis. Each week, Aleph distributes thousands of copies of a special edition of Week In Review , a weekly publication on Jewish thought and its contemporary applications that uses the Torah portion of the week to convey lessons in Jewish law and philosophy. Aleph also mails hundreds of Torah Tapes each week, a program started by Aleph in 1989. Each week, a professional recording is made of the Tuesday night Torah class given by Rabbi Sholom D. Lipskar at the Shul of Bal Harbour. Hundreds of audio cassette tapes are shipped to subscribers and prison libraries for use by Jewish inmates.

Aleph's Tefillin Bank constitutes perhaps the largest collection of Tefillin owned by one entity. Over 1,000 pairs of Tefillin are circulating among Jewish inmates in state and federal institutions. Pairs of Tefillin also are sent to bar-mitzva boys whose fathers are incarcerated and who otherwise could not afford to purchase a pair.

Holiday Programs

Before each religious holiday, Aleph ships thousands of ritual materials and holiday packages to hundreds of institutions around the country. Rabbis visit hundreds of institutions to teach and prepare Jewish inmates for the upcoming holiday. For example, before Passover, tens of thousands of pounds of matzo, thousands of bottles of grape juice and thousands of Seder plates and kosher-for-Passover foods are distributed so that inmates can properly observe the holiday.

Rabbinical Visitations

Directed by Rabbi Menachem M. Katz , Aleph's staff and affiliated Rabbis visit hundreds of state and federal institutions around the country throughout the year, providing much-needed counseling and visitations in remote locations.

Collect Telephone Hotline

Aleph provides Jewish inmates from around the country with an emergency lifeline. Inmates can call Aleph collect at any time to notify us of emergency situations, bring us up to date on problems faced, or even just to send messages to loved ones. Counselors are available to provide emotional and religious support at all times. Each month, Aleph receives approximately 600 phone calls and 1,500 letters from Jewish inmates and their families around the country.

Inmate Family Services

Aleph provides counseling, holiday materials, financial assistance and a host of other services to families of incarcerated Jews. Monthly support group meetings are held at which speakers from different professional backgrounds provide information on a host of subjects: psychological issues, prison release guidelines, parole, bankruptcy and more. Aleph also provides emergency financial assistance to families who demonstrate need. Aleph has helped with emergency funds to prevent eviction, restore heat and electricity, feed children and provide emergency medical care. For more information on Aleph's family programs and services, please click here .

Religious Freedom Advocacy

Aleph advocates for the constitutional rights of Jews to obtain kosher food, to receive work schedules that respect the Sabbath and religious holidays, and to otherwise practice their religion freely while in prison. Aleph publishes a regular bulletin for wardens, chaplains and institutional staff, the Aleph Advisory , which puts them on notice of upcoming religious holidays and outlines the religious requirements and ritual practices associated with each holiday.

Aleph also published the Institutional Handbook of Jewish Practice and Procedure , a comprehensive guide designed for wardens, chaplains and institutional staff that outlines all of the daily and holiday requirements for Jewish inmates.