Our Mission
To Whom It May Concern in the Reformed Community
I am writing to bring awareness to a pressing and largely overlooked mission field in Southern California: the California prison system, and the urgent need for a faithful, confessional Reformed presence within it.
Southern California is home to eight state prisons and three federal prisons, yet to date there is no consistent Reformed or confessional presence ministering within these institutions. While California is often described as a “blue state,” it is more accurate to say it is a state deeply saturated with theological confusion. The prison chapels reflect this reality. Nearly every institution is flooded with prosperity gospel, Word of Faith teaching, personality-driven testimony ministries, and increasingly, liberal cultural theology that undermines biblical authority—including women preaching, affirmation of same-sex ideology, and racially or politically driven agendas.
Yet paradoxically, the prison system is also ripe for the harvest.
By God’s grace, many men are coming to genuine faith and true repentance while incarcerated. These men are not seeking entertainment or emotionalism; they are asking for sound doctrine, biblical preaching, and confessional discipleship. Weekly and even daily, I receive requests from incarcerated men asking for the Reformed Church to come inside—to teach them the true gospel of Jesus Christ and to ground them in historic Christian orthodoxy. At present, they are forced to sit under ministries that do not faithfully handle the Word of God simply because there is no alternative.
The chapel libraries themselves testify to the problem. They are filled with materials by figures such as Kenneth Copeland, Paula White, T.D. Jakes, and Joseph Prince, with little to no access to Reformed theology, the confessions, or serious biblical study.
This burden led to the formation of Judas House Reformed Prison Ministries, rooted in Acts 9, particularly Saul’s conversion and the faithful obedience of Ananias. Our desire is to see men who encounter Christ in prison not merely converted, but trained, grounded, and prepared to return to society as faithful churchmen— equipped to serve Christ, their families, and their local congregations.
By God’s providence, my wife and I are currently cleared to enter four prisons, and we are going in weekly— sometimes two to three times per week—while both of us work full-time (40+ hours), serve our local church in Ontario, California, and carry the normal responsibilities of marriage and life. We have also begun enrolling incarcerated men in MINTS Seminary, a Reformed missions and prison-focused seminary, to provide structured theological education.
However, the need far exceeds what two people can sustain.
We desire to expand into additional facilities, raise up more laborers, distribute sound theological resources, and develop a consistent Reformed witness inside these institutions. We speak often in Reformed circles about the need for a confessional church in every city, yet we have none inside the prisons—places where many of our future neighbors currently reside. Many of these men will return to our communities, our churches, and our families. This ministry is not only about prison outreach; it is profoundly local in its long-term impact.
At present, progress from our immediate local church context has been limited, not due to lack of concern, but due to limited capacity. I am therefore reaching out more broadly to the Reformed community for partnership.
I am asking for three things:
1. Prayer — that the Lord of the harvest would raise up laborers and sustain those currently serving.
2. Awareness — help spreading the word so that churches, elders, and institutions may see the open door before us.
3. Support — relational, ecclesiastical, and financial, so this work can be strengthened and expanded faithfully.
I am willing—eager, even—to sit down and have conversations with pastors, elders, and ministry leaders. I know there is much work to be done, and I am convinced the Lord is already at work. The fruit we have witnessed confirms this calling. Though I personally desire to pursue seminary training, financial limitations make this difficult at present. Even so, we continue to serve because we believe this is where the Lord has placed us.
“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”
Will you join me in praying to the Lord of the harvest, that he would raise up Laborers to help us serve our neighbors.
In Christ’s service,
Elder James Anguiano
Ontario United Reformed Church
Judas House Reformed Prison Ministries