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INSPIRING HOPE THROUGH TRANSFORMATION
In the Kingdom of God, you can find brotherhood with those who are different.
Besides being in the same prison at the same time, Jesse Wiese and Quovadis "Q" Marshall were as different as black and white. "Jesse is an introvert, but I am an extreme extrovert," says Quovadis. "I grew up poor, but he grew up pretty affluent. He went to private Christian schools, so I think I was the second Black friend he had."
It wasn't friendship at first sight. Prison culture is often rife with unspoken social expectations, highly segregated, and charged with racial tensions. Community generally is found with those who are the same, with the first factor being skin color and the second being gang affiliation. The status quo in prison: stay with your own kind.
Jesse, who worked in the library, was truly annoyed when Quovadis and his friends came in and talked about the Bible and theology. "I thought a lot of what [Quovadis] said was wrong and inaccurate," says Jesse, who one day joined in—and a "lively debate" ensued.
Quovadis remembers thinking, 'Who's this white uppity rich kid?'
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