Jailer Doug Thomas shakes the hand of inmate Daniel Smyth before he is baptized at the Madison County (Ky.) Detention Center.

RICHMOND, Ky. — The scene inside the Madison County Detention Center was a little different than usual Tuesday, as three pastors worked to fill a livestock water trough with warm water.

Eight male inmates waited inside their cells with an extra towel and a change of clothes. Within the hour, they would be baptized.

The in-jail baptism was likely a first for the MCDC, said Jailer Doug Thomas. If it was not the first, there has at least not been one since 1986 when he began to work in the facility, he said.

Thomas credits church attendance early in life with helping him live his life within the law, he said, so when he was approached about the baptism service, he consented.

“The way I was raised, my parents and I and my family, we went to church every Sunday morning and night,” he said. “For me, it’s one of the reasons I stayed straight, because I listened in church. So I think having church services is a huge help in our facility. It helps keep the peace and quiet. A preacher or teacher that is consistent with our inmates, it can’t be anything but positive.”

Kenny Davis, pastor of Bethel Baptist Church in nearby Berea, performed the baptisms with help from his associate pastor Larry Freeman and Pilot Knob Church Pastor Greg Lakes.

The three men take turns visiting the jail each Tuesday evening, providing Bible study time for any inmate that would like to attend.

“It’s more of a discipleship instead of preaching at them,” Davis said. “We go verse by verse through the Bible together and give them opportunities to ask questions, so they can grow and learn about what the bible has to say.”

Davis has been attending to the inmates for four years. He said he felt that a few who regularly attended the bible studies might want to make the next step in their faith.

“It’s something that myself and Pastor Lakes have been praying about for a long time,” Davis said. “First I made sure (Jailer Doug Thomas) could make it possible before I mentioned it to them, but we saw that they were growing in Christ. We asked if baptism was something they would like to do, and eight of them said yes.”

Tuesday, the inmates entered one-by-one into a garage in the jail. Some remained subdued throughout the ceremony that ended with a dip in a trough donated for the evening by a tractor supply business. Others wore a smile the entire time.