Prison Chaplains Reach Inmates by the Thousands With the Gospel

December 16 was a day of great celebration and sharing for Prison Fellowship Rwanda. All 15 prison chaplains, each dedicated to bringing programs for transformation and growth to prisons within a certain administrative sector in Rwanda, met together at the PFR office. The chaplains celebrated the Christmas season, shared stories, exchanged ideas, reflected on successes, and discussed their respective programs in detail. Each chaplain spoke at length about his or her experiences over the past several months.

The prison chaplains serving with PFR focus on four primary projects throughout the year: (1) Paying regular visits to prison inmates to share the Gospel ; (2) Teaching inmates about Restorative Justice (RJ), a practical gateway to reconciliation; (3) Encouraging confession and repentance among inmates for radical transformation; and (4) leading the ALPHA program, in which the inmates gather in small groups to discuss the meaning and importance of faith.

In the past year alone, PFR chaplains have reached more than 3,000 inmates in prisons throughout Rwanda. 800 have openly repented and have accepted Christ as their savior at gatherings led by PFR chaplains. PFR continues to work to reach the most desolate populations in Rwanda with the good news of Jesus Christ. The chaplains spoke of the tremendous response from the inmates to their words about salvation.

Training sessions in Restorative Justice have also met with great success. These trainings discuss the nature of conflict, causes of crime, the role of sin in crime, and practical ways to prevent and address conflict. The trainings are centered on engaging discussions between genocide perpetrators and victims, guided by a curriculum designed by experts in the field of RJ. 7,000 inmates have attended RJ training this year. More than 400 have confessed their crimes and written letters to their victims, asking for forgiveness and requesting an opportunity to meet with them as the first step in the reconciliation process. Many other inmates who did not write letters also confessed their crimes during RJ trainings.

The ALPHA program in Rwandan prisons is made possible by a recent organizational partnership with PFR. ALPHA seeks to create a safe and open environment for small-group discussion about the meaning of faith. The course is guided by a curriculum, comprised of thought-provoking discussion topics and questions. The purpose of ALPHA is to illuminate the importance and meaning of faith by encouraging people to think about what they believe in and why they believe it.

There are now 116 ALPHA groups, with ALPHA represented in all 14 prisons. 20 inmates participate in each group. This means that over 2,000 prisoners in Rwanda are diving deep into the promises of the Gospel, challenging one another, encouraging one another, and gaining a solid understanding of Christ’s love for His people. This is quite an amazing thought.

Joy and Self-Reliance: Women After the Genocide

During the genocide, thousands of women were raped as a mechanism of ethnic cleansing. As a result, many of these women are now living all over Rwanda with HIV/AIDS. While the government works to provide support to meet the health and physical needs of these women, many of them are left in desolation without families or a sense of self-reliance. Often, they suffer from the effects of experiencing great loss, and they seek retaliation for what happened to their husbands, families, and friends.

PFR has responded to the devastation of Rwanda’s women by introducing the concepts of reconciliation, forgiveness, empowerment, and self-reliance into an innovative program for 35 widows with HIV/AIDs. This program is built on the model of the cooperative, which creates opportunities for income-generating activities, self-sufficiency, and interpersonal cooperation. The women served by PFR are divided into 5 groups of 7 women each. Each group has regular meetings, works together to create handicraft goods, shares the income generated by the group’s members, and maintains a bank account.

To date, the women have specialized in making baskets (particularly peace baskets and picnic baskets), purses, placemats, jewelry, and photo frames. They sell these products in both domestic and overseas markets. 10 women are now learning to sew, and thanks to a recent shipment of 24 donated sewing machines - compliments of Katy Lee, PFR’s summer intern, and Tools for Self-Reliance – PFR now hopes to teach more women how to make fine sewn goods! These goods include: purses, laptop cases, backpacks, shopping bags, school uniforms for disadvantaged children, aprons, toiletry bags, slippers, and scarves.

The women have demonstrated a keen dedication to the cooperative, and they are always so joyful when they come to the office. PFR continues to work to develop and expand the program for the widows, as it has already met with notable success. The staff is focusing on teaching the women new crafts, improving the marketability of the goods presently crafted by the women, and expanding the number and type of markets interested in these goods.

What can you do to participate?

*Purchase something that the women make! It doesn’t matter where in the world you are. Whether it’s a beautiful homemade basket or purse, you will be partaking in the lives of these wonderful women and helping their cooperatives grow! If you are interested in any of the items listed in the above article, please contact info@pfrwanda.org. [Just a hint: These items make perfect Christmas gifts!]

*Pray for these 35 women, that they will experience the goodness and grace of God; that they will continue to have the strength, patience, and persistence to make the products that they need to make; and that they will work well together in groups.

*Pray for new markets for the women, that they will be able to generate more income.

*Suggest possible buyers for the products the women make, whether they are individuals, shops, local boutiques, restaurants, or hotels that you know might be interested. These buyers can be anywhere in the world – no limits! Please contact info@pfrwanda.org if you have any suggestions.

*Donate fabrics, materials, or other items that the women might be able to use given their growing skill set. PFR would greatly appreciate it!