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| An inmate in the federal prison in Florencio Varela reads his Argentine Bible Society New Testament by light of his narrow bunk window. Argentina. Photo: UBS/Larry Jerden (ARG01DJ-3.JPG) |
That call, more than a decade ago, gave rise to a prison ministry that now occupies a wing of its own in a large, modern prison on the outskirts of Buenos Aires and also involves the active use of Opportunity 21 (O-21) Scriptures supplied by the Argentine Bible Society. The pastor concerned – and the man behind the ministry – is the Rev Ramón Fernández.
“When the caller said he was a prison inmate, I promised that he would get his refrigerator,” says the Pentecostal pastor. “Soon another caller offered to provide one.”
Mr Fernández delivered the refrigerator to the prison himself and there he met men who seemed so desperately in need of God’s Word that he felt called to develop a ministry to them. That ministry now involves four other pastors – “and we could use more,” he says.
With ‘churches’ inside several prisons, he spends 17 hours every week behind bars. One group in his care is the Christian wing of the maximum security prison near Florencio Varela, outside Buenos Aires.
During a visit there by the Rev Juan Terranova, General Manager of the Argentine Bible Society, some 55 inmates praised God with Pentecostal-style worship: some raised their hands, some bowed to the floor, others sat quietly, but all ‘clapped for Jesus’ after each song – and after Mr Terranova preached.
Mr Fernández also conducts Bible studies with Scriptures provided by the Bible Society. Recently the need for the Scriptures has increased.
“Mr Fernández contacted the Bible Society to tell us about the rapid growth in the number of inmates following an increase in crime,” Mr Terranova explains. “He had had to involve new pastors in the task, and they needed more materials. We realised that the Scriptures provided through O-21 were suitable so we immediately started to provide them.”
Mr Fernández uses Bibles, New Testaments, Scripture Portions and Selections in his ministry. The result is that after encountering God’s Word and Christian love as displayed by Mr Fernández, men with serious convictions are turning to Christ.
One is ‘Joe’, who is serving a 25-year sentence for rape. He was brought up in a nominally Christian home and was a professing Christian before his alleged crime. But only after entering prison did he start to read the Bible.
On the outside
“Once I was inside, I started to study the Bible constantly,” he says, “comparing what I had read on the outside with what God’s Word was telling me in the Scriptures.”
He was fearful when he first entered prison because of the treatment sex offenders receive at the hands of other prisoners. One tried to attack him with a home-made knife and he still has a couple of scars on his shoulder. Later, the man who attacked him came to his cell and said quietly, “I could not attack you properly because God goes with you.” Later the man – and some others who were involved – came and asked Joe’s forgiveness.
He gets tears in his eyes when he tries to express his joy at the new life he has found and at how much God’s Word means to him behind the walls.
“On the outside, I have lost everything,” he says. “I have nothing – no family, no money, no job. But here I have found everything in God’s Word.”
Another inmate, ‘Marco’, began his life of crime at nine and was not caught until he was in his thirties, when he was given a life sentence for murder. But although a killer entered the prison, it will be a preacher and evangelist who is released.
“Marco has led hundreds of men to Christ inside prison,” explains Mr Fernández. “He has proclaimed the Gospel even to the prison board and has led his whole family to God. He is now working on rebuilding his relationship with his wife, and when released he will go into full-time ministry.”
New person
How did a criminal who came from a home where his father beat his mother end up as a minister? He was given a Bible Society Bible and read it for two months. It touched his heart, and he gave his life to Jesus Christ.
“When I read the Bible, I found I could become a new person,” he says. Today, thanks to the ministry of Mr Fernández and the Scriptures provided by the Bible Society, Marco is a pastor behind the walls. Soon, he will be free, and he will continue to share God’s love outside those walls, as well. (WR 379/6 - 9.03)