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LVIV,
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| Prisoner Roman Bellay committed his life to God in 1999. Since then, he has dedicated his time to decorating the prison chapel with scenes from the life of Jesus. Ukraine. Photo: UBS/Dag Smemo (UKR04DJ-10.JPG) |
It’s hard to believe that the breathtaking scenes are Mr Bellay’s first attempt at art. It is even more incredible that they are in a chapel inside one of Lviv’s top security prisons and were created by a man who was tried and convicted 10 years ago for committing murder.
Hidden talent
His faith was born four years ago when he was given a Bible in prison. Since then, within the bleak surroundings of the high walls and barbed wire fences, Mr Bellay has dedicated himself to expressing the inspiration he has found in the Bible. In doing so, he discovered a hidden talent.
“God has given me this gift to preach the message of the Bible through paintings,” he says.
He has helped build the prison chapel and has spent every day of an entire year decorating it with his paintings. The chapel is used by Orthodox believers, while other denominations have been allocated separate rooms. In two years’ time, when he is released from prison, Mr Bellay plans to continue to use art to share his faith.
His story is not uncommon: many other prisoners in Ukraine are also finding inspiration and hope in the stories contained in the Bible. And hope is in short supply within prison walls, as Vladimir Sadovij, a former prisoner, describes:
“Life inside is just degrading. The system is not designed to improve lives but to break men down.” (See World Report 368/2 for Vladimir’s full story.)
In Mr Bellay’s prison, most of the 1,700 inmates are serving time for serious crimes, and conditions are extremely cramped: a modest-sized cell houses 20 to 30 men, and the dining hall can only accommodate 500 people at a time so the inmates have to eat in three shifts for each meal.
In these circumstances, it is not surprising that when prisoners hear the Bible’s message of forgiveness and hope for the future, many of them want to find out more. Natasha Ostapovets, who runs the correspondence courses offered by the Ukraine Evangelical Theological Seminary, is reminded daily about the incredible impact the Bible is having on people in prison. Of the 550 students currently enrolled in correspondence courses, 150 are prisoners.
“Every day I see the fruits of this work that is going on in prisons,” she says. “I myself have never been a great letter writer but through the many letters we receive here, I can see that people’s lives really are being changed through God’s Word.”
But the letters also portray the desperate need for more Bibles in prisons across the country.
150 share one Bible
“I recently got a letter from a prisoner in the Donetsk area, and he said that in his prison, 150 people have to share one Bible. And this is just one example. We get such letters all the time but we cannot afford to help them by sending Bibles.”
The Ukrainian Bible Society is working hard to provide Bibles and Scripture materials for the country’s 170 prisons, but much still needs to be done. Through the Opportunity 21 program, over the past two years, it has provided more than 120,000 Scriptures for prisoners and prison libraries.
The fact that the Society always carries out this work in co-operation
with local churches of all denominations has resulted in it being the
only religious institution to be granted permanent permission to carry
out prison ministry. The Society’s Regional Executive Director
in Kiev, Volodymyr Bronovitzkyy, is a regular visitor to prisons, and
is always accompanied by a pastor or priest from one of the local churches
– in fact, he has been seen with so many different church leaders
that it has surprised the prison guards, who frequently comment on it.
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| Prisoners at the prison in which Roman Bellay committed his life to God in 1999. Since then, he has dedicated his time to decorating the prison chapel with scenes from the life of Jesus. Ukraine. Photo: UBS/Dag Smemo (UKR04DJ-13.JPG) |
He also works closely with ex-convicts whose lives were changed by encountering the Bible while in prison.
“We work closely with prison churches and especially prison ministers who have passed through ordeals in their lives, have been imprisoned, and are now working with convicts,” he says. “They have considerable authority and influence over the prisoners so through them we can hand literature directly to the prisoners, participate in services and help in educational and rehabilitation work.”
Roman Vovk, the Society’s General Secretary, is also enthusiastically involved in prison work. At Easter he participated in a church service at the Lychakiv Rehabilitation Camp 30 in Lviv, held by the Ukrainian Orthodox Hierarch, Father Augustine. More than 700 prisoners and 50 prison staff received New Testaments, Bibles and other literature from the Bible Society.
As well as providing printed Scriptures, the Society has also been distributing Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) cassettes in prisons, which have had a very positive impact. Mr Vovk is excited about a plan that, if implemented, will give prisoners across the country regular access to the FCBH program.
Outcast
“In co-operation with Hosanna and the Prison Department of Ukraine, we have developed a project to provide all prisons with audio broadcasting systems, which will be used for playing the audio New Testament,” explains Mr Vovk. “The local prison administration fully and enthusiastically supports our plans. Now we are seeking ways to fund this work.
“Our desire is to continue serving prisoners – one of the
neediest and most outcast groups in the country. We do hope that through
this ministry, God will work changes in their lives and they will turn
to him.” (WR 387/9 - 8/9.04) 