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Chrissy started
the outreaches to various jails within days of her arrival in
the Philippines in 1983 and has continued this aspect of the
ministry to this day. Chrissy regularly visited the local jails
to preach and teach and disciple inmates and also travelled
around the Philippines evangelising the jails and prisons. As
POC grew, the jail ministry became more concentrated within
Chrissy's locality. Iba, Subic, 164.
Iba
The
opening at Iba came about when Chrissy helped a team of Bible
school students to establish an outreach. Unfortunately, the
students lost interest; and Chrissy and Redemia found themselves
going on their own. Since then, Iba has become a focus of the
POC jail / prison ministry.
Although Iba Jail
was built to accommodate around 50 inmates, there are currently
in excess of 140, causing severe overcrowding problems. Conditions
are very poor - there are 2 small toilets, and 4 taps to be
shared by all. There are no beds, they sleep on re-cycled cardboard
boxes or mats for the wealthier inmates.
After the rape
and murder of an Australian missionary and her team in Davao
City Jail, Iba jail closed its doors to all missionaries and
ministries with the exception of Chrissy and the POC ministry
team. The jail's common room has been turned into a chapel.
The inmates have painted scriptures on the walls, and have made
their own benches and pulpit.
Many have been
led to Christ over the years, and the inmates enthusiastically
participate in the services - sharing testomonies and memory
verses as well as preaching and singing.
San Fernando
During the erruption
of Mt. Pinatubo, 164 jail and Subic were utterly destroyed.
The inmates from both were transferred to various other jails.
It was around that time that POC started ministering in San
Fernando jail.
San Fernando suffered
greatly from the aftermath of the erruption of Pinatubo. The
inmates spent 6 months in 3 feet of stagnant water. The wealthier
inmates paid the others to give them piggy-backs as the conditions
caused terrible skin disease and other sicknesses.
The situation
hindered the ministry in as much as outreach services could
not be held. Instead the team continued with their visits in
order to provide moral, prayer, and medical support.
Unlike Iba, San
Fernando jail is very spacious - there is a courtyard for basketball
and other recreation. This is where POC hold their services.
Again the ministry
has seen many come to Christ as a result of these visits. 1
of those reached is the warden, who was an alcoholic and on
his death bed when Christ saved and healed him. He now openly
supports and attends POC services whenever possible. He has
also been used to lead inmates to Christ.
Muntinlupa
In every
town and city of The Philippines there are jails where inmates
are detained on remand for anything up to 10 years. Upon receiving
their sentence, the inmates are transferred to penal colonies
- the main one being Muntinlupa. There
can be anything between 17 000 and 22 000 inmates at one time
spread between its minimum, medium, and maximum security facilities.
With the endeavour
of visiting inmates transferred from Iba and San Fernando, Chrissy
sought the help of "Mommie" Olga (a long-term missionary
to Muntinlupa). She gave Chrissy the opportunity to go into
the prison herself during the 80s. Having been made an RVO (Religious
Volunteer Officer), Chrissy has the privilege of being able
to take a team of up to 15 people on unlimited visits to prisons.
Conditions
here are similar to the other jails even though it is a much
bigger complex (almost the size of a small town).
On their monthly
visits, the POC ministry team go into the medium security prison
and hold services in the drug rehabilitation building. From
there the team has the privilege of being the only ministry
team to enter solitary confinement (where on one visit all of
the 17 detainees responded to the gospel). The team also takes
time to fellowship with individuals, and help in small ways
(such as providing toiletries and coffee; and posting mail).
The afternoons
are spent on death row sharing with a group of inmates that
have named themselves "Life Row Christian Fellowship".
POC have been able to bring the hope of Christ into this otherwise
hopeless situation, and has seen radical changes in the lives
of many. The church members run things themselves - they have
a powerful worship team and are assisted by prisoners from other
cellblocks who have been through Bible school on the prison
campus and have become ordained ministers.
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