The Costa Rican priest Luis Carlos Aguilar Badilla, a member of the Center for Prison Reform Ministry and Accompaniment to Persons Deprived of Liberty (Ceprap–Celam), raised the challenge of a Church more present in prisons and committed to the dignity of those who are deprived of liberty.
In conversation with ADN Celam, Aguilar provided an overview of the continental meeting, held in Bogotá from August 31 to September 4, and outlined the challenges and priorities that will shape the future of the Prison Ministry in the region.
In his overview, Aguilar warned about the growing militarization of prisons and described this reality as “a process of militarization that is occurring in the prison centers of Latin America and the Caribbean”.
A reality that challenges the Church
Militarization is not the only challenge, Aguilar hinted, in this regard he warned about “the feminization of prisons”, in light of the increase in women deprived of liberty, especially for drug-related offenses. Another reason for concern is “the high rate of violation of basic human rights in the prison system.”
The penitentiary reality, Aguilar pointed out, challenges the Church to renew its way of accompanying those deprived of liberty and to place their dignity at the center. “It leads us to an important theological reflection of assuming that broken Christ for those broken people,” he stated.
The executive called to consolidate a pastoral care that unites the defense of human rights with listening and accompaniment, incorporating “all those new pedagogies that synodality is gifting us.”
Impacting beyond the prisons
The Church, Aguilar maintained, is called to go beyond accompaniment and to strengthen its social impact. To this end, he proposed training pastoral agents in human rights and equipping them with tools to act in the prisons and in the spaces where public policies are defined.
“This leads us, then, to rethink the leading role we can gradually assume within our local churches,” said Aguilar, who called for strengthening the laity’s commitment and for coordinating experiences and capabilities within a continental network.
This articulation, he noted, should connect the different levels of the Church: “within local churches, within CELAM itself, within the episcopal conferences and in alliance with the Dicastery,” that is, to articulate a networked work.
A pastoral care that reaches the parishes
The challenge, according to Aguilar, is for the Prison Pastoral to involve the communities surrounding the penitentiary centers and strengthen its presence in the parishes. “How do we then reach the parishes, parishes that are near penitentiary centers?” he asked.
The bet resulting from the reflection of the meeting is that the reality of prisons ceases to be a concern of a specific sector and becomes part of the daily mission of the entire Church, involving families, catechists, liturgy, social pastoral care, and Caritas.
The constitution of the Continental Dynamizing Team marks a step towards a more articulated Prison Ministry, with the exchange of experiences, training, and joint actions. For Aguilar, the path involves “building in a circular way and from the Eucharistic banquet,” adding “all the talents and charisms” of the Church.
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