wfn.org | Russian Prison Church

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS 97" by SUSAN PEEK on April 15, 1997 at 14:24
Eastern, about DAILY NEWS RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (426
notes).

Note 425 by UMNS on Oct. 31, 1997 at 16:06 Eastern (3426 characters).

CONTACT: Linda Bloom						 613(10-21-71B){425}
		New York (212) 870-3803				  Oct. 31, 1997

United Methodists, prison officials
create unique ministry in Russia

			by United Methodist News Service

	Through a unique partnership with prison officials, a United Methodist
congregation in Ekaterinburg, Russia, actually is worshipping in a structure
attached to a wall of Prison No. 2 there.
	Topped with barbed wire on the outside and fortified with a cross on the
inside, it was constructed by inmates with donated materials. The new building
is used for Sunday services of the Return to Christ United Methodist Church
and for other social and educational programs involving the 3,000 prisoners
and their families.
	According to the Rev. W. James White, a United Methodist Board of Global
Ministries executive who attended the Oct. 26 dedication program, the facility
is an expansion of work directed by the Rev. Elena Stepanova and Elena
Tischenko.
	"These two women have organized a United Methodist congregation around that
prison and are in a shared ministry with prison authorities," he explained.
	The Board of Global Ministries has assisted through contributions of blankets
and medicines. Return to Christ Church also has a partnership with Pulaski
Heights United Methodist Church and the Little Rock (Ark.) District of the
United Methodist Little Rock Annual (regional) Conference. Pulaski church and
the district have sponsored visitations and raised money for building
materials.
	The Rev. Jeanie Burton, Little Rock district superintendent, visited the
prison for the first time during the dedication ceremonies. She found the
situation there "absolutely unique" and believes some aspects of their
programs could serve as a model for churches in the United States.
	Return to Christ's congregation, she said, has focused on prison ministries
since its beginning. "They look at themselves as being a congregation in two
parts," she added, with one part being free and one being imprisoned.
	The attitude of prison staff has been key. "It is a compassionate kind of
administration that really tries to focus on rehabilitation and a future for
these men," Burton said.
	According to White, the warden of Prison No. 2 -- who spoke with United
Methodist Bishop Ruediger Minor during the dedication -- "is very much
interested in being on the cutting edge of social rehabilitation with
prisoners."
	He said the warden even referred to the church's work and the prison
officials' work as being the same -- "the saving of souls."
	Minor called the new structure a visible symbol of the shared ministry
between the two groups.
	Because the building is technically outside the prison walls, prisoners
cannot participate in Sunday worship. So the congregation continues to conduct
Saturday worship services inside the prison itself, which are broadcast by its
cable television network.
	"The prisoners, "come to worship, I think, with a real hunger for learning
about the faith," according to Burton.
	Often, inmates come forward to be baptized during these services. "The
baptisms are not taking place in a vacuum," White noted. "There's preparation
through Bible study and follow-up."
	Stepanova and Tischenko also have assisted inmates of other faiths, White
said, arranging for a Russian Orthodox church to be built inside the prison
and space to be set aside for Muslim services.
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