Australian SANDRA BARKER talks about her role serving as a prison chaplain in Queensland…
My name is Sandra Barker and I will be 76-years-old this year.
My aim in being a prison chaplain is to provide pastoral care for women in the prison system and also, if asked, to pray and answer any questions they ask me. I am there to give comfort and a listening ear to their situation, to form a relationship with them, and to give them hope for a better future when they are released.
Sandra Barker. PICTURE: Supplied.
“My job is to bring comfort, hope and to love these sisters without any expectations from them, to be authentic in all I say and do – then I know I am doing what God has asked of me… Has my faith been impacted? Yes, it has. I hope I am more understanding and tolerant of others and their situations.”
My role as a prison chaplain involves going into the secure sections of the prison and meeting with the women there, mainly to find out how their week has been and to give them devotional books if they want one. Often I am asked for prayer because some of them have a meeting or a video link with their solicitor to find out how long they are going to be in jail or to get parole. This time is quite stressing for them.
I go to the detention unit, as some of the women are put there for time out and for their safety, and I also visit the medical centre to see if I am needed to have a talk with the person there. I also do a Sunday church session once a month which is a great time, the women come and we enjoy our time together. Other denominations also go in so that each Sunday someone is taking a service for the women.
When I go into the prison I take with me postcards with Bible verses on a beautiful printed background and hand them out to the women, they love these and put them up in their rooms or send them on to their children. This is just a little extra for them. I have been blessed with these by the mission group in my church.
I have been involved with prison ministry with ‘Inside Out Prison Chaplaincy’ in Queensland, which is operated by Queensland Baptists outreach organisation Carinity, since December, 2018, and am loving every minute of it. It started with a video I saw in my church of a man who was the chaplain in the men’s prison saying that there was a need for more women to be involved in the women’s section of the correctional centre. That was the moment I decided to apply to be a chaplain. I then prayed about this and felt I needed to do a pastoral care course which I did at the Mater Private Hospital.
I really felt that God was taking me on a wonderful journey to be a light in the darkness in prisons. When I was asked about Jesus I would tell the inmates [about Him]; we have some good prayer times there. I was also involved in New South Wales prisons; this was different as we went into the prison as a group and not the mainstream.
I find my role can be quite challenging in that I really want to relate to the women who are incarcerated. The stories that are told to me are extremely sad and, although I am well aware that I cannot fix these problems, I need to be there to hear what they are telling me and empathise; to be there in the moment and listen and, to know that ultimately God is in control of the situation and I am just His servant. There are many women there who are Christian and who take on Bible studies which are always a great help to them. Sometimes they like to discuss this with me, and they wait and look forward to the next issue.
I try really hard not to judge these women. I have no idea what went on in their lives to bring them to where they are now; the hardship, loneliness and extenuating circumstances which brought them to jail are just a few of the reasons. My job is to bring comfort, hope and to love these sisters without any expectations from them, to be authentic in all I say and do – then I know I am doing what God has asked of me. “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 15: 12). Has my faith been impacted? Yes, it has. I hope I am more understanding and tolerant of others and their situations.
This article has been edited for clarity.
To give to Carinity’s Chaplain’s Appeal, head to https://carinity.org.au/campaign/chaplains-appeal-2020/.
