SOUTHERN PROVINCE

MUHANGA — Pastor Laurien Nsengiyumva, of the Association des Eglises de Pentecôte du Rwanda (ADEPR) has pledged to increase evangelical works in prisons aimed at transforming the lives of inmates. He said this last Sunday after baptizing 58 inmates at Gitarama prison.

Nsengiyumva said, "Baptism is a sign of transformation from sin to righteousness. All the newly baptized ADEPR Christian inmates will spearhead spiritual conversion among others so as to have a crime-free society.”

After the baptism ceremony, the newly baptized inmates joined the visiting ADEPR La Charite choir in songs of praise and worship- during which over 200 inmates declared that they had received salvation.

Eduard Serujendo, a self-confessed Genocide convict- who participated in the killings at Nyange Catholic Church said, "It was not easy to confess the killings until I met Christ and salvation has given me a second chance to live and serve my punishment with conviction.”

Chantal Uwantege, the director of Gitarama prison, implored the new coverts to utilise time in prison to read the Bible, saying it would guide them to confess their crimes, seek repentance and forgiveness.

She also asserted that evangelical outreach programmes in prisons would scale down criminal tendencies, and reform the attitude of inmates.

The Gideon International Bible Society also pledged to donate New Testament Bibles to all the inmates in a bid to spread the gospel of Christ to all.

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