Dealing with Religious Competition

Prison is not a vacuum awaiting the Gospel. It is a marketplace of competing religious claims, and some of those claims have institutional backing, financial resources, and charismatic advocates that dwarf anything the typical evangelical volunteer can muster. In Chilean prisons, the dominant religious force is Pentecostalism, with its emotional worship, tolerance of carnal Christianity, prosperity promises, and organizational structure that extends throughout the prison system. The Roman Catholic Church maintains a nominal presence through chaplains and somewhat rare sacramental visits. Self-appointed prophets and cult-like figures emerge from within the inmate population itself, claiming visions, healings, and divine mandates.

The temptation for the Reformed or evangelical minister is to see these groups as the primary enemy. They are not. The primary enemy is Satan, and he uses all of these groups—as well as secular indifference, despair, drug addiction, and every other weapon at his disposal—to keep men from the truth. Your task is not to win a theological argument with the Pentecostal preacher in módulo 103. Your task is to present Christ clearly and trust the Spirit to open blind eyes.

That said, false teaching must be confronted when it leads men astray. The prosperity gospel, in particular, is a cruel lie when preached to men in prison. It tells them that if they have enough faith, their sentences will be reduced, their families will be restored, their cases will be overturned. When none of these things happen—and for most men, they do not—the result is not merely disappointment but the destruction of faith itself. “If God promises abundance to the faithful,” the inmate reasons, “and I am in prison, then either God has failed or I am unfaithful.” Both conclusions are catastrophic. The minister who teaches sound doctrine—that God is sovereign, that suffering has purpose, that faithfulness is its own reward—arms men against this devastation.

Following Up with Converts

One of the unique challenges of prison ministry is the instability of the community. Men are transferred, released, paroled, or moved to different módulos with little or no warning. The man you are discipling on Monday may be in another facility by Friday. The Bible study group you built over months can be scattered by a single administrative decision.

This reality makes discipleship simultaneously more urgent and more difficult. You cannot assume that you will have years with any individual. You may have weeks. You may have days. Therefore, every interaction must count. Every conversation is potentially the last conversation. Teach as if you will not see this man again, because you may not.

When I taught Ismael, I poured into him as much as I could—not because I knew he or I would be transferred, but because I knew the possibility existed. The common evangelical faith we shared drew us to be closer, trusting friends over months, and that investment bore fruit. But with others, the relationship was cut short by the arbitrary machinery of the penal system, and I had to trust that the seed planted was in God’s hands, not mine. “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6).

For outside volunteers, this means building systems rather than relying on individual relationships alone. Train multiple inmates to lead Bible studies so that the ministry does not depend on your presence. Provide written materials that can survive transfers. Connect inmates with correspondence ministries that can follow them from facility to facility. And above all, pray—because you cannot follow a man to his next cellblock, but the Holy Spirit can.

Action Steps

Live your faith visibly and consistently. Before you open your mouth to evangelize, let your life preach. In prison, actions speak louder than words. Share your food. Keep your word. Treat every man with dignity. This is not a strategy; it is obedience.

Learn to tailor your presentation of the Gospel to the specific needs and background of each individual. A one-size-fits-all approach will not work. Ask questions before you answer them. Listen before you speak.

Prepare yourself to confront false teaching. Study the common heresies you will encounter—prosperity theology, syncretic folk religion, Mormonism, Arminian decisionism—and prepare biblical responses. Be firm but gentle. “The servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient” (2 Timothy 2:24).

Build transferable discipleship systems. Do not make yourself the bottleneck. Train others to teach and lead, whenever possible, as I did with Elvis in Casablanca. Provide materials that can travel with a man when he is transferred. The goal is multiplication, not dependency.

Pray for open doors. The Apostle Paul requested this specifically: “Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ” (Colossians 4:3). He asked this from prison. So should you.

Discussion Questions

Why is personal credibility—living a consistent Christian life—the foundation of effective prison evangelism? How does this principle apply to ministry outside of prison as well?

What are the unique spiritual openings that incarceration creates in a person’s heart? How can a minister recognize and respond to these openings without manipulating a vulnerable person?

How should a prison minister handle the tension between maintaining doctrinal convictions and working alongside Christians from different theological traditions? Is cooperation possible without compromise?

What practical systems can a church or ministry organization put in place to maintain discipleship relationships when inmates are transferred? How can technology (where permitted) supplement in-person ministry? Should we not promote the use of cell phones to connect prisoners with outside online services and other ministries during the evening hours after lockup?