3 September 2010, 12:45 | Religion and society |  | 0 |   | Code for Blog |  | 

An exposition of works of decorative and applied art by prisoners was opened on 3 September in the museum of the Sambir-Drohobych Eparchy in Truskavets. Part of the works will be exhibited in the Palace of Art in Drohobych. The exhibition "Transformation by God's Love" is conducted by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) jointly with the Berlin Gallery of MAGNIFICAT, the Institute of Social Strategy and the "Art and Prison" society with the assistance of the State Criminal-Ecxecutive Service of Ukraine.

The director of the exhibition, Taras Shafran, told RISU that the project aims to promote understanding between the society and imprisoned people through art and to familiarize the wide circles of public with steps of reformation of the penitentiary system in the context of the prison pastoral ministry of the Church. With the assistance of the State Criminal-Executive Service of Ukraine, 148 works of 142 authors were passed from penitentiary institutions of all regions of Ukraine. The exhibition was already shown in Kyiv, Donetsk, Chernihiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk.

The most important objective of the pastoral ministry in prisons is reviving people who committed crimes and are in conflict with the law and society. A special committee selected the best works. Thanks to art, the criminals have a right to feel the spiritual connection with the society and to be revived spiritually," stressed a pastoral advisor of the penitentiary system of Ukraine, a deacon of UGCC, Kostiantyn Pantelei.

The head of UGCC, Patriarch Lubomyr, also called Ukrainians to support convicted fellow citizens in their aspiration for the light. "The pictures by the convicts represent their vision of the world: this shows that their souls are inclined to light, that they feel human dignity. We should support our citizens in that. Let us try, because they can behind bars and barbed wire create something wonderful, make adequate steps towards their neighbors in order to transform the life and world with the love of the heart and richness of the soul," stressed the patriarch as he described the exhibition.