By Glynnis Grainger
GOOD Shepherd Sister Marie O’Malley has been working for marginalisd women in a prison ministry that has been ongoing for 29 years.
Sr O’Malley, a foundation member of the ministry which includes nuns and priests, has been a nun for 59 years since she was professed as a Religious and has spent much of her time as a teacher.
“We developed special skills when we had young women in residence,” she said.
“(Once) we had women and girls in Leederville in residence. We gave that property (Leederville) to the Archdiocese and the school had to move until we got the property at Lathlain – St Clare’s School.
“Three Sisters visit Bandyup Women’s Prison in Midland and Mercy Sister Maura Kelleher visits Boronia Prison in Bentley.”
She began in 1981 – there were no Sisters involved at that time but there really wasn’t anyone in chaplaincy, she remembers.
Sr Barbara Davis, her Superior, recognised there was no visiting at Bandyup – she used to attend any calls, and it took some time for her to get approval from the Archbishop, Launcelot Goody at the time. She managed to get permission to do that and she was called “our Provincial” and had to go back to Melbourne. So Sr O’Malley took over from her.
The main prison was Fremantle, where an Oblate priest was chaplain. Initially, a priest from Guildford used to go there and Jesuit Fr John Harte SJ did occasional visiting. Fr John Tory took over. In about 1984 the men had regular visits; they had a regular Mass every week at Bandyup, which continued through till about 1988.
“All denominations used to come and we made everybody welcome,” Sr O’Malley said. “We had different priests come and say Mass, then Fr Harte used to say Mass at Bandyup every second Sunday, with an Anglican priest saying a service every second Sunday.
“It has developed quite a lot since then, with the Uniting Church starting sometime in the 1990s and then the chaplain came.
“Now we have three churches visiting one day a week with alternative services on a Sunday.
“We offer mainly listening, itself a form of counselling – a somewhat supportive role.
“It is just a matter of greeting women week after week. We try to be there when women come in initially – they are usually a bit dazed (and we) follow them through their sentence.
“We say prayers and sometimes they may talk about a bereavement, or ask for a blessing. Mainly it is just a supportive, encouraging role, enabling them to assess a current situation – to believe in themselves and feel there is always hope.
“We offer spiritual counselling and we pray with them whenever appropriate.
“‘Encouragement and support’ are two words that come back to me.
“It is a very valuable experience. It has been one of the more important purposes of my life as a person and as a Religious. There is a high percentage of indigenous people, which is sad in a way.
“Fr Peter Toohey says Mass once a month. One of us Sisters do a paraliturgy or Communion service: Loreto Sr Marg Finlay, Sister of Our Lady of the Mission Sr Veronica Martin, and Sr Maura Kelleher.
“For us as Good Shepherd Sisters, (the) prison ministry is what we see ourselves to be, particularly working with the marginalised, particularly women.”
Sr Marie is originally from Victoria. The Perth Good Shepherd community has 12 nuns.
The Home of the Good Shepherd provided alternative care to women and girls instead of going to prison. That is why the Sisters came to Australia in the first place, she said.
“We did a lot of youth and family work in a very developed way,” she said. “The Sisters are becoming fewer (and) we are using lay partners working with us and keeping the work going.”
Oblate Fr Dave Shelton, who is heavily involved in prison chaplaincy in the Archdiocese of Perth, told The Record that, “aware of the plurality of Christian and non-Christian Religious represented both in the wider community and the prison environment, we endeavour to work in close cooperation with ministers and religious representatives from other Christian and non-Christian denominations”.
“We are aware of the constrictions of age and social control which exist in prison, while making ourselves available to all who wish to respond and confide in us,” Fr Shelton said.
“As representatives of the Church, we affirm by our words and actions the power of the Spirit, One greater than ourselves, to heal the wounds.
“Relations are the keys to both social and religious wholeness and how we attempt to create and nourish them are crucial to our credibility and effectiveness.
“We walk the walk rather than talk the talk, showing by deed that religion is not about being judges or so heavenly-minded as to be of no earthly use.
“Our clientele live in a real world often filled with a great deal of dysfunctionality.
“It is part of our task to show that Jesus belongs there, to provide first of all friendship and then hopefully, healing and wholeness.”
Fr Shelton said that the work of chaplains is done in the following manner:
– To affirm people in a Christ-like manner and provide them an opportunity to grow in self-knowledge and expand their spiritual awareness.
– To extend this unconditional acceptance of them so that there is an opportunity of healing fractured relationships with family and those affected by their actions.
– Out of acceptance of themselves and of a Power which can achieve more than they would dare to dream, there arises an opportunity to face their own woundedness and the hurt that they have inflicted on others.
– To offer a journey of reconciliation for those who feel shame and alienation from family and mainstream society. This implies we create links whilst they are in prison and ongoing support using Church networks in their initial attempts to integrate in society after their release from prison.
– To offer those spiritual ways of literature and symbols which inmates seek in their ongoing search for wholeness and healing.
– To provide appropriate Church services at regular times for all who wish to attend so that they can express their faith in a communal way, receive affirmation from each other and especially on those occasions when events such as death impact very heavily on them.
– Affirm the role of other professionals such as psychologists, counsellors, medical staff and prison officers in our pastoral care and strive for a harmonious and cooperative relationship with them for the ultimate benefit of the clients. We must walk on a communal search with those people and not short circuit the process of seeking, questioning and eventually finding satisfactory answers to their needs.
– Chaplains are always available for prison staff who require the need for chaplaincy services.