WYD confessionals built by "capable men”
When one speaks of World Youth Day (WYD), the first things that spring to mind are the happy images of pilgrims and volunteers living the best week of their lives in communion and sharing with one another. But it is in an apparently calm environment, surrounded by barbed wire and guards under constant surveillance, that evangelization is experienced in a unique way. Here, in the prisons of Paços de Ferreira, Oporto and Coimbra, the confessionals of WYD Lisbon 2023 are born.
Once the security barriers are passed and the doors of the prison of Paços de Ferreira are opened, it is in the carpentry wing that the work and magic happen. We walk through a corridor with the confessional benches already finished and packed and enter the room where wood is still being cut and sanded.
With a team of six or seven inmates, the 50 confessionals have been built and are almost all ready. Among piled up wood and tools operating, it is in this room that the structures are measured, cut, sanded, and assembled. The visit serves mostly for the World Youth Day Pastoral team to follow the work and clarify any questions that may arise.
In the next room, we find Fernando Pinto Correia painting the details of the rosary that give color to the outside of the confessionals. Fernando is one of the inmates entirely dedicated to this project. "Here, I can unwind," he explains. Despite his apparent happiness with the visit, Fernando Correia does not forget what happened, and revealed to us that "outside, this is what I used to do since I was a child" and, therefore, "working, time goes by easier ".
©Ricardo Perna / WYD Lisbon 2023
I like working here, I am busy, and a time goes by faster. I come here and learn a bit more.
Without reservation, this inmate confessed that "I have always been a catholic" and that, just like "outside", "here I also attend mass". When asked about the presence of Pope Francis in Portugal, Fernando believes that "it will be good for us, he will help us a bit more".
Although everything is running "at cruising speed", José António da Silveira, director of the Paços de Ferreira Prison, explained that "the process has had some setbacks", much due to the rotation of team members, as "some have been leaving, fortunately. They were released", which always requires a constant readaptation.
However, and with the construction process almost finished, José highlights the importance of this type of project, especially this one, "with a global dimension", which also brings prison establishments closer to the outside world. "It is a way for us to show the community, society, that good things are done here", he highlights.
Normally, when people who do not know the reality of a prison are talking about it, they always think of negative things. But no, incredibly good things are done here, we have very capable men, very competent men, people who are very eager to serve their time and not return here.
On the way to Oporto, the testimonies heard, and the feelings observed within those walls remain in our memory. When we reach another building, less isolated but with the same barbed wire, we are directed to a garage in the courtyard, where all the already cut and painted wood is piled up, which will give "life" to the confessionals of WYD Lisbon 2023.
Proudly, the inmates show us a plate, made with the wood from the confessionals, which is being placed on all the benches made by the Prison Facility of Oporto, leaving the mark of the six inmates who worked on this project.
©Carlos Farinha / WYD Lisbon 2023
From here, passing through a corridor between a curious and a few suspicious "good morning", we entered the room where the wood is sanded and varnished, where we met five inmates, all divided by tasks.
Manuel Dias is the inmate was responsible for varnishing the wood. Inside his "cubicle" only the benches he has just varnished, his varnishing gun and the music that accompanies him during the work fit. According to him, "it is the second layer that we are applying now". Manuel also helps in the remaining final additions, such as sanding the wooden pieces.
Regarding the process of building the confessionals, Manuel believes that "it has been going well", adding immediately afterwards that "I kind of like doing this". During the conversation, he revealed that what he is doing now was "the art" he used to do "outside " and that "it will be good" for young people from all over the world to see his work at WYD Lisbon 2023. However, he confessed that "I regret I won’t be there to see it ".
Building the confessionals is something new. I did my best to get the best possible result
Paulo Teixeira, or "Mr. Teixeira", as he is known in the prison, is the one who supervises the daily work and was the one who chose the six inmates working in the construction of the confessionals for WYD Lisbon 2023. With only the painting still to be done, Paulo reveals that this is "a different challenge", because "for us, as an establishment, it is a bit complicated to maintain or to have deadlines to meet", given the life and dynamics of a prison.
In Oporto, contrary to Paços de Ferreira, the team did not change during the process. Paulo Teixeira explained that "they accepted [the project] very well and are enthusiastic", assuming only the mission of "putting them to work and encouraging them to do the work".
©Ricardo Perna / WYD Lisbon 2023
In addition to the confessionals requested by the WYD Lisbon 2023 Foundation, the Prison Facility of Oporto made an additional one that will stay there and serve as a confessional for all inmates who wish to confess during their period of incarceration.
From Oporto, we followed to Coimbra, where we were directed to a kind of workshop. We walked down a narrow corridor until we reached the center of a dome where the confessional benches were already packed. All around were the various "workshops" and occupations of the Coimbra Prison inmates, among paintings, tiles, bicycles, and motorbikes made of wood.
We followed then to the real workshop, where the radio is part of the working tools. On one side was a confessional set up for "exhibition", while on the other side were all the confessionals ready to go to Lisbon, after two months' work by five inmates.
Pedro Silva was one of the "boys" who worked on the construction of the confessionals, and he sees painting as "a relief for stress and in everyday life".
For me, I am proud to be able to participate in this project and feel that part of me is with World Youth Day.
With his release scheduled for June 10, Pedro wants to be at WYD Lisbon 2023. When asked about his desire to participate in the meeting, Pedro Silva promptly replies: "I spoke to Mr. Nelson, about 10 days ago, saying that I would like to participate in WYD".
Pedro Silva also left a message to the young people, assuring them that "what they cannot lose is love, hope and freedom". As for the contact of young people from all over the world with the confessionals, Pedro hopes "that they enjoy, that they admire the work that has been done" and stresses that " on my part, I invested a lot of commitment, love and dedication ".
Paulo Domingues, who accompanied the construction of the confessionals and also the visit, explained that the full process "was fantastic" and that this initiative "was as if society had embraced them" and a way of "being closer to them", he referred.
©Ricardo Perna / WYD Lisbon 2023
Our inmates adhered in a way that surprised us a lot. We did not expect it, we knew they were good, but not that good. And they joined the project with an open heart.
In all the prisons we visited, it is the inmates who restore the community goods "of the house", also accepting various projects and jobs that allow them to get some extra money and occupy their time. The confessionals for WYD Lisbon 2023 are also a service paid to the inmates and that, in some way, contribute to their reintegration into society.
