The most difficult category of inmates are life sentenced prisoners.

On March 25, 2015 Fr. Constantin Panteley visited prisoners serving their life sentences in Kyiv Prison. This is probably the most in need of care category of prisoners, who are under the rigorous custody and restricted to limited contacts with the world. It is also the most time-consuming ministry. It's lion's share is spent on listening to people who have rarely someone to talk with. It takes time to the procedure of admission as well. "After listening capacity the most valuable skill for pastor is the ability not to judge, to pray, to preach, to answer difficult questions," - says Fr. Constantine. He happened to meet sentenced to life in prison, carrying a burden of their own offenses, but sometimes people who pay for someone else's guilt. "Life prisoners are the most difficult category of inmates," - he said.

This not an easy matter of lifelong isolation has been touched by the Holy Father, Pope Francis, in the Address to the delegates of the International Association of Penal Law. There are several Ukrainian Catholic priests who have a long experience of ministry for this category of inmates: Fr. Vitaly Kotyk, CSSR, Fr. Paul Hvedoruk, Fr.Taras Myrka, Fr. Andrew Buhvak, Fr. Andrew Lemchuk and Fr. Basil Pantelyuk. There are some priests that just started and have less than one year experience. The whole experience gained by them is very valuable and needs generalization in a handbook for prison pastors. The edition of this book should be prepared by Office of the Patriarchal Curia of the UGCC for Pastoral Care in Penitentiary System of Ukraine this year.

Prior to the undeclared war and the Russian intervention to Ukraine there were 1895 sentenced to life imprisonment. As of March 1, 2015 there are 1630 life convicts in penitentiary institutions on the Ukrainian territory. From 1997, when the moratorium on the death penalty came into force, it took 18 years. We know just single cases of releas of prisoners sentenced to life after admitting of miscarriage of justice in the case of Gennady Kytaynyka and George Vysochynenka, in the case of Pavlicenco, who has been released among other political prisoners was an exemption decision of the Supreme Council. The number of life convicts increases.  There is a growing need of adequate treatment of citizens who are serving those sentences, a need of improvement of legislation concerning the possibility of appealing unjust sentences, of socio-psychological work, of pastoral care and so on. In the Zhytomyr penal institution # 8 with the assistance of the State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine several life convicts can receive high education via extramural faculty of University.  Procedure for admission in maximum security sector is complex. In some institutions, like Castle penal colony,it takes 2 - 4 hours. With the introduction of the law on chaplaincy these difficulties will be over. There is a growing need for appropriate complex training to this work for clergy and laypeople. Today one of the most accessible forms of pastoral care for lifesentenced is a letter correspondence.

Prison Pastoral Care of the UGCC.