Can prisons be an opportunity for offenders to reintegrate harmoniously into society? The answer to this question may lie in the experiences of those who provide spiritual guidance in prisons.
"During my 20 years of professional guiding, I have seen that the tendency of prisoners who regret the crimes they have committed and turn to Islam has increased in prisons in America," Chaplain Bilgin Erdoğan told Daily Sabah in an exclusive interview.
In cooperation with the Department of Corrections, Erdoğan has been acting as a spiritual advisor to not only preach Islam but also to support the spiritual healing process of inmates at correctional facilities in Huntingdon, a city in the state of Pennsylvania, for over two decades now. His work includes speaking with each inmate, treating them with care, empathizing and understanding their spiritual needs.
"Each person should be read and evaluated like a verse," Erdoğan said, stressing that he strives to highlight the value of each inmate, regardless of their individual beliefs.
Within the cold walls of prisons, feelings of hopelessness and regret often prevail. In this environment, inmates begin to question themselves and search for a new life.
The effectiveness and prevalence of prison chaplaincy services can play a crucial role in measuring the success of offenders' reintegration and return to society.
"In prison, people have time to think and question," Erdoğan said. "They also need renewal and to search for a new identity."
"Since Islam is a universal religion with a strong message, people may prefer it," he said, adding that Muslim identity is growing every day in America, especially in prisons. He said that of the 184 people he witnessed converting to Islam in the past 22 years he has lived in the U.S., 160 of them were inmates who took the oath in prison.
His main starting point is to try and help "rebuild the criminal in order to ultimately erase their crime."
"Obviously, I am not only there to preach Islam to them," Erdoğan said, noting that he helps when there is demand for his services and the process happens "in its natural course."
"Since I’m there with my Muslim identity, people find me when they have questions about Islam," he said. "Therefore, it is possible for me to answer the questions of those interested in Islam and to direct them to proper sources."
One touching incident Erdoğan recounted is the depth of a white American Muslim prisoner's love for the Kaaba, which demonstrates how effective his work can be for the reintegration of inmates into society through spiritual transformation.
"One day, during one of my cell visits, I stopped outside the cell of a white American Muslim prisoner," he recalled.
"We struck up a conversation and he told me he would be released in five years. When I asked him what he planned to do when he got out, he said, 'First thing I will go to the Kaaba.'"
"When I asked him what he would do once he returned from Kaaba, he gave me a touching answer that still makes my heart ache to this day. He, with tears in his eyes, said: 'I can't go there and come back because I have been longing to go there and live there since I became a Muslim in prison.'"
