The next visit of Leo XIV to Brians 1 prison, scheduled for June 10 during his apostolic journey to Spain, is shaping up to be one of the symbolic events on the Pontiff’s agenda in Catalonia. This is how Mercedarian Jesús Bel, chaplain of the penitentiary center for four decades, interprets it, considering that the Pope has chosen to focus on those who live apart and forgotten by much of society.
“It is a gesture that vividly reminds me of the Good Samaritan: in the midst of a very tight and important schedule between Barcelona and Montserrat, the Pope deviates from his path to approach those on the roadside, the excluded,” Bel said in an interview given to Revista Ecclesia.
A visit loaded with symbolism
Brians 1, located in Sant Esteve Sesrovires, currently houses about 1,100 inmates and functions primarily as a pretrial detention center. Several members of the Prison Pastoral Ministry work there on a stable basis, including priests responsible for attending to both Brians 1 and Brians 2, one of the largest prison complexes in Catalonia.
The priest considers that Leo XIV’s decision to visit this place also represents an explicit recognition of the silent work the Church has carried out for centuries inside prisons.
“We see this visit as a huge endorsement of a work the Church has been doing for centuries, often invisibly,” he explained.
“The prison functions as just another parish”
During the interview, Bel defended that the Church’s presence in prison cannot be limited solely to the celebration of sacraments, but involves personal accompaniment, listening, and material help to people who in many cases arrive “with nothing but the clothes on their backs.”
“The prison functions as just another parish,” the chaplain affirmed, insisting that the inmates “are children of God and deserve to be cared for with the same dignity as any other faithful.”
The Prison Pastoral Ministry at Brians organizes liturgical celebrations, catechesis, and spiritual accompaniment, in addition to collaborating with Caritas to provide clothing and basic help to inmates without resources or family support.
Mercy and redemption in the face of the throwaway culture
Jesús Bel described the prison as a place marked by suffering, anxiety, and personal breakdown, but also as a space where many people ultimately rediscover themselves and God.
“I have seen deep conversions,” the priest assured, explaining that daily contact with pain and fragility leads many inmates to reconsider their lives.
The religious also insisted that the Church does not justify crime, but seeks to approach the individual and accompany them on a path of reconciliation and change.
“Forgiveness is God’s response to our offenses,” he said.
Leo XIV strengthens the social profile of his trip to Spain
The inclusion of a prison in the papal itinerary confirms the strong social and peripheral component of Leo XIV’s trip to Spain, and for the chaplain of Brians 1, the message the inmates will receive with this visit is clear: “The Pope has seen them and carries them in his heart.”
Bel also said that many inmates have received the news of the visit with emotion and trusts that the encounter will leave a mark on both prisoners and staff and volunteers.
“I am convinced that his message will give us all encouragement to continue forward with hope,” he concluded.