The verses that stand out for me are from Luke

My Bible: reasons to believe in the power of the Bible

‘The verses that stand out for me are from Luke 23.39-43. Jesus is being crucified and on his right hand is a thief and on his left hand is a thief. They are often called the good thief and the bad thief.

The good thief says to Jesus, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom”. Jesus replies, “This day you will be with me in paradise.” That’s an extremely powerful message.

I became Chief Probation Officer in Hampshire in 1985. I spent my life dealing with those who are on the margins of acceptability: burglars, paedophiles, murderers, people who have committed petty crime.

I found it a rich irony that the only person in the religious world who is granted a place in heaven, by Jesus, is a thief. This tells me that we are all redeemable, no matter how bad the crime and how bad the consequences.

The message to me from this is that you never give up on anyone. It doesn’t mean that everyone is treatable or immediately redeemable. There are dangerous personalities around. There are some people who need to be detained. We should feel secure from them. But some long-term prisoners do improve. I have known long-term prisoners do extremely well.’

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