What began as a mission to strengthen churches in western Madagascar became a powerful reminder that the gospel can transform even the darkest past. Flying with MAF to Maintirano, a local evangelist discovered that restoring former prisoners requires more than prison visits: it takes a united church willing to welcome them.
Story by Antsatiana Gino Randrianasolo
Reaching places in the west of Madagascar can quite reasonably be described as ‘challenging’.
Maintirano is one such place. As the crow flies, it’s only 375 km from the nation’s capital, Antananarivo. But by road, it can take a staggering two to five days of bumping over rough roads, forging paths through deep rainy season mud, and risking travel on routes where highway bandits are a real concern.
Andriamanamiasata Rijanavalona works as an evangelist with Real Mission Movement: A Malagasy Christian mission movement committed to taking the Gospel to remote and underserved communities. Reaching Maintirano by road was simply not a realistic option
Flying with MAF, Rijanavalona and two colleagues arrived in just a few hours, giving them four to five days to encourage churches in one of Madagascar’s most isolated regions.
“We don’t get to the area often enough to work as effectively as we would like,” said Rijanavalona. “MAF flights are already helping us close that gap, and we’re very happy to be able to join more of them.”
The team travelled as part of ‘MAMAFY’, an MAF initiative that enables local pastors and evangelists to reach remote communities by air.
MAF flights are already helping us close that gap
On this visit, Rijanavalona’s team aimed to bring churches together around a serious prison ministry challenge that few were addressing.
Maintirano’s churches were already visiting local prisons to share the gospel. But as Rijanavalona met with church leaders and listened to the community, he realised the greatest need came after prisoners were released.
“The problem isn’t only while they’re inside,” Rijanavalona said. “It’s what happens when they walk out.”
The problem isn’t only while they’re inside
Many former prisoners return to communities where they are rejected and struggle to find acceptance or work. Without support, some end up returning to crime. Rijanavalona believes local churches can help change that by working together and welcoming people as they rebuild their lives.
During the visit, Rijanavalona and his colleague met a man whose story brought that message to life. He had once been one of the dahalo, or ‘violent thieves’ in the local language.
The man explained that even after responding to God’s call and beginning to study to become a pastor, he still wrestled with his past and turned his back on Jesus.
“I went back to the city because I needed more power,” he told them.
He returned to find the traditional practitioner who had once given him spiritual power for his raids. But when he arrived, everything was different. The traditional practitioner had become a follower of Christ and had abandoned his former practices.
I went back to the city because I needed more power
He returned to find the traditional practitioner who had once given him spiritual power for his raids. But when he arrived, everything was different. The traditional practitioner had become a follower of Christ and had abandoned his former practices.
Seeing that transformation changed something in the practitioner, he realised he also could no longer return to the life he had left behind. He turned back to Christ, quit crime and since then he has dedicated his time to study the Word to become a pastor.
“I want to go and share the gospel with others,” he said.
For Rijanavalona, the encounter was a reminder of why the churches in Maintirano need to stand together.
“This is one story of a former dahalo,” he added. “There are many more like him.”