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Vineland, Ont.
Convicted criminal finds forgiveness


Bryon Ballantyne was a young man with a troubled childhood and a long criminal record. At age 20, he had 55 criminal convictions, including possession of marijuana, two counts of possessing stolen licence plates, breaking and entering and uttering a forged document. The justice system was ready to put him away forever. But in September 2000 things began to change for him.

Ballantyne was planning to break into a basement window of Vineland (Ont.) Mennonite Brethren Church when he stopped himself. He realized this was God’s house. “I had a change of heart,” he said.

He was arrested and pleaded guilty to seven different charges including the attempted break-in at the Vineland church. He was sentenced to nine months in prison. During this time, he wrote a letter of apology to the church. The congregation forgave him, and various members promised to support him after he got out.

Henry Wiebe, who was pastoring the Vineland church at the time, visited Ballantyne in prison and testified in court on his behalf. “I see a lot of potential in him,” said Wiebe, even though others were skeptical, including the judge. “It seems to me that God has His hand on this guy, and I don’t get that feeling from everyone.”

At the sentencing, the judge warned him this would be his last chance. “Should he re-offend, he is knocking on the penitentiary door where he can be placed with other hardened criminals like himself,” the judge said.

But the judge’s words didn’t worry Ballantyne. “It’s a thing of the past. I don’t plan on going back,” he said.

Ballantyne was abused and neglected by his parents and suffered sexual abuse from a babysitter. Wiebe told Ballantyne that despite “a very poor concept of what a father is, because he abandoned you when you were four years old, you have a heavenly Father. Why don’t you try Him?”

Wiebe prayed with him. Ballantyne began taking a Bible correspondence course. After his time in prison, Wiebe arranged for a job for him and got up at five o’clock every morning the first week to drive him to his new job.

“I know there will be times when he will disappoint me,” said Wiebe. “But I have to be very careful I don’t give the impression I am giving up on him, because so many people have given up on him in his life.”

Ballantyne, who received most of his high school education behind bars, said he plans to go to college, with the goal of studying chiropractic therapy. “I’m just going to take it one step at a time,” he said.

 – adapted from reports in The St. Catharines Standard and The Tribune. Reprinted with permission.

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Last modified March 28, 2002.

© 2002 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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