Jail Reflections
What are you willing to risk for what you believe? Fr. Steve Kelly, SJ, is a peace activist and a member of the Plowshares movement, a largely Catholic movement of pacifists that protests nuclear weapons by damaging weapons and military property. He has spent at least a decade of his life behind bars for his…
Read MoreHalfway House to Nowhere My past month was filled with a great spiritual struggle. Thank God for the cell phone that has connected me to my little Lectio group, interviews, and the Catholic Worker Zoom round table discussions. Living with others here is also a special time. Sometimes there is a moment when I catch…
Read MoreThe Discernment Of Spirits, In MDC Brooklyn July 8, 2021 Friends, loved ones all- It is impossible to adequately express my gratitude for the hundreds of beautiful letters I’ve received here during the past month… No, really, it’s impossible. You see, my efforts to answer most of them personally have been hamstrung by a frustrating…
Read More(The following letter was written by Mark Colville to his son, on the occasion of being absent for one of the biggest days of his life. Mark shares it with his son’s gracious consent.) June 15, 2021 Isaiah… The past few weeks have been such a whirlwind, that I haven’t taken the time to let…
Read MoreThis is a podcast interview conducted by Alan Winson and Rebecca McKean where Carmen Trotta speaks of his time in Otisville and now under strict home confinement in NYC. Martha tells of her time in Danbury and now the conditions in the halfway house in Manchester, NH where she is currently being held. Mark Colville…
Read MoreThe World of Fascist Franchises Martha Hennessy June 15th, 2021 I am now three weeks into my stay here at the Manchester, New Hampshire halfway house. My home confinement is blocked because I’m labeled a violent recidivist by the federal Bureau of Prisons. This morning I was denied my only walk outdoors because I neglected…
Read MoreMy Dear Friends & Family, As many of you have probably heard, I am OUT of prison and overjoyed for it! That said, I am not, however, OUT & ABOUT. Currently, I’m on a strict home confinement. I cannot leave the apartment I’m in without the permission of a halfway house in the Bronx, under…
Read More“Wars for Freedom and Other Lies” Patrick O’Neill’s Prison Reflections (transcribed and edited by J. Mark Davidson) June 17, 2021 Fully Vaccinated I just received my second and final COVID-19 vaccination shot after being here for five months. So far…no pain…will keep you posted. The lockdown here at Elkton is far beyond medical necessity, and…
Read MoreTrinity Sunday, May 30, 2021 Dear Friends, Apologies for the long delay in responding to your letters. I have been a bit overwhelmed by mail but also by the categorization of mail – a quick answer, a thoughtful read before answering, a thoughtful read of an article, a newsletter, a book. Reading a book before…
Read MoreMartha Hennessy #22560-021 Hampshire House 1490 Elm St. Manchester, N.H. 03101 The Spirit of the Law of Love June 1st, 2021 I am now part of a community, a house where I have neither met nor been introduced to anyone other than the intake lady and my case manager. I am into my 6th day…
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