 Br. MikeO'Grady, S.J., Prisoner of Conscience |
School of the Americas |
Letter from Mike O'Grady to Mother of Christ Parish Community
December 18, 2003
Dear Mary,
Thank you for your beautiful card & consoling words. It is a sustaining element of our time inside that friends & family are praying and supporting us.
Jail time is not easy - that we all know! I'm slowly settling into the routine of this environment. It has been difficult and challenging. At the depths of my being, however, I know I am sustained, protected, and encouraged by my friend Jesus.
I am in a maximum lockdown unit that is overcrowded, noisy, volatile, and dangerous. I am one of a handful of white men in a predominantly black & low-income cell block. There is a mixture of detoxing addicts, drug arrestees, and probation violators. I have made fellowship with a small group of fellows who are in for long stretches and who have interest in learning about the Scriptures. Some of these guys are facing state time. They're drawing deep inside to find sustenance & consolation.
This place seems utterly appropriate from which to apprehend the dark graces of Advent. In our wounded, sinful, and broken world, a stint in jail in the face of the shallow come-ons to buy & consume ourselves into a Merry Christmas helps to ground me in the true meaning of Christ's humble & scandalous entry into our world.
Know of my prayers for everyone in our faith community at Mother of Christ. I miss you all and hope you will consider praying for ALL prisoners and ALL working for a peaceful and just world, including our brothers & sisters in harm's way overseas & in Cincinnati.
In prayer and solidarity,
Br. Mike
[Editor's Note: Mike sent this letter to Sr. Mary Macke, pastoral associate at Mother of Christ parish in Cincinnati where Mike worships. He requested that she read this at the Sunday liturgy.]
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