March 24, 2015 Tuesday: Week 7 Divine Mercy - I was in prison and you visited me
3-24-15 Wk7 Divine Mercy - I was in prison and you visited me
You don’t have to raise your hands on this question. Has anybody here been to prison before? Did you enjoy your stay there? Recently I visited a woman who was in prison for possession of an illegal substance. She explained to me that she was actually glad she was in prison, or otherwise she would have destroyed herself. She said that she attended so many drug rehabs that she was knowledgeable enough to teach the course. She said she had a good self-knowledge of her weaknesses and tendencies, but still that didn’t prevent her from falling back to her addiction.
A prison ministry volunteer shared this experience: He was giving a talk to a roomful of prisoners who just wanted to get out of their cell for an hour. They appeared not at all interested in what he had to say. A scene from the movie, “The Passion of Christ” came to his mind where Blessed Mother was looking for her son in Caiaphas’ dungeon. Then he said, “Just as Mary, the mother of Jesus wanted to be there for her Son in that dark prison, so also, Mary your mother wants to be here for you. We’ve come because we believe Mary sent us to you, her beloved sons. She hasn’t forgotten you. She loves you, and she wants to come into this prison. She wants to heal your wounds and be a mother to you now. You just have to let her in. You just have to open up your hearts and let her come in.”
Everyone can’t do direct prison ministry like the volunteer I just mentioned. If you can’t, there is still something you can do to visit those in prison. You can visit them with your prayers. Those in prison are often forgotten and suffer so many things. There is so much brokenness and humiliation in prison, and therefore, inmates are among those who are most deserving of the Lord’s mercy. In justice, they have to pay the price for their crimes and do their time, but the Lord loves them most especially. For as Jesus tells us through St. Faustina, “The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy.” At this mass, can you offer your prayer for one prisoner whom you do not know so that they may experience God’s mercy?
You don’t have to raise your hands on this question. Has anybody here been to prison before? Did you enjoy your stay there? Recently I visited a woman who was in prison for possession of an illegal substance. She explained to me that she was actually glad she was in prison, or otherwise she would have destroyed herself. She said that she attended so many drug rehabs that she was knowledgeable enough to teach the course. She said she had a good self-knowledge of her weaknesses and tendencies, but still that didn’t prevent her from falling back to her addiction.
A prison ministry volunteer shared this experience: He was giving a talk to a roomful of prisoners who just wanted to get out of their cell for an hour. They appeared not at all interested in what he had to say. A scene from the movie, “The Passion of Christ” came to his mind where Blessed Mother was looking for her son in Caiaphas’ dungeon. Then he said, “Just as Mary, the mother of Jesus wanted to be there for her Son in that dark prison, so also, Mary your mother wants to be here for you. We’ve come because we believe Mary sent us to you, her beloved sons. She hasn’t forgotten you. She loves you, and she wants to come into this prison. She wants to heal your wounds and be a mother to you now. You just have to let her in. You just have to open up your hearts and let her come in.”
Everyone can’t do direct prison ministry like the volunteer I just mentioned. If you can’t, there is still something you can do to visit those in prison. You can visit them with your prayers. Those in prison are often forgotten and suffer so many things. There is so much brokenness and humiliation in prison, and therefore, inmates are among those who are most deserving of the Lord’s mercy. In justice, they have to pay the price for their crimes and do their time, but the Lord loves them most especially. For as Jesus tells us through St. Faustina, “The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy.” At this mass, can you offer your prayer for one prisoner whom you do not know so that they may experience God’s mercy?
