With the help of your prayers, my summer vacation is off to a beautiful start as I prepare to speak about healing sexual wounds with the help of the saints to a new audience: women in jail. Here's a quick rundown of all the latest news about my apostolate, studies, and health:
- This month, I am appearing on six different episodes of EWTN TV programs, speaking on all of them about My Peace I Give You. On June 4—tomorrow, as I write—Colleen Carroll Campbell's interview with me for "Faith and Culture" will be rerun (6 p.m. EDT), and from June 17 through June 21, I will appear every day on Johnnette Benkovic's "Women of Grace" (11 a.m. EDT, repeats at 11:30 a.m.). Check your local listings for times and stations via EWTN.com, where you can also watch the shows via livestream.
I am grateful to Colleen and Johnnette for granting me time on their shows to reach out to viewers who have been affected by childhood sexual abuse or trauma. Although the topic of abuse comes up on the news, very few television hosts on any network devote any time to speaking about how victims may find healing. Please pray that viewers may come to know that all their sufferings have profound meaning in light of the glorified wounds of our crucified and resurrected Lord.
This month will also see me speak in Cherry Hill, N.J. and on Sean Herriott's Relevant Radio program "Morning Air." For information on those and other upcoming appearances, see my tour dates.
- I wrote to you earlier that I feel called to share the message of My Peace I Give You with prisoners. That dream is now approaching fulfillment, as Father Matthew Palkowski, O.F.M. Cap., who is the chaplain for Catholic inmates of the Philadelphia jails, has invited me to address the women of the Riverside Correctional Facility on June 21. Please pray for me and for the inmates, so many of whom have suffered childhood abuse or trauma.
Father Palkowski has told me that he would like to have copies of My Peace I Give You to distribute to the women under his pastoral care, who number more than one thousand at any given time. If you would like to help, you may do so by ordering books for inmates through the sales department at Ave Maria Press, (800) 282-1865, ext. 1 (or click here to see their fax and e-mail address). Just tell the salespeople that you would like to donate the books to Father Palkowski in the Philadelphia prison chaplaincy; they have his mailing address.
I am also grateful for donations to support my making mission trips to speak to inmates or other needy populations (e.g. unwed mothers, or people who are in recovery). If you would like to donate via PayPal, click here. Donations made to my PayPal account will be set aside for travel expenses for future mission trips, unless otherwise specified. I do also have personal expenses coming up for which I will need assistance, such as new contact lenses in the wake of my upcoming eye surgery (more on that below). If you would like your donation to go towards those expenses, please note that in the message field on the PayPal screen, or let me know by e-mail. - Last month, thanks be to God, I received my S.T.B. degree, a graduate degree in theology granted under the authority of the Holy See, from the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception. The degree is a prerequisite for entering studies for a pontifical licentiate (for which I will return to school in the fall) and doctorate. I wrote to you earlier that I hope to enter into a state of lay consecration. Careerwise, I would like to teach on the university level. Having a pontifical degree makes me feel closer to these goals of teaching the faith and living the mystery of spiritual motherhood in the heart of the Church.
- Finally, I would like to ask your prayers for my eye surgery, which will take place this Wednesday, June 5, at an outpatient facility. I will be put under general anesthesia as the surgeon adjusts the muscles of both my eyes, to correct my strabismic amblyopia (a form of lazy eye). It is my fourth such operation (the last one was in 2000). My hope is that it will improve my peripheral vision, as my Guardian Angel has been working overtime to keep me from bumping into things. [UPDATE, 6/14/13: The operation went smoothly, and I am healing well, thank God. Soon, when the soreness dissipates, I hope to find that I am seeing better. Even now, my eyes look straight. Thanks so much for your prayers!]
