Happy New Year! We wanted to share with you part of a letter we received from a prisoner. Before he died, Father Richard Thomas, S.J. had visited this man in jail bringing him Holy Communion and a printed Bible study which greatly consoled and encouraged him. The prisoner was accused of capital murder, and after a long delay, was finally going to trial. Here is what this man wrote:
“The state was seeking the death penalty against me for a crime I did not commit…we were supposed to begin picking the jury for my trial. [A friend of the family’s] asked me to pray and ask Father Thomas to intercede for me asking for a miracle. [That friend] …was outside the courtroom with my family praying and asking Father Thomas to intercede for me. Inside the courtroom I was doing the same. The bailiff closed the door and all of a sudden a great peace came about me. All of a sudden I wasn’t scared anymore.
“Right before we were supposed to begin interviewing our first potential juror, the two assistant DAs handling my case came in and asked the judge for a thirty-minute continuance. She (the judge) asked why. And the ADAs answered, “Because we might not be seeking the death penalty after all.” The judge…asked my attorneys to go with them and said, “Well this is certainly very good news.”
“Forty-five minutes later my attorneys and the ADAs came back into our courtroom. We went on the record and they said that the state is no longer seeking the death penalty in my case. My family and friends were waiting outside and as soon as they were told the great news began to thank God. I was with such peace that when this happened, I was numb. I could not feel anything…The miracle we asked for came true….
“As I said earlier, the day I met Father Thomas he left an everlasting impression on me. There is no doubt in my mind that this miracle was made possible because of Father Thomas. Now [when we go to trial] I expect another miracle and I know Father Thomas will be there with me, thank God!!”
God bless you!