Anyone who gets to know Russ as I have knows that he is an innocent man unjustly convicted.
Just as God has placed Russ in my path by my published article in The Wanderer, God has placed him now in your path with this article. Please allow me to share Russ' present, vital and urgent need. He has overcome normally insurmountable legal process obstacles in his legal proceedings by which he can overcome his coerced and unjust conviction. Anyone who gets to know Russ as I have knows that he is an innocent man unjustly convicted.
Only God could bring together a Catholic in northern Virginia with a Catholic prisoner in Alabama.
In 1994, I told a Catholic group the story of my journey from Judaism to the Catholic faith. One man asked afterward whether it would be OK if he forwarded my story to Paul Likoudis of The Wanderer Catholic newspaper.
I replied that Likoudis interviews bishops, organization leaders, and newsmakers; at the time I had not yet published my first Catholic book, website, or magazine article; and so surely Likoudis would not be interested in my journey. But the man said he knew Paul and that Paul would be interested, so I said OK. Paul called me up, and we spoke for three solid hours. The result was a full-page interview.
Russell Ford, an inmate in an Alabama penitentiary, saw the article and wrote to me. A correspondence ensued, and I soon realized that Russ was the world's leading Catholic evangelist operating inside a prison.
As the years passed, Russ and I continued to stay in touch. No holy apostolate can continue very long without demonic attacks. Russ had experienced plenty of them, but in my recollection one in particular stands out.
On that day, after Mass in the prison, as the priest-chaplain was processing out, a prison guard hit the priest hard. The reaction of the inmates made the guard realize that the situation was serious, so he quickly dragged the priest out of the chapel as the inmates streamed out of the pews. Instantly, Russ, the spiritual father of all Catholic inmates in that prison, got in front of the crowd of inmates and yelled "Stop!" Several inmates said, "Get out of the way, Russ. That man will never hit another priest." Russ told them, "If you so much as touch that guard, it will be the end of the Catholic faith here. We will be known as violent murderers. Jesus told us to turn the other cheek, even in this." Russ got the men quieted down, but he was pretty shaken himself and called me to discuss it.
Russ has kept busy. Working with a population consisting mainly of convicted murders, rapists, armed robbers, arsonists, and other prisoners, during his time in the penitentiary he has accumulated more than 70 godsons and over a hundred converts, most of them from pagan, agnostic or wayward Christian doctrinal origins. How many of us, working with much more gentle populations, have accomplished as much?
Along the way, Russ wrote "The Missionary's Catechism," a streetwise book that explains the Faith with rigorous accuracy in plain language. I wrote the foreword for it. He has also written a whole series of magazine articles for This Rock magazine explaining the Catholic faith.
He's still at it. As recently as July 2010, he wrote to me: "Does that mean you will become less busy? Oh no, my friend. It is our mission to burn ourselves up for Christ and the precious souls He places in our path." My reply was essentially, "Amen!"
Ite, missa est. Through these final Latin words of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we are sent forth to carry Christ's presence within us into the world to help those He has placed in our path.
Just as God has placed Russ in my path by my published article in The Wanderer, God has placed him now in your path with this article. Please allow me to share Russ' present, vital and urgent need. He has overcome normally insurmountable legal process obstacles in his legal proceedings by which he can overcome his coerced and unjust conviction. Anyone who gets to know Russ as I have knows that he is an innocent man unjustly convicted.
Only by the graces of God and intercession of our Blessed Mother along with countless novenas and prayers of the faithful, Russ has leaped over these legal obstacles and is now in Federal Court before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. The reality is that although his lay Catholic lead advocate and other legal personnel are donating (pro bono) their pricelessly valuable time, Russ lacks the funds to pay the essential, five figure direct and ancillary expenses to provide the essential elements to support and confirm essential facts that establish his innocence, primarily sophisticated DNA testing and results. Please pray and ask whether you would support Russ' effort to establish his innocence, set him free from his horrific bondage in an Alabama prison, and begin the actualization of Russ' awe-inspiring vision of his post-prison apostolate.