FRANCISCAN PEACEMAKER BEGINS JAIL SENTENCE
January 30, 2010
Dear Friends at Pace e Bene,
Well, here we are again. You are probably aware that I was arrested, with three others, at the School of the Americas Watch action at Fort Benning, Georgia last November, just before joining the “March to Gaza,” which took us to Israel (the Occupied Territories of Palestine) and Egypt. (We did not make it into Gaza.) I returned to face trespassing charges in Columbus, Georgia on January 25.
We each received sentences of six months in federal prison. The two others present chose “self-report” at a later date when an opening was available in a federal facility. I did not take that option (even when Judge Faircloth offered to waive the $250 additional bond). I felt it was better to begin the sentence immediately as I have done the last couple of times I have been sentenced. That is the fate of most who come to court and it seemed right for me. The adjustment is a bit rougher (even the judge recognized that there are less perks in county jail, but I have been through it before).
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http://paceebene.org/louie-vitale-s-letters-jail-january-30-2010 pace e bene and love to all,
Louie
ALL THE LETTERS:
http://paceebene.org/letters-louie Jan 30,2010 -- July 4, 2010
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MY FAITH JOURNEY
by Friar Louie Vitale
I was born June 1,1932 into an Italian Catholic family and culture, with baptism being top of the chronology of religious rituals. Next on the agenda should have been religious instruction culminating in first communion preceded by confession, but through some dissatisfaction with the old Mission San Gabriel, my parents did not attend mass and I did not make those steps at the usual age of seven.
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http://paceebene.org/friar-louies-letters-my-faith-journey