Battle-Scarred: Justice Can Be Elusive
Somebody told me, “Everyone has their Church story.” Yet no one has had the experiences that John has had working for the Church and related endeavors. At least we hope that some of his experiences are unique! They have not all been sweet, but in hindsight most seem providential.
Okay, so he was basically forced out of a free country by an unhappy collusion of a pastor and his political cronies, but that providentially gave him time to write his first book in defense of Humanae Vitae. There are many today who have suffered at the hands of representatives of the Church. John hopes that his memoirs will be a source of encouragement for those who have met the Judas element not to abandon the Church.
Okay, so what if his defense of firefighters in Salina contributed to a pink slip? The upside was that it brought us providentially into contact with Dr. Konald Prem whose help was invaluable in starting an NFP organization.
Since John’s defense of the doctrine affirmed by Humanae Vitae started five years before the publication of the encyclical, he has rubbed shoulders with some of the pioneers and other key people in the history of the NFP movement in the United States. Now you can read a few words about them.
He shared a few non-controversial chapters with a priest who is a potential reviewer. The priest replied, “Reading about the history of the Humanae Vitae dissent in this book was fascinating because you were in the thick of the battle.”
The people who may benefit the most from this work are people who are currently engaged in or want to start an apostolic endeavor or any sort of small business but who are not experienced with the problems that can be encountered. Others who have lost their Catholic ministry or apostolate have confided in the Kippleys, and this book may help inexperienced entrepreneurs avoid the mistakes the Kippleys and others have made.
And for the record. In 1971 my husband and I formed an organization to provide the practical help of natural family planning to live out the demands of married love as clarified by Humanae Vitae. Our association with that organization came to an abrupt end in 2003. When that organization abandoned the primary charisms on which we had founded it, we formed a new organization to carry on the work we had started with the first. These memoirs will at least partially satisfy the curiosity of those who wonder what happened and why.
Battle-Scarred: Justice Can Be Elusive is now available through April 10 at a 30% discount. You can order it through the NFPI Home Page or go directly to www.lulu.com. In about 8 weeks it will be available through Amazon.
Sheila Kippley