[NYer]

John Pridmore is a former East End Gangster turned Christian who now travels internationally speaking to others about how his life changed. If you would like to learn more about John visit his website www.johnpridmore.com where you will find all three of his books available including his life story From Gangland to Promised Land.  This article was published on the website whyimcatholic.com.

[NYer]

Ping!

[9thLife]

ogawd the pro-testants are gonny love this.

[lee martell]

This is a fantastic story. At first I thought it was too long to even bother starting let alone finishing, but this man’s story of redemption is worth the time. He is very articulate and writes in a prosaic no-frills manner.
This is similar to other such stories with familiar archetypes; the thunderous epiphany of an anti-heroic protagonist. Some of these stories have been made into movies.

[If You Want It Fixed - Fix It]

As an ignorant Catholic, I’m glad he went to confession and received the Eucharist, and if there was ever a time when the rules need not apply, but rather the spirit, this one is an example, or maybe that further details my ignorance.....how could he receive confession and the Eucharist without having first received enough instruction....or was such instruction was waived as already understood in the valid decision of the priest that he experienced it in LIFE, that these were indeed his First Confession and his First Communion, by fire, indeed....hey, maybe I’m not so ignorant after all...I have a brain! Thank You God for helping me use it!

“Divorce is best for the child” - score another for terrible advice!

[ealgeone]

I walked out of that talk and said a prayer to Mary the mother of Jesus....

Well, he could have just asked Jesus straight up. No need to go through Mary. Paul never asked Mary what to do....nor did Peter, James, Luke, Matthew, Timothy, Stephen, etc, etc, etc.

[annalex]

I miss Fr. Corapi.

Lord God, bring tough men to Thy Church so that they can teach us how to love and how to persevere.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, amen.

[Bigg Red]

Amazing story. Thank you for posting this.

[Labyrinthos]

Thank-you. A story with similarities to my own.

[Albion Wilde]

"an old priest who told me about a retreat... When I got there it wasn’t like I had imagined but I saw about 200 young people who had a joy I had never seen before. Some of them came up and hugged me, well I don’t know if you know any ex-gangster’s, but we’re not into all that hugging business, I mean for girls it was fine but the guys please, you don’t hug other men around our way, you’d get slapped. "

Pithy!

[Biggirl]

A real CONVERSION story indeed! God Bless him!

[Paddyboy]

I saw this guy on “The Journey Home” on EWTN..he looks like a tough nut,which only made his story all the more compelling