The timely deliverance of God's messenger

Jack O'Sullivan describes the tribulations of Fr Lawrence Jenco
FR JENCO said 25 million Hail Marys and rosaries during his 19-month imprisonment in Lebanon, six months of which he spent chained by his ankle to a wall.
"I would speak to God. I would say: 'God, I'm not Job'. I would say: 'Lord I trust you but I am still very much afraid' ", Fr Jenco explained last week, after delivering a message to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Robert Runcie, from his Moslem kidnappers, the Islamic Jihad.
Relatives said that Fr Jenco, formerly head of Catholic Relief Services in Lebanon, had been allowed to bathe once a day and had only two pairs of underwear — "one for washing and one for wear".
His diet was described as cheese for breakfast, beans and rice for lunch and bread and jam for dinner. Doctors say he is in satisfactory health, although he has a heart problem.
A nephew, Andrew Mihelich said his uncle "has forgiven his captors. He has no hate for anyone." He added: "He is a weak man. He was very fragile and very emotional. It did not take long before tears came to our eyes".
The 5I-year-old American Servite, looking tired and emotionally strained spent 24 hours here during a week-long diplomatic shuttle, which took him from Damascus to Germany and then Rome, London and Washington. He gave an identical confidential letter from his captors to the Pope as the one he gave to Dr Runcie. The archbishop's special envoy, Terry Waite, who played a key role in the priest's release, said the notes to the churchmen were of a religious nature, while the message to the United States leader was political.
Back home this week in Joliet, Illinois, Fr Jenco remained a pawn in what a Catholic source called a "dangerous chess game". At the weekend, the Islamic Jihad publicly discredited his mission. It denied it had sent the messages and threatened the lives of other hostages unless its demands were met.
see Analysis — page 3 and Frank Field — page 5 The denial is regarded as political posturing by Church negotiators.
Mr Waite, in response to the letters, said the Pope and Dr Runcie want "the captors to meet with me as soon as possible to help find a solution to the problems based on the tenets common to Islam and Christianity. It is our belief and our firm hope that there can be a resolution based on religious grounds".
Mr Waite appears keen to distance himself from connections with politicians such as President Reagan, emphasising the religious dimension. He said he was ready to return to the region "at any time" and urged the kidnappers to "come forward" for talks.
The Islamic Jihad, a Moslem fundamentalist group, still holds three other Americans and a dozen other foreigners in Lebanon.
While here, Fr Jenco spent the night at the Servite parish of Our Lady of Dolours, Fulham Road, south-west London. He did not meet Cardinal Hume, who is on holiday, but telephoned Archbishop's House to pay his respects.
At Lambeth Palace he had talks with Dr Runcie and spent ten minutes in the Archbishop's private chapel together with 11 family members and the United States ambassador Charles Price. He also had a surprise, tearful reunion with fellow hostage, American Presbyterian minister, the Rev Benjamin Weir, released last October.
It is understood that Mr Weir and Mr Waite had arranged to meet in London on that date before news of Fr Jenco's release. This suggests that Church authorities had prior knowledge of when the Servite would be freed.
Fr Jenco was well enough to talk to the Press only briefly, allowing Mr Waite to speak for him. But he became most animated when asked about his religious experience.
He found Psalms 116 and 118 particularly supportive when his captors finally allowed him a Bible. Psalm 118 declares at one point: "I shall not die but live and declare the works of the Lord".
He described a family thanksgiving service. "I came into the chapel and the Bible was open at the pages of the two psalms. I turned to my family and asked did anyone change the pages and my family said: 'No, the wind blew and changed them'."
He continued: "My faith in God was my sustaining force during my long months of captivity." Finally, he likened himself to the screen character, ET. "That's what I want to do — I want to go home".