Before I post, I have to admit that I haven't had time to read every post to this thread, so if I'm mentioning something that has already been said, please forgive me.
Ladies, I just attended a spiritual weekend, kind of like a retreat. It was specifically for women who have a family member incarcerated. Could be your husband, father, son, brother-in-law, nephew, etc. I wondered exactly why I was there since I don't have a loved one in prison (as of now), but after attending, I know exactly why I was there. (HP always has a good plan :0)
Without going into too much detail, let me just say I was put with other women who are going through exactly what I've gone through dealing with my addicted loved one - the anger, guilt, shame, resentment, fear, etc. And part of the weekend was the sharing by women who had been on this retreat before and now they've come to give back. They shared from their personal stories of how they've come to deal with their loved ones being in prison. It was a very eye opening experience and one I wouldnt' trade for anything.
Maybe I could say it was like a 2-day Al Anon meeting except the women attending all had "incarceration" as a common thread between them. It was just one of the most powerful and freeing things I've ever been too. The women came with their burdens, but when they left on Sunday afternoon, they said they felt like different women, letting their burdens (anger, fear, resentment, guilt) go.
It was no cult-like thing, nothing mysterious, no secret formulas. It was a weekend where God was invited in to help these women deal with the problems that are brought on by a loved one being incarcerated. The name of the weekend was Kairos Outside. If anyone is ever interested in attending one of these weekends, I'd be happy to try and see if there is one near you.
Hugs,
Hangin' In