Today, January 19th, the Ignatian network will join together across the U.S., praying in solidarity with immigrant members of their communities experiencing a great darkness rooted in marginalization.
The prayers, words, and actions offered up will be symbols of light for those who feel fear and uncertainty as our country navigates political transitions.
Can you help us amplify their prayers?
Today at 7 PM EASTERN, a massive social media campaign will be launched sharing this message of solidarity.
You can join via Twitter or Facebook and expand the networks that will encounter this message.
Prayers will take on many forms on campuses and at parishes:
• Students and faculty at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore will host a “walking candlelight vigil” in the campus student center amid the busy lunch hour.
• At Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City, New Jersey, undocumented students will share their experiences, the student choir will perform, and the prayer service will end with an opportunity to contact members of Congress to advocate for humane immigration policies.
• St. Agnes Church in San Francisco will pray in celebration as their parish community declares itself a “sanctuary church” that same day. Parishioners will begin the service at their Ignatian Spiritual Life Center and then move to the front steps of the church with candles to hold silent public vigil.
Throughout ISN’s history, calling for humane immigration policies has been a core commitment. Undocumented students and immigration advocates have inspired crowds at the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice. Graduates of Jesuit institutions have called on fellow alumni in Congress to act on comprehensive immigration reform legislation. And recently, we have been working to create a stronger network of support for undocumented persons at schools and parishes throughout the Ignatian network.
We don’t do this work alone, we are part of a larger network of faith-based institutions committed to lifting up a message of dignity for all immigrants, working in tandem with the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Justice for Immigrants Campaign and the Interfaith Immigration Coalition.
As a network, there will be much work to do in the coming days. We will continue to need your support in the form of your prayers, voice, and action.
Thank you being part of the Ignatian Solidarity Network and for standing in solidarity for the dignity of immigrants.
Peace,
Christopher G. Kerr
Executive Director
